5 Tips for Storing Wine

Meta: If you have a high-quality bottle of wine that you would like to keep for a special occasion or add to a collection, we have put together some tips on storing wine for you.

If you are like us, and ike to think of yourself as a bit of a wine buff - but aren’t one of the lucky ones with an expansive wine cellar in your home that’s temperature controlled and gleaming with chrome and gold - then don’t worry we have some wine storage tips for you that will ensure it retains its quality.

Make Sure it’s Stored at the Right Temperature

If you have invested in some good quality wines or champagne that you can find on Millesima - and don’t want them to mature too quickly, keeping them at the right temperature is important. The optimum temperature to make sure the maturation is steady is between 10-13 degrees celsius. It’s also worth noting that you should try to avoid storing your wine in places where it is likely the temperature could change frequently i.e in a greenhouse or shed. If you store your wine somewhere that is too cold or hot - this could affect its quality. If you store your wine in the fridge for too long, what tends to happen is that the corks will end up hardening, resulting in air getting in. This means you will be left with stale wine.

Make Sure it’s Not too Light

When storing wine, a dark place is always the best way to go. Sunlight can cause damage to your wine and cause it to age prematurely. Wherever possible keep it away from UV rays. Standard household light bulbs tend to not cause too many problems however it could end up fading the label on it.

Humidity

Humidity is another consideration when you are storing wine. Ideally, it shouldn’t go over the 70% mark. There are some great humidity checker apps that you can use so you can gauge this with ease. Should it be too humid, mold could grow on your bottles which will end up in the labels on your bottles being destroyed.

Don’t Let your Wine Get Shaken up

It’s important that there isn’t any vibration that could affect the wine. If you have a utility room for example where you keep a tumble dryer or washing machine - then this wouldn’t be a good place to store the wine. Due to the vibration it can cause the sediments to be disturbed, which means this would then cause chemical reactions and the flavor of the wine will be dulled.

It should be Stored Horizontally

When storing your wine, you should always do this horizontally. This will keep the cork moist which is what you need for long-term storage. If the cork ends up drying out it means that the wine will age too quickly.

If you have some nice bottles of wine that you want to keep as part of a collection, or save for a special occasion - then you do need to ensure that you store them effectively. By doing so they will retain their taste and age well.