Time to Check the Temperature at Home

The ideal temperature for wine storage has always been touted as between 55 and 57 degrees. This is the best temperature for reds to age gracefully over the long term. Well, now we have a scientific study to document what happens when we keep wine in warmer temperatures, such as would be normal for a home. Now scientists have done a study showing that wine stored in a typical home can age four times as fast as wine kept under ideal conditions.

The experiment was conducted with 400 bottles of Sangiovese. 200 of the bottles were stored in the ideal conditions, while the other 200 were kept at temperatures typical of the home environment.

The experiment was conducted by Fondazione Edmund Mach in San Michele all’Adige (Itally), which is a prestigious institution that has delivered a range of education, training and technology transfer programs in the fields of agriculture, food processing and sustainable development.

Lead researcher Fulvio Mattivi said, “We discovered that a relatively small difference in the temperature speeds up several chemical reactions associated with wine aging and even promotes new reactions that are not observed at lower temperatures. After six months under domestic conditions, the wine in the bottle was approximately as old as a bottle from the same producer and lot stored for two years under cellar conditions. The house-stored wine was aging approximately four times faster.”

So, what does this mean for the individual who does not have a wine refrigerator? While many folks who love wine may not always have the “ideal” temperature, there are ways to preserve that special bottle for the right time. Keep your wine in a dark place, with a constant cool temperature. A central closet that is dark may provide the best option if you don’t have a wine cellar or wine refrigerator.

Another option is to drink the wine sooner to account for the faster aging process. This could be good news, and it is wise to be informed. With home temperature accelerating the chemical reactions that take place, the advice is not to wait too long on that special bottle. You would not want to miss its prime time for your drinking pleasure.

Enjoy!