Wine has been set apart from the other beverages consumed by humans, rather like the gods and goddesses themselves were set apart from mere mortals in their aerie on Mount Olympus, since the first flagon of grape was allowed to ferment. Wine has had a role to play in religious ceremonies form the time of the ancient Greeks to the Christian rituals of today, and when it is released from its bottle like a genie, wine has almost the same effect.

Yet wine, for all its mystery, requires some rather mundane care. Wine which is not to be consumed immediately needs to be sorted, and its proper storage has certain rituals of its own. For those uninitiated into those rituals, wine storage tips might prove helpful.

Although many people love to store their wine in plain sight of the envious eyes of their visitors, or because the shade of the burgundy exactly matches the roses on Grandmother's china, the first of the wine storage tips is that wine should be stored away from light and heat. If you're not going to be drinking the lovely burgundy within a few weeks, put it back in the wine storage rack in a dark cool part of the house.

Watching The Humidity

And while you're putting it back, check the humidity in your main wine storage area. The second of the wine storage tips is that you don't want the humidity to drop to a level at which the bottle corks will begin to dry out and shrink. If they do, air will gat into the bottle s and the wine will eventually deteriorate.

Storing Leftover Wine

Another of the more useful wine storage tips regards what you should do after the party with the wine in your half-empty bottles. Feeding it to the kitchen sink hardly seems justified; if you can find the cork and it still fits, just replace it and make sure to finish the wine in the next couple of days.

Nitrogen Sealing

But if you've had as much wine as you can take for a while, and you can find one, get yourself a nitrogen wine storage unit. It has a cylinder of nitrogen attached to a hose, and the hose is fitted to the bottle of leftover wine, pressurizing it with nitrogen gas so that the wine is protected from oxygen in the air. Oxygen will destroy the wine's magical properties, but nitrogen will leave them intact.

The final, and most obvious, of the wine storage tips, is to forego the entire storage process and drink the wine as soon as you bring it home. That's why you bought it

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Modern science, when applied to the millennia old art of wine making, has let the great vineyards of the world produce many vintages which to not need to age in their bottles for extended periods before reaching the peaks of flavor and aroma. But the question remains of how to store other vintages for which the journey to perfection will take more time.

A wine cellar is the perfect answer for those who have both the space and the money to indulge in one. For the rest of us, though, something more modest will have to do, and any wine storage which is to succeed will have to be done at the proper wine storage temperature.

Finding the correct wine storage temperature is not really mystery; warm is bad; cool is good. Heat will cause wine to deteriorate just as it causes fresh fruits, vegetable, meats, and dairy products to deteriorate. On the other hand, going to far in the chilly direction can also be dangerous; frozen wine, unlike frozen grape juice, does not a Popsicle make. Frozen wine, in fact, loses forever its aroma and taste.

Color Coded Temperatures

One of the factors which should influence your choice of wine storage temperatures is the color of the liquid in the wine bottle. Is it white, or red, or something in between? Once a bottle of wine has been fetched from wherever you keep it during its long nap, you want it at the optimum serving temperature before you drink it.

Red wines should not be served chilled; the cold will rob the wine of its ability to dazzle your palate with all the sublet tones and nuances of its flavors and aromas. A temperature of about 65F, or 18C, will show off your merlots, pinots, and burgundies to their best advantage.

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The love of wine has existed since the dawn of time. Fossil vines, 60-million-years-old, are the earliest scientific evidence of grapes. The earliest written account of viniculture is in the Old Testament of the Bible which tells us that Noah planted a vineyard and made wine (well with all those animals on the Ark what was he expected to do!)

Exactly when it was discovered is unknown, but an ancient Persian fable credits a lady of the court with the discovery of wine. This Princess, having lost favor with the King, attempted to poison herself by eating some table grapes that had spoiled in a jar. She became intoxicated and giddy and fell asleep. When she awoke, she found the stresses that had made her life intolerable had dispersed. Returning to the source of her relief, her subsequent conduct changed so remarkably that she regained the King's favor. He shared his daughter's discovery with his court and . . .

