Once, wine was only meant for drinking, but nowadays a thriving market has developed in which the noble drop is traded not only as a collector’s item, but also as a valuable investment.
At the moment when a lot of money is at stake, keeping and storage become a necessity in which you can not only win, but also lose a lot.
Anyone who wants to store wine themselves in their own cellar must be prepared for some costs in order to ensure professional storage.
To give wine collectors a helping hand, many specialised self storage providers nowadays also offer facilities for wine storage.
The goal is to give wine lovers a safe and climatically optimal home for the precious drops, without the wine losing, due to incorrect storage, e.g. in quality, aroma, or even value.
Specialised wine storage under perfect conditions can be offered in various storage facilities and is not limited only to the wine cellar. In the following, we look at several prerequisites that must be taken into account when searching for a rented professional wine storage facility.
What makes wine a special product that can only be stored under certain conditions?
Wine has only officially been a food product since December 2023, but even before that it was considered a so called Genussmittel and thus perishable goods. Unlike many other agricultural products, however, wine has a longer shelf life.
Responsible for the long shelf life of wine are the large proportion of the sugar produced during fermentation and, of course, the alcohol of between 9 and 14 percent by volume. In addition, besides water and acid, wine also contains colouring, aroma, and tannins.
Wine is a living food product that changes over time. A distinction is made between wine aging, which vintners undertake in wooden barrels and stainless steel vats, and bottle maturation.
In bottle maturation, which most wine collectors rely on, correct storage is central. The plant tannins, called tannins, are meant to develop further and become softer in order to give wines better smoothness. The acids and the sugar in the wine also continue to develop during storage, and added aromas such as e.g. vanilla, honey, nuts, or dried fruits perfect the final taste.
Added to this is the influence of the cork, which, during storage, seemingly seals the wine airtight, but nevertheless lets in minimal oxygen and thereby further influences the maturation of the wine through oxidation. With conventional screw caps, which do not let in any air, this important process would be eliminated.
Correct bottle maturation, however, requires storage prerequisites that wine collectors and investors must strictly adhere to. These include the correct constant temperature, dark storage facilities without exposure to UV radiation, and racks or rooms that are protected from vibrations.
How long can different wines be stored before they reach their peak?
Even ordinary wine that you buy in the supermarket has a shelf life of about three years. Wine as an investment, however, must reach a so called drinking maturity of 15 to 20 years in order to even be considered as a collector’s or investment object. To reach this age, the right prerequisites and perfect storage conditions must be in place.
Different wines have different storage times, and in the following table you will find some of the most common ones:
| Wine type | Characteristic | Storage period | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quality wine, red | young | 1–3 years | Beaujolais |
| Quality wine, red | medium-bodied | 1–5 years | Merlot, Chianti |
| Quality wine, red | full-bodied | 2–10 years | High-quality Burgundy & Rioja |
| Quality wine, white | fresh | 1 year | Riesling |
| Quality wine, white | aromatic | 1–2 years | Sauvignon Blanc |
| Quality wine, white | full-bodied | 2–10 years | High-quality Chardonnays |
| Quality wine, rosé | fruit-forward | 1–2 years | Provence wines |
| Dessert wines | sweet | 3–10 years | Marsala, Moscato |
| Quality champagne | fruity | 3–10 years | Moët & Chandon |
In general, the motto for storing and shelf life of wines is: The younger the wine is at bottling, the shorter the shelf life and thus also the possible storage time before the wine spoils. Wine that has already been pre matured by the producer therefore has a longer shelf life and can also be kept longer in wine stores. Beerenauslesen/Spätlesen and other quality wines, which as a rule are rarer and therefore also more expensive, can normally be stored longer.
However, almost all producers of Qualitäts and Kabinett wines point out that, with optimal storage of their wines, the stated storage time can often be exceeded by years. Optimal storage includes the following criteria:
What is the right temperature for wine storage?
As a rule of thumb for general wine storage, a temperature range of 7–18°C applies. Wine experts, however, narrow the optimal temperature down further to 11–12°C. In addition, different wines often require their own optimal storage temperature.
Which temperature is appropriate for your wine storage therefore depends on the wine in which you want to invest.
However, it is certain that temperatures of 21°C and above already accelerate the maturation process of the wine and thereby shorten the storage time considerably. At temperatures of 25°C and above, the aroma of the wine can already be impaired to such an extent that it must be considered undrinkable.
You must also note that even within the generally stated temperature range of 7–18°C no major fluctuations and deviations should occur. Therefore ensure that your wine storage is not damaged by outside temperatures, radiators, exposure to sunlight, or uninsulated walls. Smaller temperature fluctuations over a shorter period of time, however, have proved less serious.
What humidity keeps corks stable without causing mold growth?
Besides temperature, humidity in your wine storage is also of decisive importance. This influences the condition of the cork, which not only keeps your noble drops in the bottle, but also has a major influence on the maturation and shelf life of your wine.
If the humidity in your wine storage is too low (<50%) and the air too dry, the cork can dry out and become brittle. This increases the air supply in the bottle and the wine oxidizes, whereby it loses taste and can even become undrinkable.
If the humidity is too high, e.g. over 80%, there is a great risk that your cork begins to mold. Mold spores can thereby get into the wine and irreparably damage it.
Besides the corks, wine labels are also affected by humidity and, depending on the conditions in your wine storage, can either soften or crumble.
The perfect humidity for wine cellars and storage facilities is, according to experts, between 60 and 70%.
To achieve the optimal humidity for your wine, you should not only regularly measure humidity, but also ensure that your wine storage is not in a damp room that is not properly climate controlled and tempered.
