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Didn't notice anything on wine storage in all the old
messages I'd read back through,
QUESTION:While this isn't technically about winemaking, all of us have to store and
age our wine, at one time or another, so I figured this question would still
be appropriate here.
I was wondering what all must be addressed in building yourself a wine
cellar. Not talking about the choosing of wines, or where to purchase them,
or anything like that, but the actual cellar itself. What concerns must be
addressed in regards to temperature, humidity, etc.
One specific question right now is as to why it must have a controlled
higher humidity? Is this just to keep the corks moist, or is there some
other reason too? Also, how does using synthetic corks change these needs?
Any input on this subject, or pointing me to proper place to look, would be
greatly appreciated. Didn't notice anything on wine storage in all the old
messages I'd read back through, so have some hesitation about posting this
here, but at the worst, you just tell me to shut up and go somewhere else
with this question, which is fine.
ANSWER: My own belief is that temperature contol is the most important. The debate
about corks and other closures is much more difficult! But, that being said,
if you have a "real cellar" underground then temperature changes are so much
slower and the wine is so much happier with that sort of regime.
One can obviously build and maintain a strictly temperature controlled
cellar but that is not at all necesary.
About 35 year ago I had a pub in Somerset in England. My cellar was quite
small for a pub but it had a small stream -- well a spring higher up in the
garden, which ran through my celllar all year round.
In hot summers I could guarrentee that my draught beer would be the coolest
in the village and the taps in th ebar woul "frost" up without any
artificial cooling. My quite small stock of wines was stored there also and
I never had problems with them.
The rreal problem with aging is not quite all a matter of the actual
temperature but rather a wide fluctuation in tempersature. Of couse one can
add humity control and if you are maintaining artificial temperature control
then you must similarly maintain humidity control as well. But temperature
control by natural means is ( IMHO) a n inexpensive and probably the best
way off doing it.
When you look how long wine has been made then you must believe in natural
processes and storage.
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