Do you prefer immediate gratification or waiting for just the right moment? The answer to this question might help you determine whether a wine cooler or a wine cellar is right for you. Or maybe, you’ll need both! Regardless of your needs, any wine lover wants to ensure a beautifully poured delicious glass whether that’s today or twenty years from now. Which means storage is essential, but what is the difference between a cellar and a fridge or cooler?

The essential difference between the two is that a wine cooler is strictly temperature control, and helps you have the perfect temperature wine for serving. Whereas your wine cellar, either a room dedicated to this or a free standing unit, is used for longer term storage which controls the temperature, humidity, vibration/noise, and light.

If you’re like me and buy wine regularly for almost immediate or impending consumption, a wine cooler is the perfect solution. It will help keep your red, white, and champagne at the perfect recommended temperature for the consumption of the wine. Drinking a wine at the correct temperature will help bring out the undertones of the wine, soften the tannins and really allow you to experience the wine at its best. This explains why a bottle of wine at a restaurant tastes so much better than at home. The wine being stored at the right temperature really makes a big difference.

Want to know more about ideal temperatures to serve your wines? Check out this handy guide from The Wine Spectator.

However, if you enjoy going to wineries, picking up a case of wine to enjoy over a number of years, or even enjoy mature earthy wines but do not want to pay the vintage price or want to mature your favorite bottles of wine from the store, investing in a wine cellar might be financially prudent to protect your investment. Wine cellars provide a consistent temperature of 12 degrees Celsius, which is the ideal temperature for the maturing and the preservation phase to occur. Temperature fluctuations, light, vibration, and humidity all impact the storing of the wine and therefore it is really important to get a unit that controls all 4 of these components. This helpful resource by the Beverage Factory has some very helpful information on determining if a wine cellar is right for you.

Love to cook with wine? We love this collection of recipes featuring white wine from Food & Wine.

If you’re ever in that rare position of having leftover red wine, Real Simple has 10 great recipe ideas featuring red wine.

And be sure visit your local BrandSource location to find the perfect storage solution for your wine.

Isabelle, Your Appliance Expert