Friday, November 11, 2011

Whats the right way to store fine cognacs and champagne(Dom Perignon,Cristal,Remy Martin,Hennessy)?

ok well i have been buying fine cognac's, champagne, and spirits for about 3 years now and never stored them right. i normally had them on my shelf or a display case at work. i had a client come in a comment on y i didnt have them stored right. so i want to know whats the best way to do so. i just bought a case of dom perignon and a case of cristal. also i have a bottle of remy martin xo premier cru and a bottle of hennessy paradis extra that i bought 2 weeks ago. the remy and hennessy are opened and about half full. right now they are siting in my display case at work. i know thats not the best place for them. so does any 1 know the right conditions i should have them in. i normally by different ones about every month, so whats a general way to store ? i always have the 4 that i listed before so whats the right way to store them more specifically? like what temp, humidity, light, place, ect. i have asked the person i got them from but hes kinda out there, so i dont trust him


thanks|||If they're not stored correctly, you can lose your precious wines to corking or (with champagne) de-gassing or spoilage.





All wines should be kept at a cool, stable temperature and humidity. They should always be kept lying down so that fluid inside the bottle can keep the cork moist and prevent it from drying out (and letting air in around the shrunken dry cork) and always in the dark, as light and fluctuating temperature both spoil fine wine.





You sound like you have several thousands of dollars of fine wines, and an investment of just a few hundred to a thousand dollars should house and protect your collection. There are currently a number of glass-doored wine fridges that do a great job of keeping your wines cool, stable, dimly lit, and on their sides. Some are listed here:


http://www.bizrate.com/winecellars/produ鈥?/a>





I'm not so knowledgeable on keeping fine spirits, but I imagine it would not hurt to also keep them in a cool, dark environment until ready for consumption, given that they share some of the characteristics of fine wines.|||You have two different beverages. Wine is a living thing and will change and age in the bottle while spirits will not.





Take the Champagne first: like any other wine, for long term storage its should be in a cool dark dry place. Should it be on its side? You are OK storing Champagne upright (or indeed any wine) for 5 years or so, but if you can store it horizontaly.





Champagne houses say their wine is ready to drink on release; I prefer to age them for 6 months to a year before drinking, but be aware that they will change as the years go by, and many people do not like the taste of old Champagne, so make sure you like old Champagne before you keep them too long.





Spirits - If you store them in cool dark conditions they'll last indefinately opened or not. Leave them inbright light for long enough and they may fade in color. Keep the lid closed on opened bottles to stop them getting contaminated by other strong smelling foods. If you bought your brandy 2 weeks ago and they're half finished now, then I'd leave them in your display cabinet because they'll be finished too soon to matter. Remember, bars all around the world display their spirits and the rarer ones stay there for much longer.





I used to drink whsky more than I do now, but every Christmas I have a glass from a bottle of rare Scotch that I must have first opened 12 years ago. Its as good as ever, and kept in a kitchenm cupboard. They're pretty indestructable :)|||up your but


but you must lay they down on


the side and build a cellar and it must be at least 12 feet


under ground becoz it will stay at 45 f


don't forget to put window on your but so you can show off


all the money that you wasted on your but candy|||You want to keep them in a cool (50 deg), humid (85%) dark place and keep the vertical...laying on it's side and turn them around every now and then!


Remember...room temp that you hear about is from the old cellars of europe...they were always damp and cool!


Always keep wines on their sides...and turn now and then...never buy any wines that aren't stored this way...always check the fill levels...if the level is under the shoulder of the bottle don't buy it....look for seapage...is there any trails of the wine coming from the cork under the seal. Look for any tell tale signs that the cork is pushed out...over heating has occured!

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