Bottle your risks & protect your wine collection this National Wine Day

Many individuals love to collect, and the possibilities are endless: stamps, snowglobes, baseball cards and so on. One of the more common collections you might find in a home is a wine collection.

The point of a wine collection is to store it for years to come, but there are many factors that can negatively affect it. Cosmetic damages to the bottle may diminish its value, the bottle could be damaged as it’s being shipped to a collector, or it can simply slip and break on the floor.

As National Wine Day approaches, Nationwide shared information on the common issues that can affect wine collection investments and ways to protect your wine collection going forward.

Related: Do you have insurance coverage for spilled rare wine, broken glasses?

Bottled up value

Even those who aren’t wine aficionados know that there’s more to determining the bottle’s worth than age alone. So what does?

“Generally, there is a consumption value in wine that is highly dependent on how the quality improves after bottling. Experts may consider many aspects to determine quality, such as grape variety, grape location, age of wine at release, label designation and grape vintage,” says Paul VanDenBosch, president of Nationwide Private Client. “For collectible wine, an important aspect to consider may be provenance; meaning it’s source, life cycle and storage.”

According to Nationwide Private Client, below are common issues that can affect wine collection investments that are typically not covered by a homeowners’ insurance policy:

• Breakage – damage caused by dropping a bottle or during shipment from the vineyard
• Mechanical breakdown – spoilage of wine due to climate control system failure
• Breakup of drain or sewer – wine collections are often stored in cellars and basements, making them susceptible to damage due to drain or sewer failure
• Natural disasters such as floods, earthquakes and weather-related occurrences
• Diminished value due to cosmetic damage to the bottle or water damage to the label

Related: Do you collect wine? Here are some tips for keeping your bottles safe

Ways to protect your wine collection

Accidents will always happen, but there are a number of ways to protect your wine collection.

Document your investment

• Keep all original documents including purchase receipts, auction catalog or private seller information
• Keep photos and detailed descriptions of wine bottles including those with unique marks and vintage year
• Maintain an updated inventory list including descriptions, accurate count of bottles and storage locations.
• Get routine, professional appraisals of your collection and keep a running record of appraied values.

Optimal storage

• The best place for storage is in a cellar or electric wine cooler with fiberglass insulation to regulate temperature and protect against damage to the label.
• Keep wine away from areas that could generate temperature changes such as kitchens or laundry rooms. The ideal temperature range for wine storage is between 45-65 degrees Fahrenheit. Avoid arid environments that can dry out corks. Area with 50-80% humidity are adequate for storage.
• Store bottles on their side to prevent the cork from drying out.
• Keep stored bottles away from light. Sunlight can damage wine by aging it prematurely and household lightbulbs can fade labels.

Insure your collection

Protect your valuable collection a personal collections insurance policy. Many policies cover accidental breakage, theft and water-related damage.

“The cost of insuring wine separately under a Collectibles Policy may be more than the rate for similar dollar value coverage under a homeowners policy, but the Collectibles Policy may provide more extensive coverage in the event of a covered loss,” adds VanDenBosch.

Whether you’re new to collecting wine or have been for many years, keep your valuable liquids safe and insured this National Wine Day with insights from Nationwide Private Client. Don’t forget to enjoy a glass before the day is over!

Related: Collector spent $18M on counterfeit vintage wine — insurance policy didn’t cover the fraud