Whether you’re the proud owner of a smart collection of superior claret and mature burgundy, or the thirsty and (very) temporary custodian of a few bottles of cheap wine to drink immediately, you’ll need to decide where to keep your wine. And if he’s not lucky enough to have access to a suitable cellar, the question can be tricky.
On top of the kitchen fridge? Under the stairs? In the cupboard next to the kitchen? In most houses and apartments there are several options. Often it is simply a case of practicality: the wine goes where there is space, and there it ends. But there are, however, some points that should be taken into account if you want to get the most out of your bottles.
What wine should I keep and what do you need to drink?
Perhaps the first thing to decide is which wine to keep and which can realistically be drunk as quickly as good manners allow. This is not an easy question to answer. Assuming you can’t get any sensible guidance from the people you got the stuff from, here are some ground rules. Like all general rules, they are subject to a large number of exceptions, but they are as good a starting point as any.
The cheaper and lighter the wine, the more likely it is that you want to drink it young. This is particularly true of crisp whites and pinks. As these wines age, they lose their freshness and vibrancy. Rounder, fuller-bodied whites will often keep for a few years and sometimes even improve. Good quality white Burgundy is an example; there are others too. You should treat your low-priced, light red wine the same way you treat its white cousins: Don’t let it sit in the air. Once again, the fuller, more structured and of a higher quality the wine, the more likely it is to improve with age. Some reds, the best Bordeaux and Burgundy wines being obvious examples, are virtually undrinkable until years after bottling. As time passes, the tannin (the substance that causes hairy gums) softens and the wine becomes smoother, not to mention more complex at the same time. Many sweet wines will keep for years; sugar acts like a condom. Aged champagne can last a long time, while its non-vintage equivalent will often benefit from a year or two in the cellar to soften its acidity. Unfortunately, however, there are no hard and fast rules. Give us a call if you have something special and want to know when you need to drink.
Having decided what needs to be kissed and what needs to be held on, the next question is how and where to hold on. Here are some things to keep in mind when putting together your storage plan.
oxygen
The biggest common enemy of wine is oxygen. Yes, for some high quality wines the very gradual oxidation that occurs over the years is an important part of the maturation process. But, in the case of most wines, any significant contact with fresh air should be firmly avoided, lest they turn to vinegar in an excruciatingly short period of time. The purpose of the cork, of course, is to keep out the dripping stuff, and one of the reasons for the increasing use of screw caps is that, unlike its more natural alternative, it offers an absolutely airtight seal, particularly important in fresh and crisp products. white wines intended to be drunk young. What is the best way to keep oxygen out? That brings us to the question of temperature…
Temperature
Now, the most likely thing that will lead to increased oxygen contact with the wine is a fluctuating temperature. Because? Because as the temperature rises, the air already in the bottle expands and forces its way through the cork. Then when things cool down again the opposite happens and the air is sucked back in. Repeated cycles will greatly increase the rate of oxidation. For this reason, a constant temperature is the first thing to think about, and perhaps even the most important. Small, gradual changes—from one season to another, for example—shouldn’t hurt—even many purpose-built underground cellars will show a steady rise and fall from winter to summer, and vice versa—but frequent changes of more than a few degrees are likely to be harmful over time. So it’s best to avoid the top of the fridge because it spews out hot air by the gallon from time to time. Also, stay away from the cupboard by the kitchen, and of course, radiators and wood-burning stoves. Instead, find a place in the house where the temperature remains stable, day after day.
The second thing to remember about temperature is this. The warmer the conditions, the faster the wine will mature. This is simple science. Heat increases the rate of reaction. In the case of wine, its oxidation will accelerate as the ambient temperature increases. The ideal range is said to be between 11 and 13°C, which won’t be achieved in a modern house without a basement, but it’s worth avoiding places that are particularly hot: in the sun by a south-facing window, for example. , or in the boiler room.
Humidity
It is also worth thinking about humidity. What you want to avoid is allowing the cork to dry out because this will cause it to shrink, and when this happens you lose the seal, another surefire way to let air in. In practice, of course, it is difficult to regulate the humidity in your house; the slightly humid traditional cellar is ideal but difficult to repeat in homes.
So another way to help keep the cork moist is to keep it in contact with the wine. It is for this reason that wine to be stored is often ‘banked’, which effectively means stored on its side. It can be easily achieved with the use of most cheap wine racks; we think the common model made of metal and wood does a pretty good job.
Light
So much for oxygen. Unfortunately, light is another thing to be careful of; it, and particularly direct sunlight, can damage and cause wine failure. This is one of the reasons why the glass in many wine bottles is tinted rather than clear. So the darker the better when it comes to storage.
movement
Finally, wine does not like to be moved very much. Stirring wine, either by carrying it around the house regularly or by subjecting it to periodic vibrations (leaving it next to the washing machine or on old boards that flex when walked on) will prematurely age a wine by putting energy into the bottle and accelerating thus the chemical evolution of its content, which would otherwise be much slower.
Conclusion and a couple of alternatives
Obviously, finding the ideal place to store your wine is not an easy task. Don’t worry too much about bottles you don’t plan to keep for long. A week or two, or even a month or two, of harsh treatment won’t necessarily mess things up. But where you plan to hold on to it for a while, it’s worth thinking about. Given the various considerations outlined above, you might be thinking that the kitchen isn’t the best bet after all. Interestingly, the cupboard under the stairs sometimes works well, but for many people, there’s just no obvious answer. In such circumstances, and if you’re lucky enough to get your hands on some really special things, it probably makes sense to pay for commercial storage. This is not really that expensive. Typically you expect to pay a few pounds each year per case for the luxury of (theoretically) perfect conditions. Inevitably, prices drop as volumes increase, so the more good wine you have, the cheaper it will be to store. Alternatively, there are climate controlled storage cabinets on the market, although these are expensive. In both cases, there are currently several options.