Category Archives: custom wine cellars texas

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Why Store Your Precious Wines in Refrigerated Texas Wine Cellars

Have you experienced throwing away an expensive bottle of vintage wine because it tastes bad? If yes, you may be storing your collection in poor conditions. Wine Cellar Specialists, a master builder in Texas, recommends homeowners to invest in a climate-controlled wine cellar to protect your favorite vintages from the damaging factors. 

How to Preserve Your Precious Vintages the Proper Way

storing vintages in Texas wine cellar

Wine Needs a Stable Environment to Age Properly

Vintage wine is created from grapes that are grown in a specific year. Hence, if you read a label such as Cabernet Sauvignon 2000, this tells you that the grapes used in making that wine were harvested in the year 2000.

Each harvest of grapes has specific characteristics to them. There are nuances in color, nose, body, and palate with each harvest year. So it follows that older wines are not necessarily better than the younger ones. It all depends on the year of harvest. This is why wine collectors fill their wine racks with bottles from a good vintage year.

For a wine to have the right to have the year and grape-growing region placed on its label, it must have at least 95 % of its grapes come from that harvest year. However, if the wine doesn’t have a specified region where the grapes were grown, the percentage will dip to 85%.

Some wine makers release vintages when the conditions in their vineyards are so good that the grapes grown are exceptional, and as such these wine bottles are available only in limited supply.

So what does it mean for Texas wine collectors to have vintage wines in their collection? Knowing the value of these rare vintage wines, it’s just crucial that this type of wine be stored properly.

Ideal Conditions for Proper Maturation of Wine

refrigerated wine cellar Texas

Climate-Controlled Texas Custom Wine Cellar

Wine storage requires a delicate balance in temperature and humidity so that wine can develop its complex flavors and aromas before it is drunk. This usually requires a climate-controlled environment in your wine cellar, especially if you live in a warmer climate, such as Texas.

Fluctuations of more than 2 degrees Fahrenheit beyond the ideal temperature of 55 degrees Fahrenheit could affect your wine’s quality.

Failure to achieve the optimum temperature can cause wine oxidation. Oxidized wines have unpleasant taste and odor. Temperature stability can only be achieved by installing a commercial grade wine cellar cooling system.

This equipment allows you to maintain constant temperature and humidity in your wine cellar to achieve proper maturation of your favorite vintages.

Whether your Texas wine cellar is located in a basement, garage, closet, or in any area in your home, it is vital to ensure that the correct cooling equipment is installed in it. You don’t want your precious wines to be ruined.

Trusted Manufacturers of Wine Cooling Systems

US Cellar Systems wine cooling unit Texas

Wine Cooling System by US Cellar Systems

With several brands of wine refrigeration systems available in the market today, it is best to consult with a wine cooling expert like Wine Cellar Specialists. They offer cooling units manufactured by Wine Guardian, US Cellar Systems, CellarPro, and WhisperKOOL.

The three types of cooling systems are self-contained, ducted self-contained, and split. Your chosen builder should be able to determine the most ideal refrigeration unit based on your functional, aesthetic, and financial requirements.

Why Stock Vintage Wines in Your Texas Wine Cellar?

Texas wine cellars stocked with vintage wine generally hold more value in their wine storage racks. If you buy a vintage wine, it is as if you possess a rich and unique piece of history.

It represents the highest level of winemaking and the bottle can only increase in value as years pass. Because of vintage wine’s superior quality, it is like owning a piece of art. What’s more is that these are actually art pieces that you can literally savor. You can experience the finest wines from the best harvest years by collecting them in your wine cellar.

Even if you’re living in Texas and famous wine-making regions are thousands of miles away, it’s as if you have the best wine caves of France right in your own wine cellar.

Keep Your Wine Collection Safe. Seek the Help of a Wine Storage Expert.

