Wine can help you have a good day and a bad day. Are you surprised? Wine can give your day a perfectly refreshing experience after a tough day, but only if you’ve provided the wine with a chilled environment like the wine cooler. You can have a bad day when your wine tastes awful.
We make a few wine storage mistakes, including winemakers, that put our wines in bad conditions. Wine is extremely sensitive to major elements like heat, air, light, and vibrations.
If these factors are controlled, you won’t have to bother much about the condition of your wine. If you are a red wine enthusiast, you must know what temperature to store red wine. Or else, you might be providing too much or less.
Let’s look at some mistakes you must completely avoid if you want to keep storing wine:
1. Don’t store wine in the fridge
Ideally, the temperature range for most wines is between 45-66°F, and because the regular fridge cannot give that temperature, no wine belongs in the fridge. Not only is the temperature a factor in the kitchen fridge, but humidity is also another huge factor.
If the condition of the fridge is too dry, the cork can constrict. This results in gradual air release into the air. Air will oxidize the wine, making a mess of its flavor and taste.
2. Near appliances that emit heat
The heat released from kitchen appliances like the oven, stove, and dishwasher isn’t good for your wine. Avoid putting your wine fridge very close to the oven. Too much heat can cook wine. For example, red wine can taste like vinegar if the temperature increases to 77-80°F.
The kitchen should be avoided as it is likely the hottest place in your house. You may want to consider keeping your wines in a wine cooler or a cooler place like a basement if you have one. At all costs, avoid the kitchen.
3. Avoid the window
UV light from the sun does great damage to wine. The sun is capable of causing your favorite, newly bought wine to age. This is why winemakers put wines into dark bottles to serve as storage against the light. Perhaps you go to a store, and they keep wines beside the window but don’t make a purchase. Quickly take your leave, and go elsewhere, probably a recommended store.
4. Drinking it too slowly
For some of you who like taking wines very slowly, this isn’t a very good habit. After opening the cork, your wine can stay for only a day or two. If they are young wines, they can stay for two weeks under good condition.
5. Avoid standing wine bottles
If you observe closely, you’ll see that wine racks are designed to lie bottles. This is to keep the cork moist from drying. If the cork of your wine dries up, air will penetrate it and spoil the wine.
6. Avoid vibrations
Don’t place wines on top of your refrigerator; you’d be making two mistakes: standing wine bottles and exposing wines to vibrations. Also, don’t place wines inside the car. Regular movements can affect the quality of your wine.
Conclusion
Storing wine is not easy. There are many factors to consider. Light is an important factor, and dim light should be provided. Low or high moisture is also a big problem you must avoid.