A Splash from Your Nantucket Sommelier
Saving and Storing Wine
by Leslie-Ann Sheppard
owner of The Cellar on Surfside Road.
Recently when in London, I walked into Berry Bros. Wine Merchant and started peeking around, immediately aware that I was in the presence of some great wine. My jaw dropped open when I came across a number of first and second growth Bordeaux from the famous1982 vintage. Imagine my excitement later when I opened a birthday present from my husband, only to realize he had snuck back to the shop and purchased an ’82 Ducru-Beaucaillou. For a wine enthusiast such as myself, it was a very thoughtful and amazing gift.
This leads to some compelling questions about older vintages… when to buy them, how to store them, and when to drink them?
For a wine such as a 1982 Bordeaux or other older vintage, it is important to know how the wine has been stored. If the wine has not been stored in a cellar or like environment, its condition can be questionable. There are a few “warning signs” to watch for if considering buying an older wine. Observing the wine’s level inside the bottle, as well as the condition of the seal are both important. If the liquid seems low inside the bottle, evaporation is likely to have occurred, which can leave the wine off-balance. If the cork is broken and floating in the wine, or the cork is partially out of the bottle, these are also warning signs. Extreme temperature fluctuations could have caused gases in the wine to start to force the cork out, or sugars that are normally integrated in the wine can be forced out. It is perfectly acceptable and expected that a buyer would inquire about the wine’s storage from the seller.
Preferably, wine meant for aging is stored in a cellar. The function of a wine cellar is to provide a stable environment to allow the wine to mature. Keeping wine at a cool or cold temperature will slow down the rate at which the product will change. A cool temperature and a relative high humidity will keep the wine alive for a longer period of time than standard interior room conditions allow.
Opinions vary, but it is commonly agreed upon that 55° is the ‘best’ temperature for storing wines for the long term. This makes storing wine underground a natural choice. Cellars were dug out of the earth long before refrigeration was an option, and have the time-tested proof of the value of constant cool temperature. Most underground cellars maintain this temperature naturally.
Higher humidity is also important when storing wine. It keeps corks from drying out, which will also prevent oxygen from entering the bottle, and from spoiling the wine. Storing wine on its side will also keep the cork moist.
If you can’t dig out a natural cellar or have a home without a basement, there are manufactured alternatives that compensate. A staggering number of refrigeration options exist that try to duplicate the conditions of a natural cellar, and they are certainly adequate.
As for when to drink older, “special” bottles of wine—well, that answer will vary widely and is dependent upon many variables. Some people only drink exceptional wines, while others, like me, have a stash of wines that have stories behind them. All too often though, these bottles collect dust and lay dormant past their prime, never “finding” a good enough occasion to be uncorked. By and large, I’ve heard more European winemakers proclaim that much more wine is consumed AFTER its prime, than consumed too young.
What are we waiting for? The raise? The promotion? The engagement? The prize fish? The first home? An addition to the family? Admittedly, these are all amazing occasions that call for celebration, but I am an advocate of a “manufactured” moment—creating that occasion that is deserving of a special bottle of wine. The decision and process of opening and sharing the bottle is, in itself, that occasion. Dorothy Gaiter and John Brecher, Wall Street Journal wine columnists, advocate this approach in their annual ‘OTBN’ – Open That Bottle Night. They solicit their readers to join them in the holiday they’ve created—the holiday that once a year, readers choose to Open That Special Bottle. It’s on a Saturday night in February, (not a holiday by any other definition) and has websites and blogs and columns for people who want to share their experiences.
A simpler question than when to open the special bottle is how to serve it. If the wine has been cellared at 55 degrees, I personally think that is a good “average” temperature at which to drink both white and red fine wines. Typical refrigeration is 38’ to 40’ – which can be much too cold to be able to appreciate the fine intricacies of a great white wine. And standard “room temperature” of 70’ is a bit too warm for great reds to really be able to display all their splendor.
If cellar temperature isn’t an automatic option due to non-existence of a cellar, I recommend taking a good bottle of white wine out of the refrigerator a half hour to an hour before serving it, and putting a good bottle of red wine in the refrigerator a half hour to an hour before serving it. This is especially true in the summer months, when room temperature can be quite higher than the recommended drinking temperature for reds of 55 to 60 degrees.
As my lifestyle is a bit nomadic, I do not have a permanent personal wine cellar. As such, it was unlikely that I would hold onto the gifted bottle of ’82 Ducru Beaucaillou for long. My husband and I decided to open it one day after an epic powder day of snowboarding. Just the two of us, hanging around in our après ski long underwear and helmet hair. It was cause for celebration, but a sort of ordinary appreciation for nature type of celebration. And yes, the wine brought it to the “next level” and made it something I’d capture in my journal and read again, and enjoy again, some other time.