Wine Cellar Master Builder in Dallas, San Antonio, and Chicago

Wine Cellar Specialists Builds Wine Cellars in Dallas, San Antonio, and Chicago

Whatever your storage needs, budget, or style, it is important to ensure that your wine collection is safe. Wine Cellar Specialists build wine cellars in Dallas, San Antonio, and Chicago.

Visit their gallery of refrigerated wine cellars at https://www.winecellarspec.com/wine-cellars/. Contact them now at 866-646-7089 or request a FREE 3D design by clicking here.

Under the Stairs Wine Cellars Dallas TX

Under the Stairs Custom Wine Cellars Dallas Texas Mansfield Design

Under the Stairs Custom Wine Cellars Dallas Texas Mansfield Design – A Processed Video Transcription

Under the Stairs Wine Cellar Dallas Texas
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Closet Where a New Wine Cellar Will be Put Up

Closet Where a New Wine Cellar Will be Put Up

Okay, we are walking through the front door of the home going over where we are going to build the new custom wine cellars Dallas Texas.

Before Photo - Custom Wine Cellars Dallas Texas Project

Before Photo – Custom Wine Cellars Dallas Texas Project

This is the closet door, we will open this door and go in and we will see a circular closet and a stairway.  Walking through you can see that it is very low at the bottom.  We will turn around and view the doorway and above the door with a current fluorescent light.

Walking out of the door, you see that this is the back of a staircase, and its Christmas time with a beautiful Christmas tree.  We will be adding a new wine cellar door, complete with new wine racks, new wine cellar cooling unit and we will continue throughout the process.

The Completed Under the Stairs Wine Cellar

The Completed Under the Stairs Wine Cellar

Wine Cellar Door Dallas Texas

Wine Cellar Door Dallas Texas

The end of the staircase of custom wine cellars Dallas Texas is finally completed.  We are moving on over where you can see a completed wine cellar door, and opening the door of this under the stairs wine cellar you can see from top to bottom we have horizontal wine racks, the mini quarter round, a display row with the true radius curve racking.

Under the Stairs Wine Cellars Dallas TX

Under the Stairs Wine Cellars Dallas TX

Moving around to back end of this under the stairs wine cellar it’s the latest X bin case storage and a horizontal rack above.  We have brick on the ceiling; this is the right wall, the lighting above in the ceiling as well as the display row.  These lights in the display row are dimmable as well as the ceiling lights.

The flooring is reclaimed wine barrel with cooperage markings on the floor in various locations.  A curved under the stairs wine cellar turned out very well and I hope you have enjoyed this walkthrough.

Click here to view more custom wine cellars projects!

Dann's Wine Closet

Custom Wine Cellar Builders Dallas Texas Project for Dann

Custom Wine Cellar Builders Dallas Texas – Dann Project (A Processed Video Transcription)

Custom Wine Cellars Dallas TX – Wine Cellar Builders Dallas
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Dann's Wine Closet

             Dann’s Wine Closet

The Dann Wine Closet Part 1.  You’re looking at a photograph of the completed Dann wine closet.  This is a custom wine cellars Dallas TX project that we completed that used to be a pantry off the kitchen.

We’re going to begin by showing you the drawings.  This is the overhead or plan view.  Each elevation is designated by a letter: elevation A to the left, B to the back, C also to the back and elevation D to the right.

You can see that this wine cellar should hold 496 bottles.  Upon completion Mr. Dann was actually able to fit 514 bottles in this wine closet.

Waterfall Rack - Custom Wine Cellars Dallas TX

Waterfall Rack – Custom Wine Cellars Dallas TX

Elevation A, the left wall, is a waterfall rack.  This pantry is under the staircase so there is a slanted ceiling on the left side.  So we follow the line of the ceiling with the wine racks.  These are all 750ml bottle wine storage.

What you’re seeing here is a support rack for the back of the wine closet where the double deep section comes out and this is just to support the other racks above which are not visible.  You’ll notice that the racking is 13 1/2 inches deep, it has 1 1/2 inch toe kick and base molding and we have 2 1/4 inch crown molding at the top.

