I keep the wrapping until I drink it.
Whatâs causing the high humidity? Do you have water in a dish in the refrigerator?
You know Iâm honestly not sure. It is a standard 160 bottle fridge in a built-in with what I think is appropriate ventilation particularly in the front and back. No surreptitious water dishesâŚ
Do you have a humidity monitor? Collect some data. I never tried this method and I am not sure if itâs safe either but you can try those beads that absorbs moisture in the air.
Are you expecting wine robbers? 
I wouldnât be bragging about that
Not sure labels would ever degrade in my passive cellar since the humidity is low. The oldest I have drunk were ~ 30 years old with no label degradation. ![[cheers.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/0/0ff9bfcdb0964982cd3240b6159868fbdf215b1a.gif "cheers"){kind=small}
This is why you wrap before they go into storage.
All of my better bottles in my passive cellar are wrapped, and it works. The stuff I donât care about loses labels within 5 years or so, as itâs pretty damp down there. The wrapped bottles are fine.
The âcrazeâ I was referring to for perfect labels in the US, was not folks preferring perfect labels, it was referencing the demand by Asian buyers for perfection in label conditions. Exporters I dealt with refused to buy well stored bottles because of minor imperfections rendering them unsalable to their clientele which in my mind is a bit crazy. For example, wines from a natural cellar with an earthen floor which developed dust/dirt stains, or a wrinkled label due to humidity were rejected. Would you refuse to buy a bottle in otherwise excellent condition because of a minor label flaw?
Hope that is clear now.
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Just unpacked my 2016 Greer, they ship with a plastic covering over the label portion of the bottle. I take it off, but I also donât plan on resale. Agree with those who have posted about avoiding bottles with label stains, although you still donât know the source of the stain. I had a wine cooler where one bottle seeped and stained the ones below though itâs label was fine.
And thatâs exactly why you wrap your bottles⌠thatâs just the smart thing to do (when youâre a serious collector of fine wines with a secondary market).
To answer your question: I would buy (and bought) a bottle in excellent condition with label flaws. When I can choose between two (nearly) identical bottles (in terms of the important stuff: provenance, fill level, capsule/cork), I will always go for the one with the better label.
I transfer title to a trustee in Liechtenstein and store the wines in a bank vault in the Alps.
But is it wrapped? At least bubble wrapped?
I plastic wrap some bottles, the biggest reason is to stop bottles from sliding. If you ever use bin storage of any kind it is great to wrap some of them. Same goes with champagne and Germans. I bought some rolls that have half the carboard tube exposed for a handle, the wrap is probably 4-5inches. It also protects some old Madeira from having the vintage paint chip off from racks.
I actually wrapped a Magnum today in plastic wrap (first time ever doing that!) - I am at the point where I realize some of my wine will likely go to auction after I am dead so it makes sense for expensive bottles. Of course many of my expensive bottles are in original cases so no reason there. But I do think it makes sense for very expensive bottles that are not otherwise in a wooden case or wrapped in paper. I donât own any Mouton for example, but if I did that would be the kind of wine that would make sense especially given the relative importance of the label for that wine.
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I donât have any crazy expensive wines.
But after my wife opened our expensive bottle way too young several years back. I put our pricier wines higher in our wide fridge and told my family to not take wines from the top shelves .
Thats how I protect them !! lol
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Recieved 2 bottles from Woodland Hills each wrapped in their own heavy duty plastic zip lock bag. First and only time I encountered this
I see shipments like this all the time especially when itâs high dollar, blue chip wine. I imagine that they do this when the wine comes in to protect it from being compromised by something in their warehouse and then they just ship it that way.
yes, they were splurge bottles out of my normal buying range.
I donât do anything âspecialâ but if bottles come wrapped in paper I only unwrap one to make sure it is what I ordered and leave the paper on the others.
The main thing is maintaining the basics. Have backup power for the cellar and backup AC. I make sure the temperature and humidity are constant with little variation. Only light getting in is when I turn on the lights.
Beyond that, I try to make sure wine ships in cool weather which in California is probably the toughest part. Most delivery trucks donât have A/C for packages. Recently got some high end wine and the temps spiked on delivery and I am worried after trying one something may be off but it could be bottle shock.
What else is there to do other than make sure you drink it before it goes over the hill?