How to Store Wine at Home

Some wines do improve with age, provided that they are stored correctly. Most wines purchased for home use do not age well in part due to less-than-ideal storage conditions. Here is how to correctly store your fine wine collection.

An important issue to keep in mind with wine storage is that most wines do not age well and should be consumed within one year. If you thought the wine bottle you saved from your wedding day will last until your 25th wedding anniversary, when that day comes you may find that you keepsake has turned into vinegar. Only fine wines produced in good years by quality vineyards are likely to improve with age, and only if they are stored under ideal conditions.

One of the first rules for storing wine properly is to maintain a consistent temperature. Ideally, that should be about 55°F, which is a normal below-ground temperature found in natural wine cellars. If that is not possible given your living accommodations, you might want to invest in a temperature-controlled wine cellar cabinet. Many of these units are not very expensive and some can be built into kitchen cabinets areas.

Warm storage temperatures will degrade the quality of wine over time and it will not age well. Warm temperatures actually prematurely age wines. Cold temperatures can also negatively impact wine if the temperature falls below freezing. Given that cooler storage temperatures are better than warmer temperatures, if you cannot find or cannot afford an ideal temperature controlled storage environment, the best place to keep your wines is in the refrigerator. You can always remove remove red wines and wines served at warmer temperatures before you serve them.

If wines are stored for 5 years or more, humidity can be an issue. While humidity will not directly affect the wine inside of a bottle, too little humidity can cause the corks to dry out, which can cause wine to seep out or air to enter the bottles. Conversely, too much humidity can cause labels to fall of the bottles, but this is far less of a problem than when the corks dry out.

Wine bottles should be stored horizontally at up to a 10 degree angle. This keeps the wine in contact with the cork and helps to prevent it from drying out, which prevents air from entering the bottle and spoiling the wine. When serving wine, air is beneficial to oxygenate the wine and bring out the flavor, but when storing wine, air is an enemy.

Remember that most wines should be consumed during the first year, but if you need to store wine, follow these guidelines and you may be able to enjoy your wine collection for several years after the purchase.