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Maintaining Temperature and Humidity in a Wine Cellar

If, as Benjamin Franklin is quoted as saying, beer is living proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy, so, too, is wine. There isn’t a bad time of year to have wine, and these days sitting in front of a warm fire with a glass of your favorite wine is a wonderful way to end a workweek or toast a loved one. But if the wine has turned, your moment of bliss can quickly turn to irritation. How can you avoid this and savor your favorite wines for years to come? With the installation of a wine cellar in your Atlanta home.

Why Install a Wine Cellar?

Wine is a living, breathing entity. Wine has constant chemical reactions happening all the time, which literally changes its composition as it ages. Under the right temperature and humidity conditions, the wine gradually climbs to a peak, but once it passes this peak, it quickly disintegrates and at some point, becomes undrinkable. It can take many years for a wine to reach its peak, and during that ascent to the peak, the taste of the wine can become better and better. However, light, temperature, and humidity can accelerate the speed of the aging, which is not what you want to have happened to your wine. With a wine cellar, you can maintain the right humidity and temperature levels, and keep your wine away from damaging natural and artificial light.

Temperature and Humidity

The best temperature range in which to store wine is between 50 to 59 degrees Fahrenheit. Maintaining a steady temperature is just as important as the temperature itself as constant fluctuations in temperature can cause the chemicals in the wine to behave adversely and eventually spoil the wine. As far as temperature is concerned, any temperature over 77 degrees can cause the wine to heat up to a point where it “cooks” and becomes sour; if wine freezes, the crystallization allows excess oxygen into the bottle and the wine will oxidize when it defrosts.

Humidity is important to the wine, but it just a little more important for the cork. Corks dry out fairly easily, and when they do, they shrink; this shrinking can allow oxygen into the wine bottle, which will cause oxidation. The best humidity range to maintain for a wine cellar is between 60-75%.

Whether you are an avid collector or just like a good bottle of wine once in a while, a wine cellar for your Atlanta home can help you keep the wine you love for a good, long time.

Call Premier Indoor Comfort Systems and speak to one of our experts about the possibilities of installing a wine cellar in your home.

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