Just an observation, I store all my wine in our basement. And as I build up
my stock (so to speak), I have had a small concern that maybe my basement
isn't the best place, but better than anywhere else in my house. The
difference in the temperatures down there is about 10 degrees from winter to
summer - it is dark, and generally very little vibration. I've always had
wine stored in my basement since we moved here 14 years ago, although I
didn't start my wine-making until 3 years ago. Not all of us can spend the
big $ to protect our wine, but we do the best we can. Needless to say, I
was pleased when I opened up a 1994 Cabernet Sauvignon over the past
weekend - the wine was very, very good. How's everyone else's wine storage
working out?

Darlene
G'town, Wisconsin
USA

Dar V wrote:
<snip>

How's everyone else's wine storage
> working out?

Darlene,

About 6 yrs ago, I partitioned off a corner of my basement with
insulated walls & ceiling. The temperature gradually swings from about
55°F to about 70°F in August. As far as I can tell, the wines hold up
fine. Maybe a little too well, in fact, as some of the reds seem a
little slow to develop. But in general, I think it's as close to ideal
as it needs to be.



--


Mike MTM, Cokesbury, New Jersey, USA

On 5/11/04 3:35 PM, in article , "Dar
V" > wrote:

> Just an observation, I store all my wine in our basement. And as I build up
> my stock (so to speak), I have had a small concern that maybe my basement
> isn't the best place, but better than anywhere else in my house. The
> difference in the temperatures down there is about 10 degrees from winter to
> summer - it is dark, and generally very little vibration. I've always had
> wine stored in my basement since we moved here 14 years ago, although I
> didn't start my wine-making until 3 years ago. Not all of us can spend the
> big $ to protect our wine, but we do the best we can. Needless to say, I
> was pleased when I opened up a 1994 Cabernet Sauvignon over the past
> weekend - the wine was very, very good. How's everyone else's wine storage
> working out?
>
> Darlene
> G'town, Wisconsin
> USA
>
>

The two most important things to do is keep it in the dark and keep the
temperature (whatever it is) as constant as possible. It sounds like your
basement is ideal. Slow temp changes of 10 degrees from summer to winter is
GREAT.

I've stored my wines in my basement with a bit more fluctuation of
temperature. I'm really lucky to have a brand new basementroom that was just
poured for my new home addition. I will insulate the walls and make this my
wine cellar-tasting room. Oh, I can't wait. You can find pictures on my
website of my winecellar.


--
Greg Cook
http://homepage.mac.com/gregcook/Wine
http://homepage.mac.com/gregcook/aws

(remove spamblocker from my email)

Hi Greg,
Please explain why the wine should be kept in the dark. I have see this item
in many home brewers (wine) books. There is no explanation of why. In beer
there is the chemical change in the hop compounds due to UV light. Why do
we, as wine makers always state that light is bad for wine. Is there a
scientific back ground? If there is please post it.
Thanks,
Eddie V.
The Wine And Beer Factory.

"Greg Cook" > wrote in message
s.com...
> On 5/11/04 3:35 PM, in article ,
"Dar
> V" > wrote:
>
> > Just an observation, I store all my wine in our basement. And as I
build up
> > my stock (so to speak), I have had a small concern that maybe my
basement
> > isn't the best place, but better than anywhere else in my house. The
> > difference in the temperatures down there is about 10 degrees from
winter to
> > summer - it is dark, and generally very little vibration. I've always
had
> > wine stored in my basement since we moved here 14 years ago, although I
> > didn't start my wine-making until 3 years ago. Not all of us can spend
the
> > big $ to protect our wine, but we do the best we can. Needless to say,
I
> > was pleased when I opened up a 1994 Cabernet Sauvignon over the past
> > weekend - the wine was very, very good. How's everyone else's wine
storage
> > working out?
> >
> > Darlene
> > G'town, Wisconsin
> > USA
> >
> >
>
> The two most important things to do is keep it in the dark and keep the
> temperature (whatever it is) as constant as possible. It sounds like your
> basement is ideal. Slow temp changes of 10 degrees from summer to winter
is
> GREAT.
>
> I've stored my wines in my basement with a bit more fluctuation of
> temperature. I'm really lucky to have a brand new basementroom that was
just
> poured for my new home addition. I will insulate the walls and make this
my
> wine cellar-tasting room. Oh, I can't wait. You can find pictures on my
> website of my winecellar.
>
>
> --
> Greg Cook
> http://homepage.mac.com/gregcook/Wine
> http://homepage.mac.com/gregcook/aws
>
> (remove spamblocker from my email)
>

