Our Guide To Kitchen Wine Storage

As wine is still a hugely popular beverage across the broad spectrum of the alcohol industry, it is still a wonder why not many people know how (or want) to store their wine at its peak potential. Wine storage for wine connoisseurs and collectors may be more common, but making it known to everyone who likes a drink or two on the weekend means people may be able to enjoy it that bit more.

Wine cabinets, a tall wine rack and a wine cellar unit have been favoured for many years as the best form of storage for any type of wine. Although is this still the case nowadays? Or are wine coolers the best choice in the modern era? Keep reading along to learn more!

 

What Should You Use For Wine Storage?

As we’ve briefly discussed, wine cellars and wine racks have been the most sought-after wine storage products each year for a long time. However, wine cellars require a lot of space i.e a whole room (dining room, kitchen, basement, etc) at a time.

Therefore, if you want to build an extensive wine collection with a wine cellar - you would have to plan for weeks about how it would be possible. Not only that but filling an entire room with new infrastructure is not an affordable option for most people. Consequently, what is the best way to store your wine in the most optimal, yet more affordable way? Here is the superlative alternative that you should consider for your kitchen:

 

Wine Coolers

Whether this is a freestanding wine cooler, built-in wine cooler or fully integrated wine cooler - each of them will have the same features and functionalities. Yet, they will all be stored in an opposing manner within your kitchen.

For example, your freestanding cooler can be put anywhere in your kitchen (extremely user-friendly) where there is space for it to stand freely. Whereas, built-in wine coolers are typically built inside your cabinets, under a breakfast bar, and under your counters (providing you have optimal space).

Fully integrated wine coolers, quite similar to built-in wine coolers are manufactured to fit into cabinet space (either side by side with your standard fridge or beneath your countertop). With the versatility of each wine cooler and the different shapes and sizes they can come in - why should you invest in a wine cooler?

 

Benefits of Wine Coolers

With each manufacturer having their own way of designing their wine cooler, ensuring that you’re investing in a top-tier wine cooler with adequate functions and features is paramount. Nevertheless, if you find a high-standard wine cooler, here are some of the benefits that you will notice in their use:

 

Keeping Your Wine Cool

With any type of wine, whether that be red wine, white wine, rosé, etc - they will all have different temperatures that they will taste the best at. In most cases, wines will be best preserved at 11ºC to 15ºC. With wine coolers giving you the options of optimising your wine storage temperature, you will now have a gateway to creating the best tasting and smelling wine experience.

In addition, nowadays there are dual or even multi-zone wine coolers which allow you to store different wines at different temperatures (on different racks of the wine cooler). This way, white wine can be stored at a different temperature than your red wine which will also enhance the taste, aroma and appearance positively! The last thing you want is your wine heating up, which is why a wine fridge is so useful.

 

Protection Against Sunlight Rays

With the bulk of beverages and food, you will notice that if it spends too much time in the sunlight, it will either melt or completely break down. Similarly, with wine, these UV rays will break down the chemicals in your wine - causing each component to be affected negatively.

Nonetheless, the most highly rated wine fridges will have UV-protected glass installed. Most of the time, your wine display will be on show through the glass, so having UV-protected glass and having your wine collection on show is a productive, yet luxurious aesthetic.

 

The Versatility of Wine Fridges

Although wine coolers have a ‘wine’ specific title, this doesn’t mean that wine coolers are only specific to this. Foods from cheese to chocolate or beverages such as champagne and beer can be preserved in your wine fridge whilst maintaining and enhancing its performance.

On the flip side, on the topic of versatility, with the number of wine fridges available - there will always be one suitable for your needs. For example, if you’re an avid wine buyer who wants to collect up to 200 bottles of wine - there will be a wine cooler for you. Whereas, in contrast, you may just be a regular collector who wants around 50 bottles of wine preserved optimally (which is possible too!)

Modern wine fridges also feature LED lights and other features such as humidity control and odour elimination. You can even find wine fridges that feature door locks and wheels for ease of use and easy manoeuvring.

 

Drawbacks of Poor Wine Storage

Now that you know all the positives behind why you should store your wine in a wine fridge (within your kitchen wine storage) - what will be the problems that occur with bad storage habits? Are there underlying issues that will seriously affect your wine if you don’t take storage effectively? Carry on reading to find out more!

All around your home, some chores and appearances need to be dealt with, otherwise, you will see poor results. This could include kitchen doors not having suitable paint for your aesthetic, your flooring and tiles not matching your kitchen or even having old furniture that needs an upgrade. Throughout wine storage, it is similar as you will have to make sure it all looks right but also is the most optimal for each wine.

 

Temperature

If your wine is not preserved properly, between the 11 to 15 range, you will begin to notice the ageing process speeding up. In certain cases, you may even be able to notice the smell and appearance being changed negatively. For example, if you typically store your wine in your outdoor garden, this may be too cold for your wine or vice versa. With this, you might notice a more vinegar-like smell with some sediment build-up at the bottom of your wine bottle. Some of the other drawbacks include:

• Exposure to sunlight will cause the ageing process to speed up dramatically
• Vibrations will cause negative chemical reactions
• When opened in poor conditions, it won’t last as long
• Humidity will cause the taste, aroma and consistency to be off-putting