Elevation B, the back wall, is a double deep X-bin storage.  It is a solid storage with a horizontal rack above.  Here is where your horizontal display rack shows your bottles; they are actually 3 deep in these racks, a little table top so that Mr. Dann can set his bottle there when storing his bottles or choosing one for the evening.

Elevation C - Back Wall of the Wine Closet

        Elevation C – Back Wall of the Wine Closet

Elevation C is also a back wall.  This section here is where the ceiling is still slanting.  Here we have a straight up ceiling area.  This is cut out where your grill cover and box comes out from the right wall; and again you can see we have a 13 1/2 inch rack depth.  Here we have a display row, a high reveal display row where Mr. Dann can display some of his bottles.

Elevation D is the right wall.  This is six-inch deep rack because the doorway comes quite close to this wall.  These are the horizontal display racks going all the way up and a large grill cover and box.

The grill cover and box is much larger than usual because of the way we have to run the lines for this cellar.  The drain line could not go straight down to the drain with the gravitational flow so we have to add a condensation pump below the cooling unit to pump the condensation up before it could run down.

Overhead View - 3D Drawing by Wine Cellar Builders Dallas

Overhead View – 3D Drawing by Wine Cellar Builders Dallas

This is an overhead view of the custom wine cellars Dallas TX showing where the doorway is, your horizontal racks here, the grill cover and box, individual racks on the left and the back and the table top and the horizontal racking on the back.  This shows looking in from the front; this is looking in from the front as well, what the racks look like.  These are just some 3D views showing the racking here and this is looking out and if there were no roofs looking at the back going in.

I hope you’ve enjoyed looking at the drawings for the Dann Wine Cellar. In the next video I’m going to show you photos of the Wine Cellar Builders Dallas project before, during and after.  Click on the second video to continue.

Completed Custom Wine Cellars Dallas TX

Completed Custom Wine Cellars Dallas TX

By Wine Cellar Specialists-Wine Cellar Builders Dallas.  Check out another video tour of a custom wine cellars Dallas TX project at this web page.

Dallas Custom Wine Cellars – Projects Featured So Far

Texas Wine Cellar Builders

Check out the Custom Wine Cellars Dallas Texas complete playlist. Designs, walk-in tours Wine Cellar Builders a please to feature the complete list of Dallas based projects.

Custom Wine Cellars Dallas Texas

Dallas Texas Custom Wine Cellars & Design the Feature Pages

Dallas Texas Design Under Stairs Custom Wine Cellars Builder – Burke
Lyles Custom Wine Cellar – McKinney Nr Dallas, Texas
Residential Custom Wine Cellars Dallas Fort Worth – Westlake
Contemporary Residential Custom Wine Cellars Dallas Texas – Griffith
Mahogany Wine Cellar John’s Dallas Closet Cellar Conversion
Wine Cellars Dallas Texas, Wine Closet Conversion – Howell
Residential Custom Wine Cellars Dallas Texas Lucas – Nelson

See what’s happening in and around Dallas.  Wine room designs include design drawings, cooling system details, and styling features.  Great for ideas.  Take advantage of our Free 3D Cellar design drawing package.

 

Wine Cellar Specialists Dallas is Awarded Best of Houzz 2013

Wine Cellar Specialists Dallas Texas is the recent winner of Houzz’s 2013 “Best of Remodeling” Customer Satisfaction award.  The Best of Houzz 2013 award is based on reviews and ratings conducted by Houzz’s more than 11 million monthly users.

>>See more about Wine Cellar Specialists’ designs and awards on Houzz HERE

Houzz is the leading online authority in home remodeling and design.  Its website features an extensive database in residential design that can provide information, inspiration, and support to homeowners and home builders alike.  It is an online community for architects, designers, contractors, and home improvement professionals.

