There is more to enjoying a fine wine than meets the eye. It is quite an experience and, as such, it comes with a solemn personal ritual—a protocol of sorts tailored to each individual where nothing is left to chance and each item has a specific purpose.
Your passion for wine has always driven you to build a small wine cellar. However, since you arrived at The Wine & Country Club, you have perfected and expanded your wine cellar and everything connected to it. In this endeavour, the sound advice and handy tips passed on by Ana—the winery’s oenologist—have been instrumental.
This year will take your ritual to an even more personal level: in addition to enjoying your superb wine selection, you will also be able to savour the first vintage of your very own wine. Now that calls for some serious celebration.Â
Equipment For The Wine Lover – Wine Cellar Accessories
Since you set out on this wine adventure and began trying your hand at wine making, you have been building a wine cellar that is every bit as good as any professional one. There are some basics, which cannot be ignored and other minor issues that have left a lasting impression on you from day one.
Starting with glassware. It is not only about drinking and enjoying the taste when it comes to wine—the visual appeal is as important as the rich taste. With that in mind, you chose some ISO-certified glassware that comply with the International Organisation for Standardisation regulations and can be used to taste any type of wine. These glasses have a specific shape and size and are the only ones accepted in wine tasting contests. At home, this type of glass will help you to entertain without stress.
Decanters are necessary items for all wine lovers. No matter what the age of the wine is, decanting heightens the level of enjoyment a notch higher. In the case of Reserva and Gran Reserva wines, the use of a decanter is crucial because these wines need some aeration in order to fully enhance their aroma and character.
The decanter may be the one item that suffers the most from fashion trends. It is a design accessory that often takes centre stage—at the risk of stealing the wine’s thunder. There is no accounting for taste and design, but make sure you buy a decanter that features translucent glass, a narrow neck, and a broad base.
Wine coolers and wine buckets. A wine cellar essential if ever there was one, wine coolers and wine buckets with sleek and stylish designs are perfect when it comes to showing off your wine bottles and at the same time making sure that they remain chilled throughout the evening. You decided to opt for both, but truth be told, a good wine cooler should suffice. The important thing here is to keep each wine at its perfect temperature.
The wine cooler, along with the decanter, is an accessory that is closely linked to the world of design. Make sure you buy a stainless steel wine cooler that maintains optimum temperature and has a diameter wide enough to allow for the bottle to rest slightly inclined.
A wine fridge or a wine cabinet is also highly recommended and can help bring optimal wine storage conditions into any home with minimum fuss. This practical system is perfect for preserving open bottles of wine and cava(sparkling white wine). The crux of the matter here is to preserve the quality of a wine—as it would be when you first crack the bottle open—by extracting the air from the bottles with great precision in order to avoid oxidation.
A wine fridge or cabinet is also an excellent tool to store bottles housing pressurised liquids, such as cava and champagne, to make sure they are still bubbly the next day.
Additional Must-Haves For Wine Enthusiasts
Opening a bottle of wine and hearing ‘that’ noise is a wonderful sound; that is why they need for a corkscrewis still a time-honoured necessity, even with the increased use of screw caps. Choose a corkscrew that is good in terms of functionality so it can be of great use even for the most stubborn of the corks amongst the lot—an automatic corkscrew will do the trick!Â
Should you however find yourself trying to get out those stubborn corks stuck down the neck of the bottles, a cork retriever is an absolutely must-have accessory.
The purpose of a drip ring is to prevent drops and dribbles from seeping down the bottle and onto a worktop or dinner table. This simple wine serving accessory is great value for money, especially if it prevents staining your favourite tablecloth! Arm yourself with one and savour your wine with complete ease and in style.
However, when it comes to your wine cellar, there is a golden rule: you must have the right attitude towards wine; no expectations, just let yourself be seduced by the aromas, colours and flavours.