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Age and temperature

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Commander Toasty

NewBee
Registered Member
Jun 9, 2005
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I have three different batches of melomel going right now, and will pitch another in three weeks. This is going to give me more quantity on hand than ever before, and I need to consider long term storage. I live in CA and the temp inside the coolest part of the house may hang around eighty for days, or even weeks. Is this too warm for long term storage? I could buy a couple of used refridgerators, but of course would rather not part with the money, plus the energy cost. And, if I do have to go the route of a fridge, what temp is best? Many thanks oh wise ones!
 

Greenblood

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Oct 6, 2004
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Long term aging in the 80's is not something I would recomend. Harsh temperature fluctuations during aging are also bad. I admit that I store many of my meads for up to a year before consumption at room temperature, which for me is in the high 60's, but anything that I plan to age for a long term, I age on racks in a basement where the ambient temp rarely gets above 62 farenheit, and is usually in the mid 50's. How long to you plan to age your meads?
 

memento

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Aug 3, 2005
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I'm just now planning for storage of my meads. Right now I have 1/2 batch bottled in grolsch pop tops, but in a few weeks I'll be bottling 6.5 gal in wine bottles. Can these be stored upright or do they need to be on their side? If they need to be on their side, and recommendations for large quantity wine bottle storage? I did a little searching online and the prices seem quite high. $250ish. They will be in my basement, which is a cool, constant temp.
 

JoeM

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Jan 9, 2004
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Bottles need to be stored upright for a few days after corking and then on their sides for the duration of their lives. This prevents corks from drying out which can lead to oxidative damage and contamination. I buy cheap wine racks at Ikea.
 

Dmntd

NewBee
Registered Member
Apr 18, 2005
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In my opinion the best way to keep cases of wine if you don't have a cellar is to rent a locker in one of the many commercial Wine Storage Facilities.

A number of years back I came across, Robert Mondavi "Reserve" 1997 Cabernet Sauvignon for $480.00 a case. A wine maker friend told me about these places, I've had a locker for years now.

Anthony
 

lostnbronx

Senior Member
Lifetime GotMead Patron
Dec 8, 2004
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Anthony,

Sounds like a good idea -- what do rental spaces go for, usually?

-David
 

memento

NewBee
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Aug 3, 2005
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That's pretty cool. But I have the space in my basement. cool and clean. I just don't look forward to spending hundreds on racks. Ikea is a good idea - I'll be checking their online catalog when I go home. There's no store near me, so it'll have to be over the internet.
 

HomeBrew

NewBee
Registered Member
Jul 13, 2005
175
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You can also make your own wine/ mead racks fairly easily. I think my 48 bottle racks cost about $15 each in materials. I considered the labor entertainment.

Peace.
 

byathread

NewBee
Registered Member
Mar 8, 2005
644
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Boulder County, CO
JoeM said:
Bottles need to be stored upright for a few days after corking and then on their sides for the duration of their lives. This prevents corks from drying out which can lead to oxidative damage and contamination.

Is it still necessary to lay bottles on their sides when corking with synthetics?

Thanks,
Kirk
 

intothefray

NewBee
Registered Member
Aug 11, 2005
101
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memento said:
That's pretty cool. But I have the space in my basement. cool and clean. I just don't look forward to spending hundreds on racks. Ikea is a good idea - I'll be checking their online catalog when I go home. There's no store near me, so it'll have to be over the internet.

I was looking at their online catalog and couldn't find any they would ship. They all said only available in stores.
 

memento

NewBee
Registered Member
Aug 3, 2005
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"they all"? I could only find 1 plus a small part of one. The 1 I found was only 24 bottles and the part of one was the "shelf" portion. I'm thinking of following homebrew's path - make my own. The "X" style for maximum density?
 

Fortuna_Wolf

NewBee
Registered Member
Oct 24, 2004
186
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Hey Homebrew, got any plans for those racks that I could take a gander at?

Also, IIRC, synthetic corks have a tighter seal, and won't dry out, etc. so, they don't need to be stored on their sides.
 

David Baldwin

NewBee
Registered Member
Jun 29, 2004
860
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Grand Rapids, MI
Here's a neat trick for building a cheap wine rack.

I use the foam filler material for corrugated roofing. A bit of double sided carpet tape will nicely hold it to a shelf, and the wavy undulations hold the bottles securely and gently.

You can get the corrugated filler strips from any of your local home improvement stores.

I like to start with inexpensive metal shelving units, reinforce them a bit and then add a filler strip to the front and back of the shelves. I've got them set up for 750ml wine bottles, 500ml Grolsch bottles, and standard beer bottles. It's easy to throw an old sheet or some burlap over the front to keep light away from the bottles.



David
 

HomeBrew

NewBee
Registered Member
Jul 13, 2005
175
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Memento,

I considered the “X” method as well but finally went with the straight design. I’m not a carpenter by any means and trying to figure out how to measure, cut and install the x-style shelving made my head hurt. I was also afraid that any design flaws would lead to a pool of mead and a pile of broken glass on my basement floor.

Fortuna_Wolf,

Unfortunately, I did not draw up any plans for my design. I just kinda worked it out in my head and went at it. After the first one was built, the individual pieces were used as templates for the next ones. The original plan was to slap a coat a paint them since the goal was functionality and not looks. However, they ended up looking pretty slick so I sanded them and added a few coats of polyurethane. I can give you a better description of measurements and techniques when I get home tonight. I could also post a photo, but I am not sure how to go about that now…Let me know if you want me to email one.

Peace.
 

memento

NewBee
Registered Member
Aug 3, 2005
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heeeeey. Now we're talking! I was not looking at brew stores - only furniture stores! $90 for 120 bottles. That's a leader so far.
 

HomeBrew

NewBee
Registered Member
Jul 13, 2005
175
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0
I agree with David's comment about being able to put a curtain of some type on the rack. My basement is not totally dark and it does get a lot of indirect sunlight. So, all of my carboys get covered during fermentations and I hang curtains on the wineracks to keep out the light. It is easy to hang a curtain on a bookshelf-type rack, but hard to do on an open rack design. Of course, this point is moot if you have a completely dark cellar/ basement.
 

Glacierwulf

NewBee
Registered Member
Aug 19, 2005
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Homebrew

I would also be intersted in seeing pictures of your mead racks with aprox overall dimentions.


Greg
 
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