Yeah. I always read that light doesn't affect wine. If it did, you would
think there would be brown wine bottles.

"Sabia Vanderzeeuw" > wrote in message
...
> Hi Greg,
> Please explain why the wine should be kept in the dark. I have see this
item
> in many home brewers (wine) books. There is no explanation of why. In beer
> there is the chemical change in the hop compounds due to UV light. Why do
> we, as wine makers always state that light is bad for wine. Is there a
> scientific back ground? If there is please post it.
> Thanks,
> Eddie V.
> The Wine And Beer Factory.
>
> "Greg Cook" > wrote in message
> s.com...
> > On 5/11/04 3:35 PM, in article ,
> "Dar
> > V" > wrote:
> >
> > > Just an observation, I store all my wine in our basement. And as I
> build up
> > > my stock (so to speak), I have had a small concern that maybe my
> basement
> > > isn't the best place, but better than anywhere else in my house. The
> > > difference in the temperatures down there is about 10 degrees from
> winter to
> > > summer - it is dark, and generally very little vibration. I've
always
> had
> > > wine stored in my basement since we moved here 14 years ago, although
I
> > > didn't start my wine-making until 3 years ago. Not all of us can
spend
> the
> > > big $ to protect our wine, but we do the best we can. Needless to
say,
> I
> > > was pleased when I opened up a 1994 Cabernet Sauvignon over the past
> > > weekend - the wine was very, very good. How's everyone else's wine
> storage
> > > working out?
> > >
> > > Darlene
> > > G'town, Wisconsin
> > > USA
> > >
> > >
> >
> > The two most important things to do is keep it in the dark and keep the
> > temperature (whatever it is) as constant as possible. It sounds like
your
> > basement is ideal. Slow temp changes of 10 degrees from summer to winter
> is
> > GREAT.
> >
> > I've stored my wines in my basement with a bit more fluctuation of
> > temperature. I'm really lucky to have a brand new basementroom that was
> just
> > poured for my new home addition. I will insulate the walls and make this
> my
> > wine cellar-tasting room. Oh, I can't wait. You can find pictures on my
> > website of my winecellar.
> >
> >
> > --
> > Greg Cook
> > http://homepage.mac.com/gregcook/Wine
> > http://homepage.mac.com/gregcook/aws
> >
> > (remove spamblocker from my email)
> >
>
>

On 5/13/04 7:49 AM, in article , "Adam
Lang" > wrote:

> Yeah. I always read that light doesn't affect wine. If it did, you would
> think there would be brown wine bottles.
>

Well, there are brown wine bottles!

Have you noticed that wines intended for some time to age in the bottle -
namely red wines - are always bottled in green glass? This is one way to
protect it from light. White wines are often bottled in clear glass - less
components in it that absorb the light energy and usually drunk at an
earlier age.

--
Greg Cook
http://homepage.mac.com/gregcook/Wine
http://homepage.mac.com/gregcook/aws

(remove spamblocker from my email)

I was told green bottles do nothing.

"Greg Cook" > wrote in message
s.com...
> On 5/13/04 7:49 AM, in article , "Adam
> Lang" > wrote:
>
>
> Well, there are brown wine bottles!
>
> Have you noticed that wines intended for some time to age in the bottle -
> namely red wines - are always bottled in green glass? This is one way to
> protect it from light. White wines are often bottled in clear glass - less
> components in it that absorb the light energy and usually drunk at an
> earlier age.

