A Wine Refrigerator Provides Special Storage

Traditionally, wine was stored in a wine cellar. This cellar kept the wine at a uniform cool temperature, which was advantageous for its long-term keeping quality. It was also at the best temperature for serving. A wine refrigerator fills this need in the modern home, which most likely is not equipped with a wine cellar.

Wine can be stored in the refrigerator, of course, but there are some problems with that. For one thing, the fridge is probably too cold for most types of wine to be ready to serve. Another problem is that the temperature inside a refrigerator fluctuates throughout the day. A wine refrigerator is designed to keep wine at just the right temperature consistently. A third concern with storing wine in the family refrigerator is that it can absorb the smells of the food stored with it.

A wine refrigerator keeps wine at about 55 degrees Fahrenheit, and controls the humidity as well. A typical kitchen refrigerator is much colder than this.

For best results, wine needs to be kept at a consistent temperature. If the temperature fluctuates too much, it can affect the quality of the wine and ruin its flavor. Cool storage areas, like basements and garages tend to fluctuate too much to make good wine storage areas.

Different types of wine are best kept at different temperatures, and a wine refrigerator can be set to keep the type of wine you want to store. Red wines are stored and served at around 60 degrees F, while light red wines are better at about 55 degrees. Dry white and rose wines are usually served at about 50 degrees, but 55 degrees is OK, if you happen to need to store several different types of wine in your wine refrigerator.

Champagne is usually served at an even cooler temperature, and can be chilled in the kitchen refrigerator if necessary.

A wine refrigerator is designed to hold a small number of bottles on their sides. This is preferable for wine storage because the cork stays moist this way. If a cork dries out it can shrink, which can ruin the airtight seal and allow decay inside the bottle. A smaller model of wine refrigerator might be equipped to hold 6 bottles and be stored on a counter top. Larger units might store up to 20 or more bottles of wine.

Wines can be quite expensive, so a wine refrigerator is an investment in quality. Units run from $100 to $300 depending on the size and features. A larger wine cellar can also be purchased, but they are quite costly. About the same size as a standard refrigerator, this sort of wine storage system not only controls humidity, but is designed with different temperatures in different parts of the cellar. This allows you to store different wines at temperatures that are suited for them. A large unit like this might cost in the thousands of dollars.

Under the proper storage conditions, wine actually improves in flavor and bouquet (scent.) A wine refrigerator can help you protect that investment and have a bottle of wine ready at serving temperature any time you have guests.

Wine Refrigerator