Once the clear wine has been bottled and you intend to keep it for more than three months, it is important to realize that corks dry out. When this happens, the shrinkage could cause the sealing-wax to crack, causing tiny air holes to appear and wild yeast & bacteria could attack the wine.

All bottles fitted with ordinary corks or cork-lined screw caps should always be stored on their sides. This allows for the wine to keep the cork moist (which prevents shrinkage). Rubber-banded screw-stopper bottles may be stored upright.

Knowing that wine should be stored throughout the year at a certain, constant temperature, many people go to much trouble and dream up all sorts of ingenious devices to achieve that end. Authorities are divided in their opinions as to the ideal temperature in which wines should be stored. This is most likely due to the fact that wines (like human beings) like what suits them best. Perhaps there is an ideal temperature for certain types of wine, but what suits the Eskimo does not suit the Australian aborigine, and this will likely never change.

In any case, the aborigine and the Eskimo get changes in temperature and no harm comes to them. In fact, they seem to thrive on it. So why not let us think of our wines as being something like ourselves in that they are quite at home in the temperatures that we give them?

Rapid changes are best avoided. Of course, (as with human beings), if we can store our wines on a stone floor, all the better! If this is not possible, a cupboard on the north side of a building will do provided a chimney does not run through it.

A friend of mine stores three hundred bottles of some really magnificent wines in an attic which becomes very hot in the summer and nearly freezes in the winter. However, no harm ever comes to any of his wines. So, store your wines anywhere you can and don't worry.

When serving home-made wines, remember that they are best when served at room temperature. Champagnes should be served cellar-cool or iced.

About the Author

James Wilson owns & operates www.e-homewinemaking.com, a site providing wine-making tips, tricks and techniques. If you're interested in making your own wine, visit www.e-homewinemaking.com today and sign up for the FREE wine-making mini-course!

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