Home and Lifestyle - Beer, Wine and Spirits

Temperature controlled wine cabinets can provide an ideal solution for home wine storage where there is no space to build a wine cellar. Wine cabinets are built to match as closely as possible the conditions found in a wine cave. The temperature for these units is set between 55 and 60 degrees and the humidity is maintained between 60% and 70%. Temperature and humidity fluctuations are therefore avoided, and wine can age as the winemaker intended.

Exposure to ultra violet light is extremely harmful to wine and both sun and artificial light should be avoided. Ultraviolet light will damage a wine by causing degradation of otherwise stable compounds, causing unfavorable and irreversible changes in the wine. Clear glass bottles are most susceptible to this problem, but wine in dark glass can be damaged as well. The usually stable organic compounds, including the tannins, contribute to the aroma, flavor and structure of the wine.

Most wine cabinets have dark glass doors to reduce the UV light. This is a feature worth including if you are thinking of purchasing this type of home wine storage.

Tips For Building A Wine Cellar

One of the great joys of building a wine cellar
is being able to select a bottle to accompany a special meal, perhaps a
bottle that you’ve been storing for some years, draw the cork and enjoy
it with friends.

However, wine is an ever-changing thing and how it is stored will
directly affect howquickly and how well it ages and therefore how much
you are going to enjoy it when you take it from the cellar.

Storing wine is very simple … It requires a constant temperature,
humidity, darkness, stillness and a well-ventilated and clean
environment.

The first essential is to create a well insulated environment for your
wine that provides the basics of stable temperature, no light and no
vibration. Polystyrene is an excelent insulation material and you may
want to consider lining your storage space with this product.

The insulation will assist in keeping the temperature stable, however,
you need a constant temperature of between 50?F and 59?F (10?C ? 15?C)
to allow your wines to age with grace. Seasonal temperature changes
will not harm your wine, although fluctuations greater than one degree
a week should be avoided.

Wines stored in less than ideal conditions will age at speeds quite
different to those envisaged by winemakers when they offer suggested
storage times. A hygro thermometer in your wine cellar or storage area
will provide you with accurate information on temperature and humidity
ranges within your cellar.

An alternative to building a wine cellar
is a temperature controlled wine cabinet. Some of these can hold up to
800 bottles but note that some manufacturers’ suggested bottle capacity
can be misleading and the racks may be smaller than you require.
Champagne bottles are wider in circumference than Riesling bottles!