Valentine’s Day, of course, represents one of those holidays where we can pamper ourselves and, most of all, pamper the person we love with small and great gifts that can also last over time.
Obviously wines are the best suited to be chosen as gifts that can last for years.
We already explained in the past, however, that not all wines can age.
When a wine can age?
In case we wanted to sum up the characteristics a wine must have in order to age, we could simply say:” a wine that can age is first of all a great wine, of excellent complexity, of excellent quality with a good presence of acidity and tannins”.
Moreover we must specify that these wines must be aged in proper environments. But we will talk about this later on in this article.
So many different occasions
As we already said giving a wine as a present for a special occasion can make us want to keep it, however there are many reasons why a wine lover may want to keep and refine the nectar of Bacchus.
Not the least of them could be for financial reasons.
Investing in wine is indeed, nowadays, pretty common and surely (in case it is about the right wines) pretty profitable – we are talking about 8% per year in some cases.
No matter the reason why we are going to keep our wine we must keep in mind that wine is a living organism and as such it must be first of all treated with care and above all tasted in its best moment.
What’s the wine composition?
Wine is a product mainly made of water, about 14% of alcohol and between 1% and 2% of dry parts.
It is fundamental to create a balance among these elements in order to get an optimal development of wine.
Without further ado, let’s analyze the optimal conditions for the aging of our wine.
As previously said the place where we will age the nectar of gods will be fundamental.
Temperature, humidity, light and stability are the four fundamental values for a correct aging.
Temperature
Let’s start talking about the factor which is the most crucial one – temperature.
First of all, we should remember cellar temperature must be stable. No to sudden changes in temperature, and we must underline that the lower the temperature, the slower the evolution of wine will be. The optimal temperature range is between 14° and 18° celsius.
Humidity
Let’s now talk about humidity.
A factor that is crucial, especially in case of corks. It is surely of vital importance to make sure the cork does not dry out and is always well hydrated. In case the cork is not moist, oxygen could penetrate inside the bottle. In many cases the bottle could leak and the wine will oxidize.
But what is the perfect humidity rate? The recommended humidity rate is between 70% and 80%. Moreover, remember that at higher humidities, the label can be damaged, which could be an important damage from an aesthetical point of view as well as lowering the value of the wine.
Light
As for natural light, it is important that the room where the wine is kept to age is shielded as much as possible. Light damages wine and attacks enzymes and pigments.
By observing these simple measures you will be able to keep wine at home as well.
You just have to try it.
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