The wine industry and consumption continues to grow every year. Wine connoisseur are continually buying great wine to keep either for later consumption or for investment.

One of the most important aspects to ensure your wine stays fresh during storage is the wine storage temperature.

The basics of wine storage temperature are fairly simple. First, the wine should be kept cool. Like most beverages and foods, heat is the natural enemy of wine. A cool temperature is optimal, but the temperature should not lowered too much as this too will harm the wine. In the unlikely event that the wine freezes, it will probably only be suitable for vinegar!

The basics of wine storage are really straightforward with whites, reds, and blushes. However, the serving preparation for each of these wine types is different and something worth discussing. After removing the bottle from storage, getting your wine to the correct temperature is important. With red wines, such as a merlot or sheraz, approximately 65 degrees Fahrenheit (18 degrees Celsius) is what is recommended. This is basically room temperature. Secret tip: in a room of about 70 degrees Fahrenheit the wine, due to being a liquid will naturally be cooler. It is highly advised to not chill red wines. This is a more common error than you think, the cold can be very destructive on the wine and its flavor.

With whites and many blushes the need for refrigeration before serving is key. Chilling truly brings out the flavor. For these types of wine 39 degrees Fahrenheit or 4 degrees Celsius is usually a good temperature.

In the case of both darker wines and the lighter types, it is advisable to let the bottle ‘breathe' after opening. It is recommended you do this about half an hour before drinking (longer is often better)

Now to tasting. Swish the wine around the mouth to truly get the most out of the flavor. I however recommend drinking as opposed to spitting it out!

In the end ENJOY the wine, it is after all a pleasure that has been with us for centuries.

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Building a wine cellar can create the ideal environment to store your wines. Temperature is always a major consideration in wine storage and the ideal wine storage temperature is between 55ºF and 58ºF (13ºC-15ºC), although any temperature between 40º-65ºF (5º-18ºC) will suffice as long as it doesn't fluctuate too much. Ideally, the humidity should be around 70%. If you can't achieve these temperatures in your passive wine cellar then you may require a wine cellar cooling unit.

A standard home refrigerator makes a poor wine cooling solution for several reasons. It is designed specifically to store and look after food products, not to store wines. An atmosphere that works well for meat and vegetables is far too cold and dry for your expensive wine. The preferred temperature for home refrigeration is somewhere between 35ºF and 38ºF (1.7 to 3.3ºC)

Home - or even commercial - refrigeration equipment is built to cool food quickly to prevent it spoiling. This is achieved by blasting cold air until the desired temperature is reached. Then a cycle kicks in whereby once the set temperature is reached, the refrigerator shuts off. When the temperature rises to a pre-determined point, cold air is again blasted. This continuous fluctuating temperature cycle isn't good for your wines.

Standard refrigeration equipment is designed not only to cool but also to remove moisture. Wine gives off neither heat nor moisture so you end up with an environment that's way too dry for wine. This will cause wine corks to shrink, which will allow air to get in. Once the air is in contact with your wine the irreversible process of oxidation begins and your wine is ruined!

Vibration can also be an issue with a home refrigerator. Wine requires a calm vibration-free environment in which to develop so any vibration will eventually destroy a fine wine.

Similarly, home air conditioning provides a poor environment for aging your wines, as it removes the humidity from the air which can lead to corks drying out. Additionally, if air conditioning is only turned on at certain times during the day then the wine will become subject to wide temperature fluctuations, which will inevitably cause irreparable damage to your wine.

To properly cool and humidify a cellar you will need a cooling system designed specifically for cooling a wine cellar.

Wine cellar cooling units can be set at any temperature within the optimum range for successfully aging wines and they cool the air slowly and gently. They are designed to maintain humidity rather than dehydrating the cellar although sometimes additional humidification may be required in extremely dry climates. This type of wine cellar cooling unit is usually installed approximately 18 inches from the top of the room in order to achieve maximum cooling. The unit will also require an unobstructed airflow and adequate ventilation to dissipate the heat generated by the unit.

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