The Enemies of Wine!

A proper wine storage environment is crucial to securing the longevity of a collection of fine wine. Without a proper environment, your wine is at risk. An environment without vibration, odor and harmful UV light and one that has a controlled temperature that hovers around 55° and a relative humidity between 60-65% will ensure that your wine is safe.

Quick Links:

• View all wine cellar cooling units
• Learn how to properly build a wine cellar

Sunlight

Sunlight's harmful UV rays can wreak havoc on a bottle of wine when exposed for long periods of time. Ultra violet light rays destroy the tannins in wine. Tannins play an important role in preventing oxidation in aging wine and appear to polymerize and make up a major portion of the sediment in wine.

Heat

Heat from the sun or from prolonged exposure to light sources in the wine cellar can ruin the flavor of a bottle of wine if exposed too long. Wine that gets too hot will push the cork right out of the bottle. If something goes wrong with your climate control system or you experience an extended power outage, a properly built and conditioned wine cellar will remain at safe temperature levels for a week or longer even under extreme conditions.

Vibration

The natural aging of the sediment in wine bottles is important to maintain proper aging of the wine. Too much or too harsh a vibration can upset this natural balance inside the bottle and ruin the wine. Take care to make sure your wine environment is not around machines in the house that vibrate and that your cooling system does not create excessive vibrations near your bottles.

Odor

A strong odor in your wine racks or wine room can influence the flavor in your wine. That does not mean you need to choose wine racks without stain or satin finish. It means that the wood you choose should be as non-aromatic as possible and that any finish applied must be odorless once the wine cellar is stocked with your collection.

Cold Temperatures

Just as hot temperatures can ruin your wine, excessive cold temperatures in your wine cellar can do equal damage. Wine that is subjected to extended cold temperatures will turn to slush and ruin. It is also possible that if your cooling system is subjected to cold temperatures without proper insulation or installation of low ambient protection, your condenser will ice up and your system will be damaged.

Improper Humidity

Humidity and temperature are equally important in maintaining the best, most secure wine room environment. A humidity level that raises above 72% or drops below 50% creates an adverse environment that can damage the cork and lead to the loss of a bottle of wine.