Traveling with Wine

• Wine should never be exposed to heat.

Summer trips bring high temperatures, traffic congestion, and often a lack of shaded parking spots or journeys during heatwaves. In such cases, the interior of an air-conditioned car is more suitable for wine than the trunk. If you need to spend a night on the road, it is advisable to bring the wine into your hotel room to avoid significant temperature differences, as just a few hours of summer heat in a car can completely ruin your wine supply.

• Bottles should be stored horizontally.

If the wine has a cork stopper, the bottles should be kept horizontally during the entire journey to keep the wine in contact with the stopper.

• After arrival, let the wine rest before opening.

When you reach your destination, let the wine rest without vibrations for at least one day to restore its aromatic harmony. This is especially important for sparkling wines, which need time to settle and stabilize. It is also an opportunity to chill the wine appropriately, as it requires at least 24 hours in the refrigerator.

• Suitable packaging with insulating properties can help control the temperature.

Perhaps it's time to get a box with insulating properties, such as Styrofoam, or special wine cooler bags that help maintain a stable temperature. This makes sense especially if you expect to use them many times, as a small investment can make a big difference.

• Wine while sailing

If you plan to take wine on a sailboat or any other vessel, you should also consider finding the most suitable location in terms of temperature, light, and vibrations.

• Some bottles can be squeezed into the refrigerator with food, while the rest need to be stored somewhere else. The cabin can become very hot, so it is advisable to find storage space as close to the bottom as possible, where the slightly lower water temperature can help.

• Be careful not to store wine near the engine, due to high temperatures, vibrations, or possible strong fuel odors that can affect the wine.

• Make sure to secure the bottles very well, as constant movement is present on a boat. It is impossible to avoid this on the water, so we can only choose the most central part of the boat to minimize swaying. Usually, there is not much time for settling, so here is our final simple advice: drink more complex wines with intricate aromas as soon as possible and for a longer period, it is best to have fresher wines with you, as they will better maintain their harmony under such conditions.

May summer bring you everything you desire, let it extend time with unforgettable experiences, and may you have safe and happy travels on the road and at sea.