By the numbers, I probably already know the answer. According to several recent polls and studies by the wine industry, 95% of wine drinkers buy a bottle of wine and drink it within five days. Five days! In our “I-want-it-now” society, we want to buy a bottle that is ready to drink NOW. I mean, who in the world buys a bottle of wine and stashes it away for 5, 10, even 40 years?! Who has somewhere, like a wine cellar, to achieve something like that? How do you even go about storing a bottle of wine for that long and count on it being good decades later?
Furthermore, why put the effort into figuring out what wine can be aged and then make sure it is properly stored, when you can just grab a bottle you just walked past that has “92” points on it?
You do it because you end up with better wine for less money! More on that “92” points next month.
Well, leave it up to the wine enthusiast diehards, myself among them, that still practice the crazy religion of buying “ageable” wine and storing it for years, and, as I have found, that 95% number doesn’t tell the whole story. Many of you dabble in keeping a “special bottle” or two around the house for that special occasion. So here are a few pointers on storing that bottle and some basics on designing your own personal wine space.
There are two main rules for storing wine. First, it MUST be out of any sunlight; even indirect sunlight is bad. Sunlight will begin destroying the flavor molecules even in that $8.99 gas station bottle. Second, try to find a place where the temperature stays CONSTANT and preferably lower than 70 degrees F (around 55F is best for all wine, red and white). Wine can be stored at 70F, or hotter, but it won’t keep longer than a few months at that high of a temperature. Humidity, or lack thereof, is a consideration, but our location along the Gulf Coast minimizes that concern. Your bottle also doesn’t need to be in a wine rack, on its side, unless you are planning on keeping it for more than five years. Screw top? Don’t lay screw tops on their side, and surprisingly it could still benefit from an additional year in the bottle. I just returned from my annual trip to Napa, Lodi and Amador with two screw top bottles that the winemaker said would benefit from another year in the bottle.
Now if you really want to dive into aging wine, you will need dedicated wine storage, and the sky is the limit. Most people start with a basic wine rack (please not on the kitchen counter please). Then a wine fridge. The next step is all in; designing and building your own exclusive wine cellar. You may convert a storage closet, a guest bedroom that never gets used, even plan a dedicated wine room on a new build. No matter what design you choose, the basics are still the same; no sun light and a constant cool temperature. But that’s just the start.
Your design will need to consider access and a storage medium, i.e., wine racks. Make sure that the door to your wine space opens fully and doesn’t contact any of the bottles or whatever you use to hold your bottles. Do you want to drink in your wine space or have it for storage only? If your design includes drinking make sure that you have enough room to open a bottle (I have seen someone knock a bottle off a shelf as they uncorked another). Do you want to have friends over; should your tasting table have chairs or standing room only? Finally, ensure that whatever you use to hold your bottles is sturdy enough for the amount that you plan on keeping. The last thing you want is to hear the sound of bottles crashing down because you picked the flimsiest wine rack that you could find.
I have seen the full gambit of designs; basic, yet efficient spaces used as great wine storage and then some of the most exquisite, amazing wine displays meant to Wow any wine drinker. It is quite an investment, and not just in the creation of your private wine space. Next month we will discuss how to pick those investment-grade “ageable” wines, and before you know it you just might find yourself on a Wine Safari, hunting for that next special bottle!
Two main rules for storing wine: Store wine away from sunlight and at a stable temperature.
Ensure that whatever you use to hold your bottles is sturdy enough for the amount that you plan on keeping.
