The first thing most people think about when a wine refrigerator is brought up is that they're expensive luxuries. It's true, some coolers can be quite expensive, but if you're someone who appreciates a glass or two of wine, or you might even have your own wine collection, you understand that a wine refrigerator is essential.
The reason why wine refrigerators are important is because they help to keep your wine at an ideal temperature, which in turn helps to maintain the high quality of your wine.
Without one you might end up just storing your wine in a regular fridge, or just above the counter. The problem with this is that if your wine is stored in a place where the temperature is too warm, it will age quicker than you want. But if it's stored in a place where the temperature is too cool, it will age much slower. Neither is ideal.
Think of buying a wine cooler as an investment in your wine enjoyment.
Before you go out and purchase a new wine refrigerator, there are two critical factors you need to consider first:
1. Size of the refrigerator
Just like all other appliances, there are different sizes of wine coolers you can choose from. Some refrigerators are small and are designed to only hold 6 bottles. These are ideal if you just have a few bottles that you bring out when entertaining or over a nice Sunday dinner. Others though are quite larger and can hold as much as 40 bottles. These are more for the wine connoisseurs who have a larger wine collection.
Regardless of how many bottles you have and how big your collection is, there is always going to be a wine refrigerator that meets your needs. small wine coolers buyer's guide
2. Temperature needs
The temperature of your wine fridge is one of the most important aspects you need to consider.
A lot of it depends on the type of wine you're storing. As a general rule of thumb, dry white wines should be stored between 46-57 degrees Fahrenheit, whereas the ideal temperature for light red wines is between 40-52 degrees Fahrenheit. Full bodied red wines on the other hand should be stored in temperatures that range from between 52-60 degrees Fahrenheit.
What if you have to store red and white wines together?
The great thing about most high quality wine refrigerators is that they will have 2 doors where you can store the two types of wines separately and at different temperatures. Something an ordinary fridge can't do.
Obviously the third factor you should consider is your budget, but if you consider the size you need and the temperature requirements for the wines you have, that should take care of your budget for you.
Don't compromise on quality. Your wine collections, regardless of how big or small it is, should be enjoyed to it's fullest, and a high quality wine refrigerator will help you do just that