What wine to choose, where to buy and how to store it?

A well-chosen wine elevates the atmosphere, rounds out a pleasant menu and gives a lasting experience to its consumer. However, it does not matter what wine we choose and how we taste and consume it.

The very first step in conscious wine consumption is to choose the wine. Our 22 domestic wine regions offer many excellent items and at that time we did not even talk about the bottles of foreign cellars available on the shelves of stores and wine shops. If you are just getting to know the wonderfully colorful world of wines, it is worth going to wine bars or even wine festivals, as in these places you can ask for a taste and experience which type of wine or what taste can be our favorite.

If we have what type of wine we want, where to buy it? Wine shops and vinotheques can be a bit more routine, but even for beginners they can be great places to buy. Here we usually meet prepared salesmen who are happy to recommend items to suit our tastes based on the criteria we provide. It is also worth studying the label of each bottle, as we can get a lot of information about it - in addition to general information, many wineries also indicate, for example, what foods the particular wine is recommended for.

It is important that the carefully selected wine is properly stored until consumed, as this will ensure that the quality of each sip is as it was composed by the winemaker. It is best to store the bottles in a cool cellar or in a specially designed wine cooler, but few people have the opportunity to do so. Even if there are no professional options available, we can ensure that our wines retain their quality by following a few simple considerations.

1. Don’t expose the wine to extreme heat (either cold or hot) or very high temperature fluctuations - that is, don’t leave it on the balcony in the winter frost, but you can also sip your drink in the trunk of your car for a few hours in the summer heat.
2. Not only extreme temperatures but also direct sunlight should be avoided - if possible, store wines in a place protected from light, such as the kitchen cabinet or pantry.
3. We prefer to store wines with cork laid. In the case of wines stored upright, the cork may dry out more easily, which may lead to a reduction in the intensity of the closure and thus to undesired oxidation. In the case of screw lock, the position is not important. However, in the case of both buttlecaps, consume the wine within 2 or 3 days once the bottle is opened.
4. Do not store near chemicals, vibrating or heat-emitting objects, as these processes can also damage the wine.