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Why controlling the humidity in your wine cellar is important

So you want to build a wine cellar in your home. Congratulations. Making this decision is the first step to best protecting your wine collection, whether you’re collecting as an investment or just as a way of making sure that no matter the occasion or the food being served, you have the right wine to pair with it. Paramount to your wine cellar is the cooling unit you install, and the type of cooling unit you install will depend largely on how large your cellar will be, the type of wine you plan to store, and where in your home you build your cellar. (more…)

Why build a wine cellar?

Any oenophile worth his or her weight in wine knows that enthusiastic wine collecting needs a suitable place at home in which to grow. Fortunately, as more and more people turn to wine as a hobby, your options for building a wine cellar or having a wine cellar built in your home continue to grow. (more…)

Using furniture in your wine cellar

You want to build a wine cellar, or maybe you already have one, and you’re thinking about how to fill it (with more than your wine collection, that is). Wine cellars are more than the racks you put inside, and of course you will needs racks, because bottles of wine should be stored at a 15 degree angle to make sure the cork doesn’t dry out. But did you know that some modern wine cellars also have tables inside that can serve as a tasting station? Or, in some homes, the wine cellar is where dinners begin and end. How fun, to select a bottle of wine out of your collection in front of the people who will enjoy it. (more…)

Tips for making the most out of your home wine cellar

So you’ve decided to build a home wine cellar. Or, you already have one. Great. You know you’re a serious wine collector when you have a wine cellar in your home. Not only do you have a safe place in which to let your collection age and gain in value, but you also have a great place to take guests coming over for dinner. Let them wander in your cellar, maybe even select the wine you’re serving with dinner. Or, rather, select the wine with them. (more…)

Your cooling unit

You will most likely need a wine cellar cooling unit. Even if you decide to put a cellar in your basement, which may have the properties you’d expect from a wine cellar, you probably will not want to try to get by without a cooling unit. Basements, especially in the United States, can be too warm at times to properly store your wine. It may be the correct temperature… and even the correct humidity during some of the year. However, the fluctuation of temperature and humidity is what can destroy your wine. It will most likely not be stable enough all year round for your wine collection and storage needs. (more…)

Storing red and white wine

As you probably know, the cooling unit you put in place in your wine cellar will help to determine how your wine will be when you decide to open and drink it. Before talking about the conditions under which to store red and white wine, let’s review what your cellar should have before you move in any wine. (more…)

So you want your own wine cellar

While you can build a wine cellar in any part of your home, remember that where you build your wine cellar will affect how much you spend yearly in cellar-related costs. The temperature in most wine cellars is between 55 degrees and 58 degrees, and wine cellars typically have a humidity of between 50% and 75%, so, if possible,  pick the coolest and most-humid place in your house and be sure to use the correct amount of insulation and vapor barrier in the wall construction. Doing so will help you lower your overall costs, because this may allow you to use a smaller-sized cooling unit. (more…)

Picking the cooling system that will work best for you

While you need to make sure that the temperature and humidity in your wine cellar is maintained at the right levels, there are different ways you can do this. When you set out to build a wine cellar in your home (or have one built), you will more than likely hear about different cooling options. The major options include self contained, ductless split and ducted split systems. Which system you go with will depend on your needs. Before deciding, consult with an expert. They can help you decide in which direction to go, and may be able to offer services with regard to putting the cellar in place. Most cellars, if done correctly, will need little long-term maintenance, so an initial expense may be worth it if your later costs are minimized. (more…)

Wine cellar efficiency

After deciding to build a wine cellar in your home (or have one built), you should look at the cellar’s overall efficiency first. How the cellar will look, and whether or not it will match how the rest of your house looks, should be a secondary concern. Of course, design isn’t an afterthought, but at the end of the day, the colors you use in your wine cellar, if you use colors, will not help you protect and store your wine collection. (more…)

Uses for a Custom Wine Cellars in the home – Dallas, Texas

If you have asked yourself if you need a wine room or even a custom wine cellar in your home, then you already have your answer. Just asking the question means that you have gone beyond the normal wine drinker who may have a few bottles on hand for the occasional dinner party or night in. Because a wine cellar (and, let’s face it, wine) is an investment, you should be thinking about the type of wine room you want in your home, not just whether you want one. Your wine cellar should grow with you and your collection, and unless you’re not planning to sell your home, then your home wine cellar should be built in such a way that it will appeal to someone other than you. A wine cellar, and or even a wine tasting room may be a nice incentive for someone buying a home, so make sure it is. (more…)

