Love wine? Love a wine storage cabinet
February 28th, 2012
Fermented fruit juice never tasted so good. Rich, intoxicating, delicious wine. Let’s keep it that way with a wine storage cabinet.
Wine, like any other foodstuff is a natural and perishable product; as such, it requires preservation.
Heat, light, temperature, humidity and movement can affect red, whites, sparklings and fortified wines, causing them to spoil.
“I drink it when I’m happy and when I’m sad. Sometimes I drink it when I’m alone. When I have company I consider it obligatory. I trifle with it if I’m not hungry and I drink it when I am. Otherwise I never touch it, unless I’m thirsty.” Madame Bollinger on Champagne.
Wine storage cabinets basically emulate a traditional wine cellar in terms of consistent temperature, humidity and stillness. Heat is an obvious one, movement and humidity less so.
A popular choice, the 30-bottle Vintec
Vibrations affect the quality inside a bottle by stirring up sediments that are best left settled – have you ever seen a waiter shake a bottle up before opening it?
Wine cabinets usually keep humidity at less than 50 per cent, which is below the optimal humidity of between 50 per cent and 70 per cent. Less than this and corks can dry out, crack, and cause oxygen to enter the bottle, spoiling wine.
So whether you buy expensive or inexpensive wine, a wine cabinet will help you store wine at its optimum temperature – even a low-end wine can be improved with quality storage.
Yes, yes OK, but won’t an ordinary fridge do the trick?
Do I really need a wine storage cabinet?
Don’t take it from us, we just drink wine. Let’s take it to the expert.
Imogen Throp, wine crackerjack and cellar door manager at Hawke’s Bay’s (New Zealand) celebrated winery Te Awanga Estate, thinks you do.
It’s all about maintaining the integrity of the wine, even an ol’ cheapo, according to Throp.
Look after your wine and it will look after you
“Unless you’re lucky enough to have a wine cellar you’re going to want a wine cabinet,” she says.
“Wine will change its structure if it goes through too abrupt changes in temperature. This can change the wine’s viscosity, acidity and overall flavour.
“An ordinary fridge is too cold and ultimately you really want to avoid fluctuating temperatures. It is the best way to preserve a wine.
Just a little bit fancy, a 1994er Château Margaux, Premier Grand Cru Classé
“For serving, wines definitely need different temperatures. A Sauvignon Blanc is served more chilled than say a Viognier or a Chardonnay.”
Some wine cabinets offer split level temperatures for whites and reds.
How much does a wine storage cabinet cost?
First, let’s uncork that Bordeaux. Kidding! They’re not so unaffordable. Gone are the days where wine fridges were luxury items reserved for the rich.
Though using a wine cabinet as a feature does happen, especially in places rich in wine heritage, such as Hawke’s Bay.
“Some people just use wine cabinets to show off their collectables, or high-end wine. Luxury living rooms in this area – those of the multi-millionaires at least – have entire walls of wine storage as a feature wall!” Throp marvels.
You can pick up a bar fridge for about $300 or a popular and quality wine storage cabinet from around $400 to $500. High end models move around the $1,800 mark.
Some do mistakes of storing their wines on a regular fridge, which in that case don’t improve or worse, it decreases wines’ quality. A wine storage cabinet is a must have especially of you have a number of wines stored at home. That wine fridge i think is just at a reasonable price.