Good wine improves with age, but only under the right conditions! The wine cooler is the ideal solution but know that your house or apartment can also be a suitable option for storing your wine during summer. The main thing is to create the most suitable temperature for red wine.
This article will show you how to store your wine during summer in the best possible way, making it retain all its properties and keep tasting up to your expectations.
Below is a breakdown of the steps to store red wine during the summer:
1. Evaluate the Wine You Want to Store
Before thinking about the storage of your red wine, it is necessary to make the difference between wines with aging potential and those to be consumed quickly.
The first thing to know is that most red wines sold do not last more than a year or two. Storing a $20 bottle for several years will not make it taste better or increase its value. It even risks “turning sour”!
Conversely, a bottle of good red wine can be kept for decades because it improves with age. These wines are expensive, precious, and will require patience.
Certain exceptional bottles require a period of aging before consumption that can exceed 20 years. For collectors of these grands’ crus, an aging cellar is essential. Regardless of the value of the wine, it is always useful to get advice from a winemaker or a wine merchant.
2. Avoid Direct Sunlight
Sunlight is the enemy of your wine. Ultraviolet rays cause oxidation and give your bottles a “taste of light. “A pronounced odor often identifies this aromatic alteration.
Red wine stored in white glass is particularly sensitive to direct sunlight and offers less protection than darker bottles. For the latter, a good solution is to wrap them in tissue paper.
A dark, cool room is necessary to store red wines appropriately during the summer. Be sure to store your wines in a dark room (if possible, without windows) with low-intensity light bulbs and no neon lights.
3. Keep a Constant Temperature Wine Cellar
Keeping the wine at the right temperature is essential. This has a direct impact on the evolution of the bottle. Do not confuse tasting temperature and aging temperature.
Professionals ideally recommend a temperature of 12° C to store all types of wine: white, red, champagne, and rosé. It can be difficult to follow this instruction to the letter, but make sure not to exceed 18°C.
Beyond the degrees, the sudden temperature change must be avoided. Thermal shocks will indeed alter the quality of the wine. So be sure to maintain a stable temperature by paying attention to heating and cooling systems.
4. Watch the Humidity Level
To preserve your red wine, the humidity level must be around 70% to preserve your red wine. The corks may dry out and allow the wine to evaporate. Above that, mold may appear on bottles, but not harmful.
To manage this humidity level, it is essential to obtain a hygrometer. For those who have a cellar, it will be necessary to water the soil from time to time.
If you want to store your red wine in a home or apartment, electric wine cellars or wine cabinets provide temperature and humidity control.
5. Store Red Wines in Large Containers
Keep in mind that the smaller the bottle, the faster it must be consumed. This is the case of half-bottles which oxidize in a short time. If you plan to keep it for more than ten years, professionals recommend storing it in a magnum-type format.
6. Lay your Bottles Down
Arrange your bottles lying vertically. It may seem practical to store a few bottles above a cabinet to “save space,” but be aware that the vertical position can cause the cork to dry out and spoil your wine by letting in oxygen. It is, therefore, crucial to store wine on its side.
Also, avoid moving your bottles too often. For this reason, it is preferable to be able to remove each bottle individually without moving the others. So be careful not to stack wine bottles on top of each other.
Final Thoughts:
As we have seen, good wine storage requires respecting certain parameters, especially during summer. The solutions available to you depend on your budget and the configuration of your accommodation. The luxury option is to arrange a dedicated room with a temperature and humidity control system.
We hope you find these tips helpful. Storing wine is a very precise process. In the fight against UV rays, a stable ambient temperature and humidity are essential for your red wine to age well during the summer.