On 5/12/04 9:00 PM, in article
, "Sabia Vanderzeeuw"
> wrote:

> Hi Greg,
> Please explain why the wine should be kept in the dark. I have see this item
> in many home brewers (wine) books. There is no explanation of why. In beer
> there is the chemical change in the hop compounds due to UV light. Why do
> we, as wine makers always state that light is bad for wine. Is there a
> scientific back ground? If there is please post it.
> Thanks,
> Eddie V.
> The Wine And Beer Factory.
>

There are a lot of chemical reactions that are induced by absorption of
light. Wine has many colored components in it - which means it's absorbing
light at certain wavelengths. Light will degrade these. I'm not sure what
kind of explanation you want. Light can induce polymerization of polyphenols
for example. The bottom line is, color and flavors can be harmed by light
and wine will "age" faster in light than in the dark.

--
Greg Cook
http://homepage.mac.com/gregcook/Wine
http://homepage.mac.com/gregcook/aws

(remove spamblocker from my email)

Thanks Greg,
The many compounds in wine will definitely absorb some wave lengths of light
specific to the compound. Polymerization or break down can occur.
Polyphenols can also break down due to UV light. There are hundreds of
compounds in wine. I would like to know what families are involved with
polymerization or break down due to light. Are the flavonoids involved and
are cinnamic acid family (phenolic compounds) involved? There are many more
non phenolic groups are they involved?
Eddie V.

"Greg Cook" > wrote in message
s.com...
> On 5/12/04 9:00 PM, in article
> , "Sabia Vanderzeeuw"
> > wrote:
>
> > Hi Greg,
> > Please explain why the wine should be kept in the dark. I have see this
item
> > in many home brewers (wine) books. There is no explanation of why. In
beer
> > there is the chemical change in the hop compounds due to UV light. Why
do
> > we, as wine makers always state that light is bad for wine. Is there a
> > scientific back ground? If there is please post it.
> > Thanks,
> > Eddie V.
> > The Wine And Beer Factory.
> >
>
> There are a lot of chemical reactions that are induced by absorption of
> light. Wine has many colored components in it - which means it's absorbing
> light at certain wavelengths. Light will degrade these. I'm not sure what
> kind of explanation you want. Light can induce polymerization of
polyphenols
> for example. The bottom line is, color and flavors can be harmed by light
> and wine will "age" faster in light than in the dark.
>
> --
> Greg Cook
> http://homepage.mac.com/gregcook/Wine
> http://homepage.mac.com/gregcook/aws
>
> (remove spamblocker from my email)
>

On 5/13/04 8:43 PM, in article ,
"Sabia Vanderzeeuw" > wrote:

> Thanks Greg,
> The many compounds in wine will definitely absorb some wave lengths of light
> specific to the compound. Polymerization or break down can occur.
> Polyphenols can also break down due to UV light. There are hundreds of
> compounds in wine. I would like to know what families are involved with
> polymerization or break down due to light. Are the flavonoids involved and
> are cinnamic acid family (phenolic compounds) involved? There are many more
> non phenolic groups are they involved?
> Eddie V.

Eddie,

Great questions. As a chemist, my chemical intuition tells me that any
highly conjugated compound in wine has a potential to degrade due to light.
This would certainly include phenolics, flavanoids and cinnamates. However,
I don't know specifically what studies have been done on this. If I can find
some time in the near future, I'll see what I can find in the scientific
literature and forward that on to you.

--
Greg Cook
http://homepage.mac.com/gregcook/Wine
http://homepage.mac.com/gregcook/aws

(remove spamblocker from my email)

Have you noticed how curtains hung in a sunlit room tend to fade after a few
years? Light will do the same to wine. A glorious red grape will fade
toward rose. A beautiful berry wine will fade almost to clear. As it
fades, it's flavor is effected as well, not just the color. Over a long
period of time light can do a lot to anything left in it.