How do you protect wine from light before its aroma decomposes?
Besides temperature fluctuations and unpleasantly high/low humidity levels in the air, light is the greatest enemy of wine storage. UV rays can trigger chemical reactions in wine that affect not only the colour, but also the taste. Wine that is exposed to sunlight over a longer period of time usually develops the dreaded “Lichtschlag”, which is accompanied not only by an unpleasant taste, but also by a rotten smell.
For this reason, wine has always been stored in dark cellars that have neither windows nor glass doors. Besides sunlight, halogen and fluorescent lamps can also turn your wine into something undrinkable, because both emit not only UV rays, but also unnecessary heat.
Wine and light experts therefore suggest warm, discreet lighting using LED lamps that are coupled to motion sensors. This allows you to ensure safety in your wine cellar because the lamps switch on as soon as someone enters the darkened area, but also automatically switch off again. With the help of the sensors, you can ensure that your wine is exposed only to a minimal amount of light that does not lead to damage.
Should you store bottles lying down or standing up depending on the type of closure?
As already mentioned, wines as collector’s and investment objects are mostly sealed with natural corks. About 80% of wines in global production are still sealed with corks, but over the course of the last years premium wine producers have also invested in the development of alternative solutions.
The reason is the generally feared “Korkschmecker”, where the stored wine irrevocably takes on the taste of the cork and thereby becomes undrinkable.
“Korkschmecker” arises when a TCA infection (2,4,6 Trichloroanisole) attacks the cork. TCA is the result of naturally occurring fungi that come into contact with cleaning agents or disinfectants. In most cases, the infection already occurs in cork production, where these agents are indispensable.
A TCA infection cannot be completely ruled out even nowadays with modern analytical machines. Many wine producers therefore gradually switch to attaching screw caps or glass closures to their wine bottles.
Since cork, besides the closure, also brings further advantages and important contributions to wine maturation, wine bottles that are sealed with natural cork should always be stored lying down. Wine bottles that have a screw cap or glass stopper can also be stored standing up. However, with this type of storage, the storage time is shortened to two, at most three years.
Champagne, Sekt, and other sparkling wines can be stored both standing and lying down, depending on how you bought the wine. In the production of sparkling wines, an overpressure arises in the bottle, in which the rising carbon dioxide keeps the cork moist even without direct contact. If the sparkling wine, however, has already been stored lying down at the producer for some time, you should maintain this position in order not to disturb the wine and to trigger unnecessary pressure.
Otherwise too, you should avoid unnecessary rotations of the wine bottles, movements of the racks, or even vibrations in the wine cellar. Household appliances, regular opening and closing of doors, and even the climate control system installed specifically for the wine cellar can lead to tiny impairments in the interaction of the substances that are necessary for the proper and timely wine maturation and aging.
How do you avoid vibrations that stir up sediments and accelerate aging?
Well stored and matured wine consists of various substances. These include suspended matter, aromas, tannins, and natural deposits that arise in a properly still, horizontal position. If these are mixed up by movements of the bottles, not only can the aging of the wine accelerate, but the taste can also change for the worse.
Therefore you should protect your wine cellar or room not only from light and temperature fluctuations, but also from regular vibrations and shocks.
Store your wine as far away as possible from household appliances such as washing machines, dryers, refrigerators, and freezers. Frequently used stairwells and garage doors can also have a negative influence on your wine.
Secure your wine cellar with racks that stand on solid concrete floors and are secured with vibration dampers on the feet and sides. Rounded supports in wine racks adapted to the bottle neck ensure that the bottles lie safely and cannot roll.
In addition, it is advisable not to set up a wine cellar in an environment that is near heavily trafficked roads, frequent roadworks, and airports. Find a quiet room for your wine off the beaten paths, if necessary even outside your own four walls.
Wine cellar at home or in a rented storage unit?
As you can see, setting up a wine cellar is not for someone with weak nerves. If you want to store wine only over a shorter period, i.e. 1–2 years, setting it up is far less time-consuming and detail-oriented, because your noble drops do not have to be subjected to the same safety precautions as expensive collector’s or investment objects.
If you are considering, however, collecting wine or investing in the bottles as an alternative to your existing stock portfolio, far greater expenses come into play. Your cellar or storage room must not only be fully climate controlled and shock dampened. You must also constantly ensure yourself that the temperature and the humidity level remain within what is tolerable for the wine.
An emergency power generator and CCTV/video surveillance are probably also appropriate if you want to secure your investment adequately. In doing so, you may save rental expenses, but setting up the wine cellar can, over time, cost far more.
Recently, there are a range of self storage options that specialize in storing wine. There you generally already get the perfect conditions for your wine storage and you also do not have to worry about security and insurance.
Various wine merchants and wineries also offer professional storage options for wine collectors. Here, however, you must consider the quantity that you want to store now and in the future, because the space cannot be expanded without limit.
When deciding whether you want to store your wine at home or with professional wine cellar landlords, you should consider the following:
- How many wine bottles do you want to store? Is the quantity worth converting the entire cellar?
- How long do you want to store the wine? If you store the wine for your own enjoyment over a shorter period of time, perhaps a wine storage cabinet in a dark corner in the cellar would be sufficient.
- How severe are the temperature fluctuations in your area?
- How damp is your cellar?
- How much time can you yourself spend to keep an eye on your wine collection?
If you want to rent a wine cellar, you should also consider professional transport. So that your precious wine bottles are not already shaken up before storage, it is appropriate to obtain professional help and advice, e.g. from your wine merchant. Professional wine stores and wine cellars will also offer proper transport with collection and return delivery as part of the service.
