Everything You Need To Know Before Placing Your Wine In Your Refrigerator

Refrigerating wine is on shaky ground with many believing that only white and rose wines should be served chilled. However, this isn't completely accurate as the average kitchen refrigerator doesn't provide the ideal environment for wine. Experts say that storing wine in a kitchen refrigerator requires special guidelines and they've been outlined below.

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By Editorial Team

Gathering proper knowledge of wine storage will not only help you avoid wastage but also protect the quality of the wine's taste. According to experts, the most important aspect of refrigerating wine is using the proper machine — a wine refrigerator.

Why Should You Use A Wine Refrigerator?

Wine refrigerators are ideal for wine storage a survey are specially designed to provide the right temperatures and humidity, about 57%, to keep the wine cork moist.

On the other hand, kitchen refrigerators are much colder and have zero humidity. At such temperatures, the cork dries out and begins to shrink allowing air to seep into the wine.

Here's Everything You Should Know To Set Your Refrigerator's Temperature Correctly

That's why it is commonly advised that wines shouldn't be kept for more than a month in a fridge. Furthermore, you must adhere to the following guidelines on how to refrigerate different types of wines to optimise their quality as best as possible:

1. Sparkling Wine

Sparkling wines have natural corks and should not stay for longer than two or three weeks in a refrigerator. Sparkling wines go well with any meal so they can be enjoyed at any time; just don't forget to replace the bottle just as soon.

2. White or Rose Wine

White and rose wines can go in the refrigerator, but shouldn't remain longer than a month. After that period, the wine starts to oxidize and gradually loses its unique flavor.

If you want to keep a bottle of white or rose wine in the refrigerator long term, replace its natural cork with a screw cap or buy one that you know has a synthetic cork. Such seals stave off oxidation for longer as they are not dependent on the moisture level.

3. Red Wine

There are only a few red wines that require refrigeration before drinking with the exception of sparkling wines like Lambrusco. However, keep in mind that this variety will last longer if stored in a refrigerator after they've been opened. The wine oxidizes much slower at the low temperatures in the fridge, keeping it fresh for as long as possible.

Tip: When you're ready to drink the wine, take it out of the refrigerator about a half hour before serving to bring the temperature back up.

Enjoy!