Never heard of wine fridge's being too cold to keep for a long period of time. All my wine is stored at colder temps, including what I store really long term at an offsite wine storage facility.

As you mentioned, the big thing is temp variation. And this is a major reason why storing wine at "room temp" can cause issues. Also, vibration is a major factor that a lot of people don't consider. So if that central and steady temp closet is under your stairs, it can cause issues as well

I was referring to the use of a regular fridge in that part, my bad if it was not clear.

Chipotlemonger said:

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I was referring to the use of a regular fridge in that part, my bad if it was not clear.

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Ahhh gotcha. Makes sense. I just defaulted to "regular wine fridge". As In the common under counter built in fridges. But in your context, regular fridge makes sense.

For a regular fridge, I'd also guess the vibration of constantly getting in and out of the fridge would cause issues in addition to the lower temp.

It's that, and the vibration from the motor.

In the beer fridge we keep a case of cheap white wine for when you get home from work and want a glass of wine. Vibration isn't going to hurt it. You can also keep a bottle of sparking wine in the fridge for when you want something like that. If you want to keep something for less than a year, a refrigerator is fine.

HTownAg98 said:

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It's that, and the vibration from the motor.

In the beer fridge we keep a case of cheap white wine for when you get home from work and want a glass of wine. Vibration isn't going to hurt it. You can also keep a bottle of sparking wine in the fridge for when you want something like that. If you want to keep something for less than a year, a refrigerator is fine.

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1. Life's too short to drink cheap wine
2. The suggestion that you can keep any wine in a refrigerator for a year and not have it affected is simply incorrect. Your statement is broad enough to suggest you can put a high-end cab in a 37 degree refrigerator for a year and have it come out fine. It won't.

Believe me, I wouldn't do it with a nicer wine per say. But when I have cheaper reds I don't mind if they are chilled in a regular fridge for a little while. Recently had like a $20 bottle of cab and didn't know when I would drink it, but I sure didn't want it to sit out at our summer time room temp. Figured it would be better in the fridge during that span. Opened it after like a half a year in the fridge and it was fine.

Definitely wouldn't be putting something like the Mt. Veeder cab I had tonight in the regular fridge for long term storage!

Wine is less fragile than we think, but as has been mentioned, light and temp delta are the worst.

Most modern wines are pretty tough and for 4-5 years out don't require any more than minimal care. The closet ideas are good. I usually recommend the bottom of your bedroom closet. Dark, stable temp, and you're in there everyday so will notice if anything (i.e. temp) changes.

Also, high temperature doesn't really damage the wine, per se, as it does shorten it's life. You could accidently leave wine in your car in July, and it would likely be fine that night, but probably wouldn't last very long.

That being said, something like 90% of the wines at retail are pop and pour, so just don't worry about it too much.

Your kitchen refrigerator is just way too dry, like 10% RH. That's what destroys the wine, not the low temps. The cork loses it's seal and the wine oxidizes. Remember the wines they've found in shipwrecks that have been underwater for years at very low temps and many of them aged just fine.

If you do want to keep a wine for a long time (like 10+ years) it's got to have a high quality cork, and then you've got to worry about humidity as well a temp delta..

Austintm said:

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HTownAg98 said:

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It's that, and the vibration from the motor.

In the beer fridge we keep a case of cheap white wine for when you get home from work and want a glass of wine. Vibration isn't going to hurt it. You can also keep a bottle of sparking wine in the fridge for when you want something like that. If you want to keep something for less than a year, a refrigerator is fine.

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1. Life's too short to drink cheap wine
2. The suggestion that you can keep any wine in a refrigerator for a year and not have it affected is simply incorrect. Your statement is broad enough to suggest you can put a high-end cab in a 37 degree refrigerator for a year and have it come out fine. It won't.

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First off, I'll drink what I like, please and thank you. Also, cheap does not mean not good. There's a ton of wine that's less than $15 that is well-made and good. Domaine du Puoy Blanc and Guigal Cote du Rhone are two examples. Both are less than $15.

To your second point, I tried this out due an emergency I had when one of my wine refrigerators went out. I took two bottles of the same wine, and put one in my beer fridge which was kept around 40 degrees, and put the other in my other wine fridge for nine months. Opened them both at the same time and tried them blind. We couldn't tell them apart.

Would I use a refrigerator for long-term storage? Of course not. But for a short-term situation, it will be fine.

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Would I use a refrigerator for long-term storage? Of course not. But for a short-term situation, it will be fine.

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Absolutely true. But then again a 74 degree closet is just as good for (better really) and you don't risk the low humidity of the fridge causing problems. If you want to drink the wine cold, then it's certainly more convenient to leave it in the fridge. As in my post above, low temps alone (short of freezing of course) don't damage a wine.

But again, I think we probably treat our wines with a little too much care, but that's kinda part of the fun!

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Recently had like a $20 bottle of cab and didn't know when I would drink it, but I sure didn't want it to sit out at our summer time room temp.

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I don't think it makes any difference either way. 75 degrees in a house isn't going to shorten a wine's life unless you're talking over many years. Rule of thumb is that if you're comfortable, the wine is comfortable.

We're a little crazy and like to not cool our house down below 78 in the day during summer temps. I myself wouldn't call that the most comfortable, ha!

LOL, we're the same. Wife runs cold. (in a good way )

But really those $20 wines are generally not transported with all that much care during distribution. I'm sure 80 degrees or so are inconsequential.

