Many newer wine consumers are unaware of the importance in maintaining stable, consistent temperatures in storing their prized wines.

Wine blogs on the Internet are full of posts about the importance of temperature control from the wine cellar perspective. But what happens between the winery and the retail consumer? This discussion is uniquely from an insider/winery owner’s  (and also a wine consumer) perspective.

We have occasionally been disappointed with wines purchased through distributors/retailers who did not exercise proper temperature control in the transport,  warehousing, and storefront storage of their wine products. These were generally wines with several years on the clock  (4-5 years) and from reputable wineries -wines that could likely have been exposed to prolonged storage at higher than proper temperatures.

Our assessment was that these wines were likely “cooked” – exposed to storage at prolonged high temperatures of 70+F – 80+F that can prematurely age a wine.

So how important are shipping storage temperatures to wineries? Consider this from a Wine Business Monthly article from November 2000 authored by Jeremy Hay – Many wineries will not allow their wines to ship wine in “dry” (uninsulated) semi-trailers and require either insulated trailers or trailers with refrigeration capability. In addition to absolute high temperatures, temperature excursions (raising and lowering of storage temperatures)  is detrimental to wine. “According to the American Trucking Association, in 1998, six percent of the 501,000 American trucking companies were refrigerated carriers.” Yes – 94% of the trucks are not refrigerated – think about that some smoking-hot mid-west summer day.

Jeremy Hay continues: :  “Florida is the country’s third largest wine market, average summer temperatures hover in the 90s–while distributors have cold rooms for their most expensive brands, the great majority of wines are stored at ambient warehouse temperatures…”  “The bottom line of such conditions is that by the time most wines are chosen from a wine list or retail shelf, they do not taste the same as when they left the winery.”

Vinfolio graph depicting accelerated wine aging above 55F

Proponents of cooler storage temperatures generally recommend a range of 55F to 60F. Chemical reactions double in speed for every 18-degree Fahrenheit increase in temperature–wine stored at 73-degrees will age twice as fast as it should, at 91-degrees, it will age four times as fast. The chart to the right from Vinfolio to depicts the impact of temperature on wine

30 Medals in 2009-2010 International and National Wine Competitions

At Eagles Nest Winery, we stress strict temperature control, and to further ensure medal- winning quality – we emphasize quality sustainable winegrape production, sanitary operations,  and a careful  winemaking and barrel aging/case goods regimen.

We believe second to quality winemaking and sanitary operations,  temperature control is a key reason 100% of our Estate produced, and nearly 100% of our other wines have been medalists in International and National Wine Competitions (see Wine Awards).  Our wines are barrel aged and store case goods stored below 59F at all times.

For the above reasons, you should carefully choose Winery Wine Clubs that ship only during cool weather seasons, and also consider accelerated shipping options to minimize the time your wine is exposed to non-temperature controlled conditions.

You should ensure that your local wine distributors and wine shops store their case goods at proper temperatures especially if you live in a warm weather regions. In these tight economic times, retailers may adjust their thermostats upward to save on power bills, compromising their wine inventory.

A temperature controlled storage unit in your home ro restaurant to protect your liquid investments for that future day of enjoyment.  Don’t store your wine in that living room closet or automobile garage at 70F-80F degrees.  See out a cool, dark, quiet, vibration free location. If your collection is large, commercial off-site temperature controlled wine storage is another option.

Shared below is a June 2010 article by wine expert and columnist, Dan Berger, from the Herald Tribune on the importance of wine transport, distribution and storage temperatures.  Also discussed above were facts presented in an excellent article on wine shipping and storage in the Wine Business Monthly Archives  click here.

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Did the retailer take good care of your wine?

Guest post by Bill Eyer, Cuvee Corner Wine Blog on a Costco find

The Tormaresca 2007 NePriCa Red Blend is what I would call a QPR winner, hands down! The Italians call this their, “way down south wine” because of where the wine comes from is on the heel of the boot. Hey two-buck chuck fans time to give chuck the boot and pickup this 100% better wine for just a little more money. I picked this little Italian gem up the other day from Costco for about eight bucks, quite a steal for a wine with this much complexity.

