MaxHeadroom wrote:How long does it take to ruin a bottle by inproper cellaring?
Really depends on the intensity of the heat. I am not too concerned by a few days or a week in the mid/high 20s but any longer than that I would start to get concerned. I would also get more concerned if the wine was getting above 30 degrees celius, but that is just me. But to be honest, I doubt any drinkers would notice if it were a young wine.
For what it is worth, earlier this year I opened 2 bottles of the same wine, bought on the same day in 2001 from the same place (the winery), a 1998 McLaren Vale Shiraz/Grenache of some note. One bottle I cellared (very well) and the other my friends "cellared" in their sunny lounge room. Their bottle was not terrible, but slightly thinner in weight, a quite noticeable flavour difference - more red berry than deeper and blacker than my bottle, and the tannins seemed more astringent.
Also, a bottle of wine in the back of a car that experiences extreme temperature (35+) quickly becomes destroyed - the cork lets the wine through!
I think the biggest issue in the short term are temperature variances as the cork will expand and contract and let in and out air and wine.
In the medium (as above) and longer term, I suspect that tempertures over 25 will become noticeable.
MaxHeadroom wrote:How long a refridgerator can be used as a store for unopened bottle?
I think longer than most realise. This is dependant upon the quality of wine, but I have enjoyed even relatively modest wines after a week in the fridge after opening. However, there is usually some broadening of flavour, which can be enjoyable depending on the wine. Any way, a few days is fine.
Further, I keep a number of half bottles under Stelvin and fill up wines to the brim and keep them in the fridge for up to a few weeks and they are fine.
My thoughts between work tasks,
Adair