The Case for Starting a Wine Cellar at Home

The Case for Starting a Wine Cellar at Home

Bryce Sanders, President

Perceptive Business Solutions Inc.

If you are finding yourself becoming a wine fan, you might start thinking about having a wine cellar at home.? This can sound daunting, but we are nor talking about a wine room or even a wine refrigerator.? In this case, a wine cellar is a collection of wine.? Put another way, you have more on hand than you are going to be drinking immediately.? Where do you start?

1.????? Know your tastes.? It is important to know what you like or the regions of wine where you have a passion.? I like Bordeaux and Burgundy wines.? You might like California Cabernets or Brunello from Italy.? In this case, “cellar” is another word for collection.

2.????? Where will you store your wine?? Let us assume you are buying wine with the intention of drinking it, not consigning it to auction at a later date.? It is commonly accepted 55% is an ideal temperature for long term wine storage.? Bear in mind the British aristocracy would store wine in their cellars, sort of an underground basement.? Most houses today are climate controlled.? Your “wine cellar” can be a few boxes or a rack in the back of a closet if you like.? The important features are reasonably steady temperature, dark and free of vibration.? Higher humidity is better than low humidity, because you don’t want the corks to dry out.

3.????? Take advantage of good deals.? If you have a good relationship with the staff at your wine store, you will learn about closeouts.? Wine is heavy and fragile.? It takes up a lot of warehouse space.? A new vintage comes out every year.? The wine distributor needs to clear out the old stock to make way for the new arrivals.? Your wine store might tell you about great deals.? Buying more than you need immediately means wine goes into your cellar.

4.????? Hard to find wines.? The really great wines are in short supply and often available only on allocation.? I was recently in a great wine shop in Cork, Republic of Ireland.? They had hard to find wines and limited buyers to only one bottle, to discourage speculation and “share the wealth.”? These wines never go on sale or get discounted.? If you have a great relationship with your wine store, they might tip you off and offer the chance to buy a couple of bottles.

5.????? Buy more than one or two.? You have favorite wines.? They have a reputation of improving with age.? When you buy wine from a good vintage, buy a few bottles.? Put them away.? It is rewarding to try the wine over several years, learning how it develops over time.

6.????? Keep a written record.? A notebook is good.? You want to keep track of what wines you have and the number of bottles.? This might not be necessary if you own six bottles, but if your collection reaches 100 bottles, you can’t store it all in your head.? You might have those “I forgot I have that wine” moments.

7.????? Don’t wait too long. Drink your white wines sooner rather than later.? Although some white wines can live for very long periods, white wines tend to mature and go “over the hill” faster than red wines.? Warmer storage temperature means wine matures faster.? Put another way, the only thing worse than opening a bottle of white wine and realizing it is “over the hill” is realizing you have 11 more just like it.

8.????? Keep sparkling wine on hand.? In my opinion, this is champagne.? You will have occasions to celebrate.? Friends will come around bearing good news.? You will be invited to someone’s house at the last minute.? Champagne always gets used up somehow.

9.????? Share with friends.? Part of the joy of collecting wine is opening bottles with like-minded individuals or friends with a sincere interest in learning.? You might be putting together a dinner where a certain wine and food pairing is considered ideal.? It is very handy when you already have the wines nearby and don’t need to run to the store.? You are creating memories with your friends.?

Build a wine cellar, a collection of favorite bottles at home can bring great joy.? It can also contribute to memorable evenings with friends.

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Bryce Sanders is president of Perceptive Business Solutions Inc.? He provides HNW client acquisition training for the financial services industry.? His book, “Captivating the Wealthy Investor” is available on Amazon.

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