STORING WINE
WILLIAMSON WINE APPRECIATION
Keeping Your Wine Safe
Basement beats kitchen.
Wine does not need a grand underground cellar. It needs a cool, dark and stable place where the bottles can rest undisturbed.
Store it well and a carefully chosen bottle can wait patiently for the right dinner, the right friends and the right evening.
MORE THAN A COLLECTION
A Cellar Holds Memories
My grandfather knew the terroir of every bottle in his cellar, quite possibly because he had grown the grapes and made the wines.
Each bottle held the memory of a place, a season and a time in his life. Simply taking one from the cellar allowed him to enjoy part of that story again.
That remains the real value of collecting wine. A cellar is not merely a row of bottles. It is a collection of past experiences and future evenings.
Good storage protects more than the wine. It protects the occasion for which you have been saving it.
CELLAR FUNDAMENTALS
Cool, Dark, Stable and Undisturbed
These four conditions matter more than an elaborate cellar.
Keep It Cool
A temperature near 55°F is a useful target, but consistency matters more than maintaining one exact number.
A slightly warmer cellar can still work well if the temperature remains moderate and stable.
Keep It Stable
Repeated warming and cooling accelerates development and places unnecessary stress on the wine and its closure.
Avoid kitchens, garages, attics, vehicles and locations close to heating appliances.
Keep It Dark
Direct sunlight and strong artificial light can damage wine and shorten its useful life.
A dark cupboard, basement or enclosed wine cabinet is preferable to an attractive rack in a sunny kitchen.
Keep It Undisturbed
Choose a secure location where bottles will not be moved, knocked or exposed to continuous mechanical vibration.
Wine enjoys the same thing many of us do: a comfortable place and a little peace.
POSITION AND HUMIDITY
Natural Cork Requires a Cellar
Bottles sealed with natural cork need to be stored horizontally in a traditional wine rack. This keeps the cork secure and properly moist during long-term cellaring.
Screwcap bottles may be stored horizontally or upright because their closures do not depend on cork condition.
Moderate humidity is useful in a long-term cellar because extremely dry air can affect exposed cork surfaces and damage labels. Excessive humidity, however, encourages mold and deteriorates packaging.
Aim for a comfortable, stable cellar environment rather than pursuing a laboratory-perfect number.
CHOOSING A STORAGE SPACE
Cellar, Cupboard or Wine Refrigerator?
Passive Storage
A basement, interior cupboard or under-stair space can work well when it remains naturally cool, dark and stable throughout the year.
Measure both summer and winter temperature before committing valuable wine to long-term storage.
Climate-Controlled Cellar
A dedicated cellar system controls temperature and the higher humidity required for cork protection.
It is particularly useful for larger collections or homes without a naturally suitable storage area.
Wine Refrigerator
A wine refrigerator can provide excellent storage, maintaining stable temperature, protects from light and has enough capacity for the intended cellaring.
A kitchen refrigerator is best used for tonight’s salad.
THE SHORT VERSION
Where Wine Should Not Live
- In direct sunlight
- Beside a stove, oven or heating vent
- On top of a kitchen refrigerator
- In a hot garage, attic or vehicle
- Against an exterior wall with large temperature changes
- Anywhere bottles are regularly knocked or disturbed
Brief exposure does not automatically ruin a wine. Prolonged heat and repeated temperature changes are the greater concerns.
If the room is uncomfortable for you throughout the year, it is probably uncomfortable for your wine.
FROM OUR CELLAR TO YOURS
Transporting Wine Safely
Williamson wines are packed in sturdy, shock-absorbent wine shipping containers enclosed within a protective cardboard box.
We work with our shipping partners to manage routes, timing and weather conditions so that the wine spends as little unnecessary time as possible exposed to difficult temperatures.
Once the shipment arrives, bring it inside promptly. Wine should not remain on a warm porch, in direct sunlight or in the trunk of a car.
WHEN YOUR WINE ARRIVES
Bring It Inside and Inspect the Bottles
If the bottles arrive unusually warm or cold, move them to a cool, stable room and allow their temperature to normalize gradually.
Inspect the package for breakage, leakage, pushed corks or other visible damage. Cold bottles are not necessarily harmed. Evidence of leakage or severe heat exposure deserves a conversation.
If you have any concern about a shipment, contact us. If something has happened to the wine during wine club shipping, we will replace it without question.
PROTECT THE FUTURE EVENING
Store It Well. Then Remember to Drink It.
A bottle may wait years for the right moment, but storage is not the point of wine. The point is the table, the food and the people gathered around it.
Keep the bottle safe until that evening arrives. Then pull the cork, pour generously and add another memory to the cellar.