The love of wine has existed since the dawn of time. Fossil vines, 60-million-years-old, are the earliest scientific evidence of grapes. The earliest written account of viniculture is in the Old Testament of the Bible which tells us that Noah planted a vineyard and made wine (well with all those animals on the Ark what was he expected to do!)

Exactly when it was discovered is unknown, but an ancient Persian fable credits a lady of the court with the discovery of wine. This Princess, having lost favor with the King, attempted to poison herself by eating some table grapes that had spoiled in a jar. She became intoxicated and giddy and fell asleep. When she awoke, she found the stresses that had made her life intolerable had dispersed. Returning to the source of her relief, her subsequent conduct changed so remarkably that she regained the King’s favor. He shared his daughter’s discovery with his court and …

The wine industry and consumption continues to grow every year. Wine connoisseur are continually buying great wine to keep either for later consumption or for investment.

One of the most important aspects to ensure your wine stays fresh during storage is the wine storage temperature.

The basics of wine storage temperature are fairly simple. First, the wine should be kept cool. Like most beverages and foods, heat is the natural enemy of wine. A cool temperature is optimal, but the temperature should not lowered too much as this too will harm the wine. In the unlikely event that the wine freezes, it will probably only be suitable for vinegar!

The basics of wine storage are really straightforward with whites, reds, and blushes. However, the serving preparation for each of these wine types is different and something worth discussing. After removing the bottle from storage, getting your wine to the correct temperature is important. With red wines, such as a merlot or sheraz, approximately 65 degrees Fahrenheit (18 degrees Celsius) is what is recommended. This is basically room temperature. Secret tip: in a room of about 70 degrees Fahrenheit the wine, due to being a liquid will naturally be cooler. It is highly advised to not chill red wines. This is a more common error than you think, the cold can be very destructive on the wine and its flavor.

With whites and many blushes the need for refrigeration before serving is key. Chilling truly brings out the flavor. For these types of wine 39 degrees Fahrenheit or 4 degrees Celsius is usually a good temperature.

In the case of both darker wines and the lighter types, it is advisable to let the bottle ‘breathe’ after opening. It is recommended you do this about half an hour before drinking (longer is often better)

Now to tasting. Swish the wine around the mouth to truly get the most out of the flavor. I however recommend drinking as opposed to spitting it out!

In the end ENJOY the wine, it is after all a pleasure that has been with us for centuries.

If you compare your home refrigerator and a wine refrigerator, some differences will become apparent. A food refrigereator is kept well below 50 degrees fahrenheit, much too cold for a wine refrigerator. Wine should be stored at around 55 degrees. Another difference between the two refrigerators is the the one for food is opened multiple times during a day. Opening a wine refrigerator that many times would make it very hard for the refrigerator to maintaing the correct temperature.

The Size of a Wine Refrigerator

You may wonder which size of wine refrigerator to choose. There are a number of models and choices. Some wine refrigerators hold 6 bottles while other models hold 20 or more bottles. The six bottle units sit nicely of your counter top while you will need some floor space for the bigger models. One of the advantages of the bigger wine refrigerators is the individual cooling compartments. This allows you to put red, white or rose in the wine refrigerator and each type of wine will have its own section.

What Temperature Should I Store My Wine?

Storage of wine can be critical to the final product in your glass. Too warm and the wine will age to fast but too cold is just as harmful as the colder temperatures don’t allow the natural aging process to continue. Different wines have different temperature tolerances. If you are a fan of blush, rose or dry white wines or even light red wines, then that dial for temperature should be set to between 40 and 52 degrees. Don’t put your champagne or other sparkling wines in the wine refrigerator. The temperature for full-bodied wine should be stored at temperatures in the 52 to 60 degree range. These temperatures in your wine refrigerators makes for a much better end product.

The Difference between a Wine Cellar and a Wine Refrigerator

Basically the difference relates to the amount of wine that can be stored. Obviously the wine cellar will hold more bottles and is much more expensive since it usually takes up one or more rooms in your house. These rooms are usually in a basement that gets litte light and essentially acts like a big refrigerator with different “temperature zones” for different wines that you’re storing. While the idea of a wine cellar may be very attractive to the wine enthusiast, they had better have deep pockets. They are quite a bit more expensive than even the best wine refrigerator.

Where to Purchase a Wine Refrigerator

Purchasing a wine refrigerator can seem like a daunting task but it really need not be that hard. There are several places you can purchase them. Online, you may want to check out a specific manufacturers web site. Offline you can go to home improvement stores or appliance dealers. Just be sure to compare prices when you decide you want a good wine refrigerator. Learn about the different models and their features. That way you won’t be talked into a model that you either can’t afford or one that has features that you don’t need. You will see and taste the benefit of a good wine refrigerator in your glass.

Consider the space you have to work with, the size and weight of the unit and make sure to add the additional weight for the wine which averages about 3 pounds per bottle. When building a new home the best time to think or install a wine cellar would be when the home is being built, make sure the specs include such things as a cooling system, shelving and storage, if you live in an existing house find a space and make sure you plan it out well.

The degree and the speed of the temperature change are critical to successfully storing and aging wine. Expertise lies in getting the temperature just right. Temperature is at the top of the list for the reason that it is the single most important factor to consider when planning or installing your own wine cellar.

Modular wine racks are a great investment because they can be modified to fit anywhere plus they are not expensive and they come in many different finishes and grains. Decorative racks are available in a number of different styles, ranging from metal racks to wrought iron racks. There are many different types of wine cellar racks to install in your wine cellar, the types are wooden, metal and there many others. It is extremely essential to carefully store the wine bottles in the cellars and wine racks seem to be the only possible solution to this need.

Having a system that can cool wine is very important especially in a wine cellar, if you don’t have a wine cooling system the wine cellar is not worth the bottles in the cellar, the cellar needs to be cool to operate correctly. Wine coolers can be either free standing, built in with the wine cellar or can be hidden under the counter. To keep the correct temperature in your wine cellar you need to invest in good cooling system, the cooling system will maintain the temperature and humidity and keep the wine tasting perfectly. The coolers vary in size, some having the capacity to hold two to four bottles, while others have larger capacities of up to 50 bottles.

Wine cellars and racks for the home allow the individual wine lover to convert any space in their home into an instant cellar in a matter of moments. There are many different kinds of wine cellars, there are case storages, triangular shelves, curved corners, half weights and many others.

The advantage of having a wine cellar is that you don’t have to go out and get a bottle of wine every time you are ready to sit down and eat, or want to enjoy a glass. Some of the popular wine cellar accessories are metal racking, kneeling butlers, wine chillers, wine coolers, decorative bottle corkers, corkscrews, wine tags, bottle openers, and wine markers.

The great thing about wine cellars is that you can sit back and enjoy a bottle of wine that you chose from you wine cellar. Bottles should be stored on their side so that the cork remains moist and they should also not be exposed to vibration or temperature change.