Wine Storage Racks

From a glass of Chardonnay to fit for a Sommelier

Do you enjoy wine but fear the wrath snobs like the one in the movie "Sideways?" Well, wine, as well as the racks you store it in, is as much about personal taste as anything else. For instance, the Merlot grapes that the Sideways character complains about are used in the most expensive wines in the world - think Chateau Lafitte Rothschild and Sotheby's auctions.

A Few Fundamentals

There are a few rules about storing wine to keep in mind. If you're only storing wine for a short period, a few days or months, then having a small counter top rack that holds the wine in a horizontal fashion is fine. You want to keep the wine horizontal to keep the cork moist so the wine will not oxidize. Now the next question is, why not store the bottle upside down` There are a few reasons why the wine should be stored on its side:

Storing upside down could mean sludge build up in the neck. No one likes floaters, which will be the result of sludge settling to the top of the bottle.

Labels are easier to read when horizontal.

It will be easier to add on to a horizontal wine rack in the future.

There is less risk of bottles falling and breaking.

Types of Racks

There are two types of wine storage racks to keep in mind. The first are the small decorative racks you can put on a kitchen counter or on a bar top. The second are the type that you use to store wine for longer periods of time.

Bar Top Racks

There are some very attractive wine racks that look great on display in the home.

A Tree Style Wine Storage Rack is a great choice because of how the wine is stored. These racks hold the wine at a 45-degree angle keeping the cork moist and the labels easy to read.

There are a number of different Modular Wine Racks that look sharp and offer the ability to expand if your collection grows.

Diamond Racks are wooden and square; two X-shaped panels running from each corner of the square divide the rack. The resulting angled partitions are ideal for holding multiple bottles. Each rack can be stacked on others to form larger racks.

Long Term Storage RacksThese racks are usually made of wood or wrought iron and are used to hold as much as 100 bottles at a time. If you purchase a rack like this, make sure to keep the loaded rack in a room where the temperature stays steady anywhere between 50 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Considering that holding wine for long periods can be a fun and lucrative hobby, I would suggest giving it a shot.

More information on storage racks