The WinePost©
"Wine cheers the sad, revives the old, inspires the young, makes weariness forget his toil." --- Lord Byron
The majority of wine drinkers consume their wine shortly after buying it. There is no need for them to worry about storage since they aren't going to lay down their wines to age. But if you have a wine that needs aging or you just appreciate good aged wines, it's necessary to store your wines in the best conditions. To ensure proper aging, the temperature should consistently be in the 55-58 degree range. 70 to 75% humidity prevents the corks from drying and shrinking, which allows air into the wine. The storage area should be dimly lit or dark, away from UV lighting in order to maintain the clarity of the wine. You also need to store your wines away from vibration which can stir up sediments that fall out during aging.
Wine storage units come in a variety of sizes. I started with a 24 bottle unit that looked like a dorm room refrigerator. But whoever said "If you have the capacity, you will use it" was right. The 24 bottle unit was filled quickly, requiring a move up to a 100 bottle vault. It has been full most of the time. There are wine coolers that will hold hundreds of bottles. And then there are the real wine cellars, dedicated rooms in homes that cost thousands of dollars and are works of art.
So if you drink your wine within days or weeks of purchase, that six bottle wine "rack" on your kitchen counter is probably fine. [But never on top of the refigerator.] If you have wines that you're going to age, you need to look into providing the optimum storage conditions. After all, wines that can age usually cost more. You don't want to hold that fifty dollar Cabernet for a couple of years and find disappointment when you uncork it.
Tonight's feature:
Arnoux & Fils Vacqueyras "The Vac" (2009)($23.00)
This is a delicious wine from the Vacqueyras Appellation of the southern Rhone region of France. Wines from this region aren't commonly known by the casual wine drinker. They are full-bodied, dark, bold and earthy, presenting excellent fruit up front and a noticeable tannic bite. Vacqueyras wines provide a great alternative to the usual Cabs and Pinots. This one is an 89 point wine for twenty-three bucks.
Enjoy!
art by artzcatz