Maintaining the temperature and humidity in your wine cellar

Wine storage is much more than the wine you choose to store inside. In fact, the wine, contrary to what you might think, is less a factor in an effective wine cellar than the cellar itself. Of course, ultimately, the wine inside your cellar is what will matter, but in the beginning, and, to some degree, going forward, the cellar itself is what will make or break your collection. Without the right temperature and humidity, and in less than ideal conditions, the wine you hope to one day enjoy or sell (wine as investment is not as rare as you may think) will not be there. Instead, with some careful planning, forward thinking, and the right cellar, how you want your wine to be when you one day drink it is achievable and very possible. (more…)

Wine racks and you

Premade wine racks may not fit in your space or be exactly the style you are looking for, as premade… or kit racking… comes in specific modules and specific sizes. You can have a wine racking company create custom racks for you. I would not advise to try to build the racks you need yourself. Wine racks have very specific parts to them that the average person would not even think about. The cubicle size must be correct and the rails the bottles sit on must be properly sanded so the rough edges don’t tear the labels on your bottles. The degree of angle in display racking must be no more than 15 degrees so that the corks don’t dry out. Making sturdy, functional and beautiful wine racking is not something that anyone can do. I have heard nightmare stories of people who have hired their woodworker or cabinet maker to make their wine racks, only to discover when they were finished that they had a beautiful product that was not functional. Just as you would not hire a wine racking company to make your kitchen cabinets, you would not hire your cabinetmaker to make your wine racks. There are even some wine racking companies in the marketplace that don’t get it all right. Choose your wine racking company carefully. Racks are essential in any cellar, especially if you want to be able to quickly identify the wine you plan to use.  And since there are many styles of wine racks available… and many ways to create a custom design, work closely with your wine cellar specialist to come up with something that works for you. (more…)

Finding the right wine racks for your wine cellar – Dallas

How you display and store your bottles of wine in you wine cellar is as important, if not more important, than the construction of your wine cellar itself. Before you can design and/or pick the right racks for you, you need to consider how many bottles of wine you already own, how many bottles you are planning to acquire, how many bottles you will store at one time, and how long you plan to store your wine before you consume it. (more…)

Wine racks vs. wine cellars

Depending on your wine storage needs, as well as the space you have available in which to store wine, you may need to decide between a simple system comprised of wine racks, or you may opt to build in your home a wine cellar, which would include wine racks as part of its overall construction and usability. (more…)

Things to think about before installing a wine cellar in your home

Yes, wine cellars are a good investment, especially if you are a wine connoisseur. Consider your wine collection. Maybe you don’t know how you became a collector. A couple of bottles you bought for dinner became a case for a week’s vacation with friends and all of a sudden you’re reading labels and asking about vintage and years. What’s next? Worrying about storage temperature. If you don’t think about it, that special bottle you’re saving for a golden anniversary or for when that promotion goes through may not taste as special as you are hoping. Once your thoughts turn to storage temperature, it’s time to think about a wine cellar of your very own. (more…)

Your custom wine cellar

A custom wine cellar is not that far out of your reach. You don’t have to do it by yourself. There are specialists and experts who are more than happy to work with you to bring your wine cellar design to life. And if you don’t want to go the route of turning the project entirely over to someone, then work with a wine consultant, who can give you pointers on your cellar. They will be able to help you determine the best location for your wine cellar, the best type of climate control that will work for you, a design that is functional and incorporates everything you want in your room. A consultant will work with you and if you have your own contractor, consult with them as well to make sure the room is constructed correctly. (more…)

Wine cellar cooling tips

So you’ve decided to build a wine cellar in your home. Do you know the environment to create in your wine cellar to best protect your wine? Learn all about it and more in this, the first in a series of blog posts about creating an ideal environment in your wine cellar. (more…)

Your cooling unit

You will most likely need a wine cellar cooling unit. Even if you decide to put a cellar in your basement, which may have the properties you’d expect from a wine cellar, you probably will not want to try to get by without a cooling unit. Basements, especially in the United States, can be too warm at times to properly store your wine. It may be the correct temperature… and even the correct humidity during some of the year. However, the fluctuation of temperature and humidity is what can destroy your wine. It will most likely not be stable enough all year round for your wine collection and storage needs. (more…)

Storing red and white wine

As you probably know, the cooling unit you put in place in your wine cellar will help to determine how your wine will be when you decide to open and drink it. Before talking about the conditions under which to store red and white wine, let’s review what your cellar should have before you move in any wine. (more…)

So you want your own wine cellar

While you can build a wine cellar in any part of your home, remember that where you build your wine cellar will affect how much you spend yearly in cellar-related costs. The temperature in most wine cellars is between 55 degrees and 58 degrees, and wine cellars typically have a humidity of between 50% and 75%, so, if possible,  pick the coolest and most-humid place in your house and be sure to use the correct amount of insulation and vapor barrier in the wall construction. Doing so will help you lower your overall costs, because this may allow you to use a smaller-sized cooling unit. (more…)