!: Wine Racks - They Are Great Storage Space Just Like Wine Cellars

Wine is one of the great wonders of the world. No two vintages are ever the same, nor are the varietals that form the basis of the wine drinking world. In the hands of a skilled wine maker, simple grapes turn into veritable magic.

That is, until it gets into the hands of the average consumer. Few casual wine drinkers understand the delicate nature of wines, especially good ones. Its natural enemies - light, heat and humidity - can make a great wine an average one in just a few weeks. Worse, it can make a great wine a poor quality vinegar as well.

Much depends upon how the wine is stored. And for this, wine racks are hard to beat. As noted, the enemies of wine love to compromise its attributes at a moment's notice. And wine racks are designed to combat at least a couple of these elements.

Heat is the biggest foe of wine. In fact, direct sunlight can make a good wine taste cooked in just a few weeks. So you want to keep your wine and your wine racks, away from sources of heat. If you have a basement, that's ideal. If not, you may want to consider placing your wine racks on interior walls that are away from the heating ducts of your home and the windows.

Speaking of windows, light is another nemesis. Direct sunlight can actually alter the chemical composition of the wine. That's another good reason why wine racks should be kept away from windows.

The last enemy, humidity, is something of a double-edged sword. If the humidity is too low, the cork can shrink, letting air in an turning the wine to vinegar. Too much humidity and the cork will mold. Your wine can end up tasting like the floor of a rain forest.

Many wine racks come with doors that keep your wine out of the sun and light and naturally regulate humidity. When shopping for wine racks you may want to select models that have solid wood doors or cellarettes that have lids on them.

If you keep your wine on wine racks in the basement, you can purchase a more ornate wine rack for your living space. Many of these wine racks have beautiful wrought iron features, turned woods and pullout shelves for uncorking and decanting wine. If you have one of these wine racks, select just a few bottles from your basement storage area at a time. Again, you don't want the elements to change the wine's character.