Written on 08/07/2020
To ensure that your wine retains all its qualities until tasting, it's important to think about transport and storage.
You're about to buy a bottle, or a case, of wine. You've indulged yourself. To ensure that you don't spoil the pleasure, and that the wine retains all its qualities until you taste it, it's important to think about transporting and storing it.
Think of wine as a living creature that doesn't take kindly to annoyance. If you take sufficient care of it, it will return the favor!
Transportation
Once out of the quiet cellar where it was born and began to mature, wine needs to be subjected to as little stress as possible. Starting with transportation. It will always prefer to travel vertically, cork up, to be stirred as little as possible.
The first thing to watch out for is the temperature. Even a few minutes on a back shelf or in the trunk of a car can alter its taste forever. As far as possible, it should be kept in a cool place.
Once the journey is over, let it recover from its emotions, and wait at least 3 weeks before tasting it...
Conservation
As you'd expect, the ideal conditions for storing wine are in the cellar of his native estate. It's had little trouble there, and has slept in a cool, dark, underground cellar.
But of course, not everyone is lucky enough to have a cellar at home. Here are a few tips on how to get as close as possible to your favorite environment...
To begin with, the bottle should always be laid flat, so that the cork is in contact with the liquid and doesn't dry out (which would eventually cause too much air to enter the bottle).
When you're lying down, remember to place the bottle with the label facing the sky and the bottom facing you. This way, you won't disturb it too much, and you'll be able to identify it when you're hesitating between several nectars.
The ideal temperature for serene wine maturation is between 12 and 14 degrees. Warmer, it will age prematurely; colder, too slowly. In both cases, certain aromas risk being broken.
Humidity should be around 75%. If the atmosphere is too dry, the cork will crumble; if it's too humid, it risks mildew and exposing your precious beverage to bacteria that will spoil it.
Finally, the light should be subdued and soft. Wine doesn't tolerate bright light (which is why most bottles are made of dark glass). Don't disturb the wine with neon lights or bulbs brighter than 40 watts.
Now that you know how to care for your wine and respect its fragility, you can enjoy all its promised flavours!
