Do You Know How To Properly Store Your Wine?
Most people understand that when it comes to storing wine, there are certain guidelines that should be followed. Just as the act of opening and serving a special bottle of your favorite vintage carries with it a sense of ceremony, wine storage guidelines, if properly observed, will enhance your wine-drinking experience.
You’re likely familiar with a few of these tips already — the fact that bottles of wine should be stored on their sides, perhaps; or that whites are best enjoyed when served chilled. Here, we’ll take you through the finer points, including the reasons for each golden rule, to ensure that your wine investment is put to its best use.
How To Store Your Wine
Red Wines
Rule number one: Keep temperatures consistent, neither too hot nor too cold. The “ideal” temperature for serving a premium red is 55 degrees Fahrenheit, but anywhere between 45 and 65 degrees will work best. Any higher than 70 degrees and the wine is in danger of spoiling; anything cooler, and you won’t enjoy the fullness of the bouquet that the vintners intended.
Light — especially sunlight — is nearly as much of an enemy to wines as fluctuating temperatures. In fact, that’s why the majority of red wines are stored in dark bottles to begin with — in order to keep the light from seeping in. Keeping your bottles in a specially selected storage unit will ensure that no UV rays will harm your product.
If your wine has a cork, it’s a good idea to store it horizontally, to ensure that the cork remains moist. This is less important if the bottle has a screw cap, but horizontal storage is still the most space-efficient method.
White and Sparkling Wines
Premium whites should be enjoyed at colder temps than their red brethren — preferably between 45 and 50 degrees Fahrenheit. If it’s a sparkling wine, such as Champagne or Prosecco, 50 to 55 degrees is optimal. Since home refrigeration units tend to be set several degrees colder than this in order to maintain food safety, it’s a good idea to invest in a specialized cooling unit. If this is not a possibility, take your bottle of white wine out of the fridge for 10 to 15 minutes before serving, to allow its temperature to rise slightly.
Most white wines are best enjoyed within two to three years; any longer, and the flavors will lose their brightness. However, sparkling wines, as well as some fuller-bodied and/or sweet whites, such as Chardonnay, Riesling, and Sauternes, can be aged for slightly longer — up to eight years. If you have a number of wines such as these in your collection, they should be stored at a temperature of between 52 to 57 degrees Fahrenheit before being chilled and served.
Note that the warnings against bright light and fluctuating temperatures apply to whites and sparkling wines as well. Stability is the key.
Remember: you’ve invested a lot of time and money in your wine collection, so you’ll want to make the most out of enjoying those bottles to the fullest when the time comes.
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Amazing Spaces is Houston, Spring, and The Woodlands area’s premier provider of self-storage and moving supplies. Amazing Spaces aims to provide everyone with the most remarkable storage experience possible. The properties offer highly secured storage spaces, fully climatized units, and a customer service experience unlike any other.
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