Chillin' with Wine

Since, like most commoners in our fair city, I don't live in a climate-controlled apartment, how would you recommend storing open red wine? Room temperature can rise to the 80's on hot days, and I don't think it's that much cooler inside a closet. Can I keep it in the fridge and bring it to room temperature when I'm ready to pour a glass? On a related note, are there any reds that are acceptable to drink chilled?

Not only should most reds be served at a temperature around 60 to 65 degrees, they should be stored in a climate-controlled environment of about 55 degrees, with ~~low~~ about 70% humidity, and the bottles should be stored on their sides to keep the corks moist. What, you don't have a wine cellar in your studio apartment? Neither do we. But what we do have is a great little - and honestly, it is little and we were able to fit it into our tiniest of kitchens - wine refrigerator. There are plenty of reasonably priced, smaller models that will allow you to store your wine with the proper temp, humidity level, and position - they even have settings for red wine vs. white. And yes, you can find red wines that can be served slightly chilled, such as Beaujolais and Pinot Noir.

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By Janine Annett in Miscellaneous on June 29, 2005 1:47 PM

Comments [rss]

palndrom23

just drink it...

wineman

Rodney is exactly right about the humidity needing to be high. Optimal storage conditions are considered to be 55 degrees at 70% humidity.

Buying a wine unit is a good suggestion. Models that hold a couple of cases worth now go for around $150-$250 at Home Depot, Bed Bath & Beyond and other stores of that ilk.

Short of that, sticking reds in the fridge for short periods during especially hot days is a good, temporary solution. Be sure to lay the bottles on their sides so their corks stay moist. Refrigerators are not good for long term storage because they are a dry environment and will dry out the corks.

For more serious collectors with limited space for a wine unit, there is also the professional storage option. There are a few places in Manhattan and Brooklyn where one can store one's wines under optimal conditions for around $1.75 a case per month.

Cheers.

rodney

wine should be kept at HIGH humdity, so the corks stay moist, in fact most wine cellars are built with extra moisture seals and insulation so that on hot days the floor above the cellar does not sweat from the high humidity below.

winers

If you can't tell if your wine is bad, do you really care what is 'proper'? You can put ice cubes in it if you really want to.

I'm not so sure that it's great advice to purchase and plug in another dedicated appliance to solve a non-existent problem? What did they do in the dark days - you know, before electric wine coolers?

glim

president bush lied about iraq, but hey, let's discuss the important stuff: what temperature to store wine at. thanks, gothamist, for reporting about what really matters!

dirt

So I have about a dozen great bottles now stored in a non temperature-contolled storage space next to my apartment. Are these bottles f*cked for good?

b

To answer the original question; the answer is yes.

Get one of those vacuum wine bottle stopper things at any kitchen supply dept. (Bed Bath Beyond, etc.) and then stick your undrunk remainder bottle in your fridge. Pour yourself a glass and let it sit till it reaches a nice yummy temperature again, and enjoy.

justkiddingaround

Dear Ask Gothamist: How can I get a bigger kitchen in Manhattan?

Answer: Move to Brooklyn.

crackah

I dunno, the wine fridges they show are still too big for my kitchen, heck, my short fridge is too large to fit into my kitchen and resides, Cairo style, in my living room. Anyone need a designer to make an under the counter version? That's the only way it can actually get into any of the Manhattan apartments that I know.