There is nothing quite like an old Margaret River wine for balance, complexity and depth of character. Yet all long-lived styles need to be nurtured through the years, and correct storage is essential in bringing out the best in such wines.

Most wine lovers have visions of one day creeping down into their very own cellar filled with row upon row of dusty, aged wines maturing towards perfection.

But there's the rub: not everyone who enjoys wine has the luxury of a cellar, so they must make do. Nevertheless there are a few things we should know to better preserve our collection.

For starters, if your house is a dark, damp, cool place underground, then you need read no further, for these are ideal storage conditions. However we sincerely hope your house is not such a molish realm, for your own sake!

Wine doesn't like bright light or excessive vibration, so darkness and stillness are good for it. Temperature fluctuations are a no-no, because these make the cork expand and contract, causing wine to leak out and air to leak in. Spoilage is often the sad result.Wine also doesn't like heat either, because it causes it to mature too rapidly. It reaches its drink-by-date well before you thought it would. Relatively cool conditions are best.

Nor is too much dry air a good thing, because this also shrinks the cork letting air in and spoiling the wine. A reasonable amount of humidity never hurts. This also explains the practice of storing wine on its side: to keep the cork moist with wine.

Wine drinkers should also try a little gentleness. Wines don't like being jostled about - in fact they get quite agitated and strange nuances can emerge in drinking, the worst of which is a general flatness. This explains why with some very old wines the wine waiter will carry and decant them is if they were nitroglycerine.

By achieving as many of these features as possible your wines should keep well. Otherwise you better find a cellar...or start digging!