Green bottles may or may not help protect the wine. I always bottle dark
wines in dark bottles. But one thing is for sure. Keeping them in a dark
room will DEFINITELY help.

Ray

"Sabia Vanderzeeuw" > wrote in message
...
> Hi Greg,
> Please explain why the wine should be kept in the dark. I have see this
item
> in many home brewers (wine) books. There is no explanation of why. In beer
> there is the chemical change in the hop compounds due to UV light. Why do
> we, as wine makers always state that light is bad for wine. Is there a
> scientific back ground? If there is please post it.
> Thanks,
> Eddie V.
> The Wine And Beer Factory.
>
> "Greg Cook" > wrote in message
> s.com...
> > On 5/11/04 3:35 PM, in article ,
> "Dar
> > V" > wrote:
> >
> > > Just an observation, I store all my wine in our basement. And as I
> build up
> > > my stock (so to speak), I have had a small concern that maybe my
> basement
> > > isn't the best place, but better than anywhere else in my house. The
> > > difference in the temperatures down there is about 10 degrees from
> winter to
> > > summer - it is dark, and generally very little vibration. I've
always
> had
> > > wine stored in my basement since we moved here 14 years ago, although
I
> > > didn't start my wine-making until 3 years ago. Not all of us can
spend
> the
> > > big $ to protect our wine, but we do the best we can. Needless to
say,
> I
> > > was pleased when I opened up a 1994 Cabernet Sauvignon over the past
> > > weekend - the wine was very, very good. How's everyone else's wine
> storage
> > > working out?
> > >
> > > Darlene
> > > G'town, Wisconsin
> > > USA
> > >
> > >
> >
> > The two most important things to do is keep it in the dark and keep the
> > temperature (whatever it is) as constant as possible. It sounds like
your
> > basement is ideal. Slow temp changes of 10 degrees from summer to winter
> is
> > GREAT.
> >
> > I've stored my wines in my basement with a bit more fluctuation of
> > temperature. I'm really lucky to have a brand new basementroom that was
> just
> > poured for my new home addition. I will insulate the walls and make this
> my
> > wine cellar-tasting room. Oh, I can't wait. You can find pictures on my
> > website of my winecellar.
> >
> >
> > --
> > Greg Cook
> > http://homepage.mac.com/gregcook/Wine
> > http://homepage.mac.com/gregcook/aws
> >
> > (remove spamblocker from my email)
> >
>
>

Dar & et al:

Oh how I wish I had a basement! After filling the only downstairs closet
beyond capacity a few years ago an edict from the boss (which went something
like " do something about your wines I want my closet back"!) forced me to
design a wine closet UPSTAIRS in my large study. Built and insulated a
double door 600 bottle wine closet finished in oak. Since it was upstairs
and heat would be an issue in the summer it includes a Vinotemp wine cooler
that keeps my wine 58 degrees and 70% humidity. Gotta admit it turned out
great! If she only knew how much it cost! Sh.......

Tom
"Dar V" > wrote in message
...
> Just an observation, I store all my wine in our basement. And as I build
up
> my stock (so to speak), I have had a small concern that maybe my basement
> isn't the best place, but better than anywhere else in my house. The
> difference in the temperatures down there is about 10 degrees from winter
to
> summer - it is dark, and generally very little vibration. I've always
had
> wine stored in my basement since we moved here 14 years ago, although I
> didn't start my wine-making until 3 years ago. Not all of us can spend
the
> big $ to protect our wine, but we do the best we can. Needless to say, I
> was pleased when I opened up a 1994 Cabernet Sauvignon over the past
> weekend - the wine was very, very good. How's everyone else's wine
storage
> working out?
>
> Darlene
> G'town, Wisconsin
> USA
>
>