The Best of Houzz 2013 award recognizes professionals who come up with unique and inspiring home designs, provide excellent customer service, and timely delivery of high-quality results.

Custom Wine Cellar Specialists Dallas is Awarded Best of Houzz 2013

There are two categories to Houzz’s Best of Houzz awards: Customer Satisfaction and Design.  The winners for the Customer Satisfaction category are rated by homeowners, based on their working experience with remodelers and designers.  The works of Design awardees were favored by millions of Houzz users and were added to their personal ideabooks via the Houzz website or mobile apps.

The Houzz platform showcases different works of various top-notch professionals like Wine Cellar Specialists Dallas in 360-degree imaging.  These visuals give homeowners an opportunity to evaluate and determine which home improvement professionals best meet their design objectives.  The platform also allows homeowners to interact directly with design professionals.

Best of Houzz 2013 is considered as the benchmark for exceptional renovation and interior decoration of residential structures.  Professional images found on personal ideabooks of Houzzers (or Houzz users) serve as strong artistic influences and set a creative trend in the field of remodeling and design around the world.

A closer inspection of Houzz ideabooks will reveal the latest thing in residential decorating:  a garage being converted into a home office or play space; open showers with plenty of natural light and glass doors; outdoor spaces that are equipped with fireplaces and firepits; installing intricate wall treatments on entryways; and laundry rooms that feature stained glass and bold wallpapers to give the space a homey feel.

Click here to view more photos!

Wine Cellar Specialists Residential Wine Cellars

Wine Cellar Specialists Dallas is owned and founded by Robert Stockberger.  The company specializes in wine cellar design and wine cellar construction for residential and commercial properties.  Wine Cellar Specialists Dallas provides design and consultation services, construction of custom wine racks, and installation of climate control wine cellar refrigeration, flooring, and cellar doors.

The company has years of experience in the custom wine cellars industry.  Wine Cellar Specialists Dallas is committed to providing exceptional service and results to their clients.  As a testament to their professional diligence, they have reaped awards and accolades over the years for their exquisite wine cellar design.  Winning the Best of Houzz 2013 award is another added achievement under their belt.

Houzz was founded in 2009.  It is an online photo database of more than one million professional images that aims to guide homeowners in building, renovating, and decorating their properties.  They released an iPhone/iPad app as well as an Android version of the software.  To date, Houzz has a list of 1.5 million residential remodeling professionals that can help transform dreams into reality which makes Wine Cellar Specialists one in 1.5 million!

The Awarded Project, Dallas Custom Wine Cellars – Frisco, Texas

Wine Cellar Specialists, Dallas based wine cellar builders are proud to announce that we were winners of a 2012 Dallas Builders Association Award.  The award was given for our innovative Custom Wine Cellars Project described below.  This award is given to Dallas based Associates, Remodelers and Custom Builders for both custom building and renovation work.

See the Full Project Page – Custom Wine Cellars Dallas– Frisco, Texas

This wine room renovation project was a former kitchen pantry.  After removing the shelving, walls, and ceiling, we installed the lines for a split purpose-built wine cellar cooling system with the evaporator coil inside the cellar (hidden by a grill cover and box that matches the racks) and a compressor in the garage.

At Wine Cellar Specialists we always ensure that our wine cellars are built to last, efficient and trouble-free.  To that end, we added a vapor barrier and insulation as well as green board interior walls.  The wine room’s walls were also painted with latex paint of the homeowner’s choice of color.

We supplied a special wine cellar door with operable wrought iron in red oak.  We custom matched the stain color to the existing kitchen cabinets to create a seamless and great look.

The custom wine racking design was custom manufactured in mahogany and finished with a clear satin lacquer.  We used a waterfall rack on the left side of the wine storage area.  A solid double-deep ‘X’ bin with tabletop, finished off with a horizontal display rack. 750 ml individual bottle racks with a high reveal display row.  We included a tall single deep solid horizontal display rack on the right wall, under the grill cover and box which hides the cooling system.

