Wine Storage for Aging

How long you intend to keep (age) your wine determines how carefully it should be stored.  First, a statistic:  98% of all wine purchased in the U.S. is consumed within 30 days of purchase.  I’m talking more to the 2% of you folks buying some quality stuff to lie down.  For the rest of you, nearly any wine will survive for 30 to 90 days on your kitchen shelf, provided the average temperature stays between 55 and 85 degrees F.  Just keep it away from the stove.

Wine ages best for decades in a cave.  If you intend to age your wine for 20 years or more, you need to store your wine in a cave-like environment.  Most of us don’t have a cave handy, so you can buy a cave simulator (i.e., wine refrigerator) that maintains the wine at a steady temperature around 58 degrees F.  If you live in a clammy climate like San Francisco, Seattle, etc., the basement of an old home will probably work well.  Just check the temperatures throughout the year to be sure the temperature stays below 70 degrees year-round.  If you live on a hillside, a room built against a concrete retaining wall that is shielded from the sun may work too.  I have a basement with retaining walls and store the wine along the north facing wall.  Finally, be sure to store the wine so that the cork stays wet – dry corks will fail and allow air into the wine which quickly ruins it.

If you want to hold onto your wine for 5 years or less, it is often good enough to find a cool, stable environment within your own home or apartment.  The goal is to provide temperature stability, free from regular vibrations and perfumes.  Places to avoid include the garage (unless you only drive an electric car and the sun doesn’t hit the door) because the car’s engine changes the temperature inside the garage dramatically.  The laundry room is also a poor choice because of the vibration, humidity, and heat influences from the dryer and water heater, as well as the scented detergents.  The bathroom is a poor choice because of the daily humidity and heat fluctuations.  And avoid storing wine over the refrigerator (heat and vibration) or around the stove (heat and food smells), or close to the ceiling (heat build-up).  Closet floors that are not along an exterior wall are a good choice (without moth cakes).



Best locations in a house or apportment for wine storage


To help limit the temperature fluctuations, keep the bottles inside of the cardboard carton they came in and place the carton inside a cabinet on the floor of a closet.  These multiple insulating layers help to provide temperature stability for the wine.  This helps protect against heat gain during the day and heat loss at night.  If your only option is in the garage, then build an insulated box using R13 wall insulation or Styrofoam along the box’s walls and lid, and place the box along an interior wall on the concrete floor of the garage.  This will provide the greatest temperature stability.