Wine storage temperature

At what temperature should wine be stored?

The main characteristic of a wine cellar is its constant temperature.
This helps preserve the wine, which loathes sudden temperature variations.
There are a number of approaches to wine storage temperature, and we’ll try to list them here.

Multi-temperature wine cellars offer the advantage of differentiated serving temperatures. This is why they are generally referred to as multi-temperature wine cellars. Whether it’s a two-temperature-zone wine cellar, or a double-temperature-zone wine cellar, the temperature at which the wine is stored must be precise, with the cellar temperature stabilized around 12°C.

In fact, red wine is best kept at this temperature. Then, once in service mode, if you’re not lucky enough to have the ideal temperature of an electric wine cellar, which allows you to fine-tune the wine cellar temperature depending on whether you’re serving whites (generally around 9°C) or reds (usually between 14 and 18°C), then this median temperature of 12°C for storage seems the most sensible.

And once opened, at what temperature should it be stored?

Oxygen and temperature are the enemies of wine, once a bottle has been opened.
They act on the wine like a time gas pedal, first opening out and relaxing the aromas, then rapidly degrading them, and finally killing them the very next day for some.
However, as our consumption patterns evolve towards “consume less, consume better”, we need to make wine wait, and extend the life of our opened bottles.

In 1950, the average French person consumed 123.4 liters of wine, whereas today they consume around one bottle a week (45 liters in 2014).

The reasons for this change in wine consumption are to be found in the more elaborate choice of wines to be adapted to the menu, trading price and bottle quality for volume, but also in road safety.

Wine conservation or how to make wine and time cohabit?

A minimal solution is to put opened bottles with a cork in the fridge, and you can extend the life of your dry white and sweet wines for just a few days. So-called “oxidative” wines, such as cooked wines, are the most resistant and can remain open for several weeks.

Another solution is to use a vacuum pump to remove the oxygen. That said, this solution, while affordable, has limited performance over time, and contributes to the impoverishment of the wine by releasing aroma-rich molecules with the effect of the pump.

The French WIKEEPS solution, which has been tried and tested by Domaines to optimize the cost of their on-property tastings, and by restaurants as part of their wine-by-the-glass business, is an effective solution for preserving wine for up to 4 weeks after opening. The in-bottle system involves injecting a neutral gas – a mixture of Argon and CO2 – into the bottle to create a protective atmosphere inside. How it works: each time the wine is served, the gas pushes it to the glass and takes its place in the bottle.

As a result, the wine no longer feels the vacuum above it, as if the bottle had been reduced in size after each service.
The system also adapts to all bottle sizes: 0.75l, Magnum, Double Magnum and 6l Impériale. Its affordable price and function, which responds precisely to the aforementioned new modes of wine consumption, mean that it is now used by wine lovers, wine merchants and restaurateurs alike.

Adding the temperature parameter to an electric wine cellar will significantly extend the shelf life of wine, while ensuring the right temperature for red wine. Depending on the temperature setting of the wine cellar, white wines can also be served at the right temperature, avoiding the need for ice.

In this sense, the electric wine cellar for white wine serving temperature seems to be the only accurate solution to reach the ideal temperature.