2012 Dallas Builders Association ARC Awards

The Dallas Builders Association, originally chartered in 1944, is a local trade association representing all segments of the residential building industry in the Metropolitan Dallas area. Their mission, to enhance their members’ ability to provide safe, affordable, quality housing to citizens in local communities is one we are proud to add value to.  The Association is chartered by the State of Texas as a non-profit trade organization.

The Dallas Builders Association Primary Activities Include:

  • Promoting positive public policy through active participation in the legislative and regulatory processes
  • Providing industry information and education to the members and the public
  • Enhancing the positive image of the industry and the members through training and encouraging ethical behavior and professional standards
  • Making membership in the Association an essential element of a successful residential building industry company.

Non-Grape-Based Wines a Good Addition to Custom Wine Cellars?

Besides grapes, there are many other fruits that can be made into surprisingly delicious wines. Wine collectors, often with whole room residential custom wine cellars dedicated to their collections are finding these can make a great addition to the diversity of their collections.

Non-Grape-Based Wines

Non-Grape-Based Wines

Just about every country in the world has at least one winery that produces alternative fruit wines. There are locations all around the world, such as Massachusetts in the USA, where grapes can’t grow due to their climate.

Crops typically used in making fruit wines include apples, plums, raspberries, cherries, peaches, blackberries, pineapples, pears, and even watermelons. Should you attempt to make these types of wines yourself it’s important to make sure you pick overripe fruits but avoid those with too many bruises.

Fruit wines can be made from any plant matter capable of being fermented. In order to achieve the desired taste and aroma, some of these products need honey or sugar to be added to them. Fruit winemaking involves many of the same techniques used in making grape wines. When made commercially there is a machine that gets rid of the stalks and washes off the bugs etc. and in some wineries, the juice is separated from the skins through a crusher.

The fruit juice is then put into a fermenting container. Yeast can be found naturally in some fruits (such as grapes) and can also be produced through laboratory processes on other fruits. Yeast consumes the available sugar in juice and converts that sugar into 50% alcohol. The process called Chaptalization helps increase the alcohol content of the finished wine.

The fermentation process then begins. Most winemakers leave the pulp in the juice for the first 7 days to add character and deepen the wine’s color.

In the process of making fruit wines, there are necessary adjustments that must be made to the acidity of the fruit juice, the amount of fruit used per gallon, and the amount of available sugar. Sometimes, tannin or acid must be added to balance the taste, thus producing great tasting fruit wines at the standard you expect for your wine cellar.

The wine-making hydrometer is a device that not only helps determine the amount of sugar in your juice but the amount of sugar needed to provide the sweetness you want in your wine and the amount of alcohol that sugar can produce as well.

Typically non-grape-based wines cannot be stored for a very long time. Some need to be consumed within 12 months of their products because they lack the natural yeast present in grapes. This potentially limited aging and life span should be taken into account when racking in your wine room. In order to promote further fermentation, phosphorus, nitrogen or potassium must be added.

An example of fruit wine is plum wine, which is famous in Korea and Japan. Other popular fruit wines include pineapple wine, cherry wine, banana wine, raspberry wine, and apple wine.

Fruit wines are perfect for any occasion, an excellent addition to your wine rooms‘ selection and can provide unique flavors and aromas. You can even make fruit wines at home by following simple winemaking processes.

Wine Closet Cabinets – what are they & how easy to install?

The Residential Wine Closet Cabinets on our website are becoming a major product line for us this year. The level of interest in these types of pre-built wine storage and display closet cabinets is clearly on the rise.

Many home owners are finding that these types of pre-built wine cabinets are the perfect solution for those with only a small amount of available space but who still would like to have the look of a built in wine cellar in their home or condominium.

Home builders are more and more adding them as an option to be added for new home sales. Realtors are often suggesting them as an add-on for home buyers who love wine want a place to store their wine collection. Home owners are finding it an inexpensive alternative to adding full custom wine cellars to their home.

