Storing Fine Wine

Wine...we buy it, we brag about it, we extol the virtues of our latest find, but then we store it in a manner that would not do justice to C-rations. In the closet, under the stairs, even in the cabinet over the refrigerator!

In conversation with Dr. Vernon Singleton of the U.C. Davis Department of Viticulture & Enology, we discussed how various factors affect the storing and aging of good wines. I recalled an old saying about training hunting dogs. To train a good hunting dog you have to first start with a good dog. In other words, if the wine is canal water to begin with, it will never be a good wine no matter how long you age it! This brings to us the famous dilemma; are we aging our wine because we know it will be better, or are we aging it because we hope that Bacchus' fairy godmother will put a twinkle on the real bargain we picked up without tasting first?

Let us assume that we have some serious wine (or very serious wine) and we want to store it under optimum conditions. What are the right conditions? How long should we store a particular wine? What are the factors that make wine age well or poorly?

Acidity

One of the major factors in aging wines is pH. Generally, the lower the pH (more acid) the more resistant the wine is to spoilage and the better the mellowing of the wine. Of course, there are other significant factors such as the phenolics and sugar content.

Temperature and Temperature Variation

A temperature range of 55 to 57 degrees is just about perfect for the preservation of wines. Notice I said preservation. Although some reds may mature faster at 60 degrees, for long term preservation of the wine a 55 to 57 degree range is ideal.

Humidity

"Ah, humidity," you say, "what about the humidity?" Well, most of us don't live in the Gobi Dessert... Actually, the main concern here is with too much humidity, not too little. If the humidity is high, the bottle will acquire some mold and the label will rot a bit, which may impress your friends, as it obscures the fact that the wine you are pouring in May was still a grape last September!

But seriously, as long as the humidity is in excess of 12%, which is the moisture saturation point for a cork, the cork will not dry out and humidity has no other effect on the ageing process.

How long should you age various wines? The answer to this one is sort of like betting the horses, everyone has a different idea as to how long the race will last and who will win. Has the wine lost its fruit? Is that good or bad? When does "mellow" become bland?

Fortunately, there are some general guidelines. Most whites will not improve after more than four years in the bottle. This does not mean they will necessarily get worse, they just won't get any better. You will notice I said in the bottle. This does not refer to the vintage, but the time actually spent in the bottle.

Usually, Gamays older than three to four years start showing their age and it is not attractive. Pinot Noirs should age four to ten years with some notable exceptions from France. Zins, four to 15 years and occasionally more. Cabernet has no limit, it depends on the caliber of the wine and what you are looking for in the final product.

Jerry Mead, the syndicated columnist of "Mead on Wine," once told me, "It is no great accomplishment to select great wines, anyone with a decent palate can do that. Two other factors mark the successful collector: One is the ability to know when to sell or consume the wine in which you have invested (and that's an art); and the wherewithal to provide proper storage conditions, both to protect your investment and to allow wines to develop to their fullest potential."