Even with the dollar continuing to tank against the Euro, it’s still (relatively) easy to find tasty wine under the $10 bench-mark. Wines from places like Italy, Spain, Argentina and less from places like my home state of California. The selection of wine which makes its way here from these wonderful locales is much more reliable in terms of being high quality, low price than the inventory from virtually any other locale, especially at lower price points which is what the QPR (quality, price, ratio) scale is all about and of course it doesn’t hurt to have wines with mellifluous names attached to them. Gives a sense of credibility compared to a label that says “gnarly-head”, but that’s just my opinion.

Reviewed Wine: Tormaresca 2007 Neprica Red Blend

First Swirl: I pour about two ounces into my glass and give a few good swirls on the counter top, (having not completely mastered that in hand swirl) pondering the core against the white copy (recycled of course) paper it appears to be like a carmine colored velvet drape covering half the four footed tub at the Ritz Carlton, it has a deep ruby core and lightly fleeting to a garnet colored rim. Okay I’m impressed so far.

First Sniff: Into the glass my fat (half) Irish nose goes and what unfolds elements of black cherry, currant and a hint of licorice form lovely inviting aromas. I decanted (highly recommended) for at least an hour to promote the unfolding of its many layers.

First Sip: After an hour of decanting the wine showed its generosity in a delicate spiciness with gobs of black cherry fruit and notes of licorice and just a touch of earthiness mid-palate. The mouth feel is savory with good to wonderful dark fruit flavors. The acidity adds balance and degree of tannic structure in support of its heft, leading to the long finish.

Where it’s from: The region of Puglia is in southern Italy and located in what’s called the “heel of the Italian boot.” Tormaresca means “tower by the sea” and is named for the many towers that line the coast of the Adriatic sea in this region, paints quite a pretty picture don’t you think?

Price and ABV: Alcohol: 13% not the twelve many wine snobs believe this is the magic number, they contend that any wine over this percentage is unbalanced only produced in that style to receive high scores from a certain Mr. RP. Did I mention this wine is only $7.99 and widely distributed. I picked mine up at Costco here in San Diego and it can also be found at Trader Joe’s in near the same price range.

Composition: Okay so you want to know what’s in it? Here ya go, it’s a red blend of two local (Italian) grape varieties, Negroamaro (40%) and Primitivo [similar to Zinfandel] (30%) and one more well known grapes, Cabernet Sauvignon (35%) This slightly nontraditional blend of Negroamaro, Primitivo and Cabernet Sauvignon which makes me wonder why more Southern Italian winemakers are not convinced of Cabernet’s place among more native varietals. But maybe now they are starting to catch on to the idea.

Other wines of note: Tormaresca Negroamaro Masseria Maime Salento Igt 2003 and the Tormaresca Castel del Monte Bocca di Lupo 2004 which I have not reviewed but I look forward to making some room in my cellar to accommodate these other gems. Just click on the links above to get the Snooth Ranking.

With/With Out Food: This is a remarkably pair-able wine, that will go with a majority of grilled meats and many other Italian style dishes. It’s also a nice wine just open and quaff at your leisure.

Other voices: In case you needed to hear another opinion well here you go, the wonderful folks over at Wine Enthusiast Magazine gave this wine 90 points and this is what their reviewer said, “Well made and crafted with food pairing in mind or to drink as a stand alone.”

Cuvée Corner Wine Blog Score: Hey point seekers here’s my score if your interested, I gave this wine a solid 91 points. The price point really brought the score up for this wine, other wise a solid 88 points if it would have had a higher price point. I always consider price as part of the overall score of any wine.

My Recommendation: Buy yourself a case, this is your everyday drinker. A wonderful wine for the money and with this price point it is my QPR winner in every way! Not sure how a wine this good can be made for so little, but why question it, just accept this wonderful bounty while it last. Oh did I mention that you should DECANT this wine before imbibing? I think so but I wasn’t sure (and yes I’m a bit of wise-guy). Until next time cheers everyone!