Wine Cellars
The popularity of wine tasting and collecting as a hobby has placed a great deal of attention on the proper methods of storing and serving wine. For both amateur and serious collectors, a wine cellar is the most basic and required piece of “equipment”. A wine cellar, however, can come in a large number of sizes and styles and serve for both short and long term storage needs.
Why can’ t wine be kept in a kitchen cupboard? While the kitchen is the ideal place for most consumable foods and beverages, the variation in temperatures and humidity that occur in a traditional kitchen make it a poor location for wine. Additionally, the amount of activity in a kitchen might cause disturbance, vibration and excessive amounts of light to diminish the quality and overall taste of the wine.
What about the wine racks sold at kitchen and home goods stores? These are actually a terrible location to keep wine, as so many of them end up on top of a refrigerator, or next to a toaster or coffee maker on a kitchen counter, both areas that have high temperatures and which are brightly lit.
Realistically, one of the greatest locations for an “at home” wine cellar is a little used closet or corner of a somewhat dry, cool basement. Such conditions are perfect for both short term and long term wine storage.
What is “short term” wine storage? Generally, short term storage is for bottles of wine intended to be used within a six month period of their purchase, or from when they were removed from long term wine cellar storage. The conditions for short term storage are best kept close to those for the longer periods, meaning that the bottles should be in a position that keeps the cork completely moistened (which requires the proper “pitch” to the rack as well as adequate humidity in the storage environment), a stable or regular temperature (all wines tend to do very well when kept at an average of fifty-five to sixty degrees Fahrenheit), and an area free of disruption or strong vibration. This means that the wine racks or wine cellar must be sturdy and stable and at a distance from such areas as laundry rooms, heavily trafficked areas of the home, and anywhere that puts the racks at risk of disturbance (this prevents sediments from being re-distributed into the wines and may disrupt their “evolution” or aging process). A final caution about the location of a wine cellar or wine racks involves odors; it is imperative that the bottles be stored far away from anything that has a strong odor, including cleaning products or chemicals, dried herbs or flowers, or anything else that may transfer its aroma to the wine.
For long term storage, the needs are almost identical, with the main difference being a stronger vigilance on temperatures and humidity. Because long term storage means a wine will age over the months or years in the wine cellar, it is important to understand any effects the environment will have on the process, and ultimately on the wine. Temperatures below fifty-five degrees will slow the aging of a wine, and this can be a desired effect for those who wish to keep older vintages stable. Unfortunately, this may affect younger wines adversely, which makes the preferred standard temperature a “constant” of fifty-five to sixty degrees. Humidity over a long period of time can mean mold or mildew, and the loss of labels in an area that is too damp. While humidity is a necessity for any good wine cellar, it is important to keep the area at a constant level humidity.
Such delicate balances have made larger wine refrigerators very popular for home wine cellars. These can be set at the most ideal levels, and are free of any vibrations from pumps and motors that a standard household refrigerator experiences.