Thanks. Just ordered a pair.

I've always thought that storing wine too cold is better than too hot.

HTownAg98 said:

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I've always thought that storing wine too cold is better than too hot.

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Depends upon "too", but yeah I'd agree with that.. As mentioned low temps alone don't harm a wine, just low humidity drying out the cork and losing its seal. But I don't look at say... 70 or even 75 as being hot for anything other than really long term aging (like 10 years). That being said I use 60/60 (temp and humidity) for everything.

Austintm said:

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HTownAg98 said:

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It's that, and the vibration from the motor.

In the beer fridge we keep a case of cheap white wine for when you get home from work and want a glass of wine. Vibration isn't going to hurt it. You can also keep a bottle of sparking wine in the fridge for when you want something like that. If you want to keep something for less than a year, a refrigerator is fine.

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1. Life's too short to drink cheap wine
2. The suggestion that you can keep any wine in a refrigerator for a year and not have it affected is simply incorrect. Your statement is broad enough to suggest you can put a high-end cab in a 37 degree refrigerator for a year and have it come out fine. It won't.

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not sure on your 2.

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not sure on your 2.

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My kitchen fridge measures 10.0% relative humidity. That's really dry. The cold won't hurt the wine, but the low humidity sure could dry out the cork which will ruin the wine via oxidation. Would it dry enough in one year to ruin the wine? Unknown. But IMO not worth the risk. I guess you could store the bottle upside down with the neck in a glass of water...

HTownAg98 said:

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I've always thought that storing wine too cold is better than too hot.

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My understanding is that if you're not able to maintain an 'ideal' temp of 52-58, then steady stable temp far outweighs wild fluctuations. That's when corks shrink and expand causing leakage and allow oxygen in. For humidity issues you can consider putting a container of water in your fridge.

Fedup said:

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HTownAg98 said:

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I've always thought that storing wine too cold is better than too hot.

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My understanding is that if you're not able to maintain an 'ideal' temp of 52-58, then steady stable temp far outweighs wild fluctuations. That's when corks shrink and expand causing leakage and allow oxygen in. For humidity issues you can consider putting a container of water in your fridge.

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Yes, although IMO 52 is too cold, but we're shaving w/ a fine edge here. I don't think you could put enough water in a kitchen fridge to increase RH humidity high enough and still have room for food. When I used small/cheap wine chillers a couple of pans of water with a sponge in each did a decent job.

But once again, all of this is really only for wine that's going to be aged and and represents a large enough investment to warrant the fuss. Otherwise just buy it, drink it and enjoy!

I'm moving into a new house and wanted some recommendations for wine storage.

I was considering buying two units - enough to hold 300-400 bottles of wine that I plan to lay down for longer term storage.

I drink mostly red but a little white/Ros. One unit having multiple temperature zones would be a plus.

This will be in a visible area next to living area, so something that looks good while being very quiet is important.

Thanks!

Several people on this thread have built amazing wine rooms! I benefitted from one getting a great deal on his 480 bottle unit.

I would worry about temp zones too much. You could drop the temp on those whites 10 degrees in just a few minutes prior to drinking.

"Quiet" may be an issue. And, like all things wine, it will help to "bring money".

cecil77 said:

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Several people on this thread have built amazing wine rooms! I benefitted from one getting a great deal on his 480 bottle unit.

I would worry about temp zones too much. You could drop the temp on those whites 10 degrees in just a few minutes prior to drinking.

"Quiet" may be an issue. And, like all things wine, it will help to "bring money".

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Money isn't a primary concern - looks good and quiet are the key items. If anyone has specific recommendations or links please post here.

If money is not a concern, build a small cellar with glass to show it off.

Money is a concern after today in my house. Both Rivers Marie and Maybach released wine...oof.

I've known Craig for years and years. He was my neighbor in college. We both started getting into wine at the same time when he worked at Messina Hof. Apparently I need to visit him more!

cecil77 said:

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Several people on this thread have built amazing wine rooms! I benefitted from one getting a great deal on his 480 bottle unit.

I would worry about temp zones too much. You could drop the temp on those whites 10 degrees in just a few minutes prior to drinking.

"Quiet" may be an issue. And, like all things wine, it will help to "bring money".

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You could also do the opposite. Keep the cellar a little colder for white wines and take your big reds out and open them an hour or so before serving. Really depends on what wines you have.

Either way, I'd personally avoid dual temp, just more things to possibly go wrong. If price isn't an issue, eurocave is probably the way to go. But they don't have the prettiest cellars, or didn't when I was looking.

aggiejumper said:

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If money is not a concern, build a small cellar with glass to show it off.

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Not going to work with the house I'm buying - otherwise I would.

Rainbow lodge in Houston was offering a pretty good deal for a take home wine pairing menu.

How was the rose wine? I've had that producer before and really liked their other offering!

The rose may have been our favorite.

htxag09 said:

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The rose may have been our favorite.

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Awesome. Definitely gonna seek out that one!

Anyone got wine plans for the Super Bowl?

Had a great Sauvignon Blanc from Napa (Freemark Abbey) tonight with a salmon dinner. Great meal and pairing.

Also have a pour from a Carneros Pinot noir that I opened yesterday. It's an interesting one to have against the broader Sonoma and Russian River valley Pinots. It's really crazy how varied Sonoma county is. There are a multitude of different soils, elevations, etc. The term microclimate is thrown around some, and it is definitely valid in my opinion.