Storage temp

[Wild Duk]

I live in Georgia, winter was not a problem, but now that its getting hot, my storage area seems to be at about 74 degrees.....I know it won't get any hotter, but how is this going to affect my wine......I have some in bottles, and some in the carboy.....


They are stored on the slab under stairs, so its completely dark, no vibration, ect.....

 

[vcasey]

I live in Florida and we keep the household temps. at 75 year round and have had no problems. Steady, consistent temps is what you need for your wines.
VC

 

[bikerrew]

Room temp is actually ground temp. 58 degrees is the temp for cellars and has been the traditional "room temp" in which wine should be stored at.
Ray

 

[smurfe]

You should be fine. as said, consistent is important. I live in South Louisiana. The wife keeps the house frigid but our AC unit is getting old and the house don't stay as cool as it used to. It is around 72 in our house consistently in the summer and I have had no issues. I just opened a bottle of Island Mist that is around 4 years old. It was just fine. There wasn't even any extra K-Meta added at bottling asI planned this to be all gone in 6 months or less. It tasted as fresh as a new kit. I attribute the fairly consistent temps as a key in the wine keeping.

 

[hartm]

There are several factors to consider for properly storing your wine. Here are some thing I've come across as I've looked into this.


Sunlight is bad. You definitely want to keep your wine out of the light.


Vibrations? I've heard that vibrations or moving the wine isn't that bad as long as the wine has some time to settle down (few several weeks) prior to opening.


Temperature. Ideally you want to have your wine stored at 55 - 60 degrees. Most of us have a passive cellar (no colling unit) and must settle for what we can get. A higher temperature means your wine will probably age a little faster. The second part of this is a consistent temperature. Ideally, the seasonal temperature variation shouldn't be more than 5 degrees. If you have a daily temperature variation of more than 5 degrees it gets even worse


I think what happens (feel free to correct me) is that the volume of the wine expands and contracts as the temperature changes. this can lead to gases getting into and out of the wine through the cork (Its not a perfect seal). Oxygen can get in and do its damage.

Humidity is the last concern. If you live in a dry area you need to make sure your cellar is humid enough. Recommendations I've seen are at least 50% humidity. My brother lives in New Mexico and has to contend with high temps and low humidity. the house AC takes care of the heat, but he has lost several good bottles that he has stored over extended periods due to the low humidity.

Hope this helps...