- Do I need to bother with wine storage?
- Are there any special considerations with storing wine?
- Okay, what temperature should I store my wine at?
- How long should I store my wine?
Yes, wine has a few special requirements when it comes to storage. You can't just shove it onto a shelf in your pantry or liquor cabinet. Well, you can, but it's not a great option. Wine storage is really pretty simple though, so no need to worry. In a nutshell, store wine on its side, in the dark, at a stable, cool temperature.
Store Wine On Its Side
Most wine is still bottled with real cork, or some derivative thereof, though a lot of other closures are making advances into the market. Cork is the reason wine is stored on its side. Over time, the cork in an upright bottle of wine can dry out and lose its seal. This can allow contaminants - even pure clean air can cause a wine to oxidize and turn to crap in a bottle. Storing wine on its side keeps the cork in constant contact with the wine, keeping it moist and allowing it to maintain a good seal for a decades, even centuries!
Store Wine in a Cool, Dark Place and Leave It Alone
Wine is best kept in the dark. Wine cellars are traditionally dark and bottles generally colored glass for this reason. Light and wine don't get along. A few bottles in a countertop rack in your kitchen is fine, so long as you drink them before too long, but even then, don't stash a few bottles on your window sill…
Temperature is one of the most important considerations, both during the fermentation process and in cellaring. Wine likes a constant, cool temperature, with 50-80% relative humidity in the air (70% is spot on).
Somewhere between 50 and 60 degrees Fahrenheit will do nicely, so long as it's stable. Temperatures that are too high or temperatures that change rapidly will cause your wine to age too quickly - not a graceful ageing, but more a leathery skinned Jerry Springer talk show guest, hacking around her home rolled cigarette kind of ageing...
Lastly, store your wine in a clean space, with decent ventilation and leave it be. Take it out when you're ready to drink it, not just to check out the cool label again.
How long you lay a wine down (I'm all fancy with the jargon), if at all, depends on the wine. A cheap box of chablis blanc isn't getting any better, so you may as well hold your nose and drink it, so you can buy something better, while a quality cabernet sauvignon can reach perfection in 3 to 10 years and a nice chardonnay might be perfect 2 weeks after you take it home. No amount of careful cellaring will make a bad wine good, or even better, and quality wines have different optimum ages.
In Theory, Wine Gets Better With Age
Drinking a wine too soon is bad, but drinking a wine too late is even worse. Imagine you've let a cherished bottle rest for 10 years only to find that it was best 5 years ago. Every vintage is different, but a rough guide follows. When in doubt, ask the winery.
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Wine Type
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Years
|
|
Cabernet- Merlot Blends
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2-8
|
|
Cabernet Sauvignon
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3-10
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|
Cabernet-Shiraz Blends
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3-10
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Chardonnay
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0-5
|
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Merlot
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2-5
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Pinot Noir
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2-5
|
|
Port non-vintage
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0-5
|
|
Port vintage
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5-20
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|
Riesling
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0-8
|
|
Shiraz
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2-5
|
|
Sparkling Wines Non-Vintage (Champagne)
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0-2
|
|
Sparkling Wines Vintage (Champagne)
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5-8
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Further Reading on Wine Storage
Wine Cellars - Information about wine cellars, both self-contained and built-in, including explanation of options and buying tips.
Wine Racks - Everything you ever wanted know about wine racks and bins, including types, plans and buying tips.
Back to the Wine Storage FAQs