In this video of a wine closet cabinet installed in Dallas Texas we show just how easy they are to install.

Residential Wine Closet Cabinets — what are they & how easy are they to install?

These Wine Closet Cabinets can easily be fit into the limited space of a small closet. They do not require a full build out and re-construction of the room. They simply require an opening of 34″ wide (or more) with a minimum of at least 30″ deep and 80″ high. This space will also require a dedicated 110 outlet at the back or side, which can easily be added if it is not already in place.

The wine closet cellar cabinets arrive fully built. All you need to do is attach the top trim and side flanges, plug in the cord, slide it into the closet area, and add molding of your choice to match your decor. (Moldings not included) There you have it! A closet wine cellar that looks like it was custom built for your home.

The cabinets usually include wine cabinet cooling units. The Whisperkool 2500 front vented wine cooling units are commonly used. These keep you wine collection in the ideal environment for preservation and aging.

These wine closet cabinets typically include a display row with pre-installed led lighting to make the closet a really interesting highlighted feature in your home. Additional display rows can be added if looks, rather than the amount of storage, is your priority. They include a full glass display door to enable you to view and show off your wine collection.

Installing a closet cabinet will generally cost you about 50-85% less than doing a full custom wine closet build out. The wine closets are available in a choice of light, medium, or dark wood finishes. You can add additional display rows and you can have the cabinet made wider to fit larger closets.

This Wine Closet Cabinet shown here was installed in Chicago Illinois and was created using a space just 34″ wide, 30″ deep, 80″ high. It can store up to 166 bottles in the racking plus there is a little extra room for bulk storage either side of the cooling unit which can be used for larger format wine bottles.

The estimated cost for these wine cabinets as shown above including shipping, a local contractor to install it, a dedicated electrical outlet in the back of your closet, removal of your closet door, making the opening the correct size, if necessary… and the addition of molding around the finished cabinet…… usually comes out at less than $5000 all in!

The Cabinet only is $3895.00 plus shipping to your location.

Call us today for exact pricing for your delivered Closet Wine Cabinet!

Why “Seal” my wine cellar? – Custom Wine Cellars Texas

Why do I need to “Seal” my wine cellar?

Only this week I was confronted by a builder in Texas who was showing me the room that he was turning into a custom wine cellar for his customer.

He mentioned he knew about adding the correct vapor barrier and insulation. Then, in the next breath, he said “and I am leaving ½” open below the door so that the room gets good air circulation!”

 Air circulation coming from the next room in your home into your wine cellar is exactly what you do NOT want.

Your wine cellar must be sealed like a package. See How to Build Your Wine Cellar. The reason for the vapor barrier is to ensure that the temperature and humidity inside the room, controlled by your wine cellar cooling units, is kept at a lower temperature and higher humidity than in the rest of your home.

To age and preserve wine properly you need to maintain a very stable temperature of 55 to 60 degrees and 50 to 70 percent humidity inside your wine cellar. Leaving a gap under the door allows the cold air to escape and warm air to enter the room, creating difficulty maintaining the correct temperature and humidity. All air going into our coming out of the room should be going through the wine cellar climate control system you have chosen.

Yes, it is possible to maintain the room’s temperature and humidity with this gap. However, you will need a larger wine cellar cooling unit and your unit will run longer, causing an increase in expense to the homeowner’s electric bill.

The gap under the door is the most often cause of cooling loss in a wine cellar!

An easy remedy is to install an exterior door with the same weather stripping you would use if the door were to the outside. Another remedy is to install a door with an automatic door bottom. The doors offered by the award-winning Wine Cellar Specialists have the option of the wood threshold or the automatic door bottom at no additional charge. This is highly recommended.

Wine Cellar Design Basics – Remember:
1. Seal any gaps.
2. A vapor barrier is absolutely necessary.
3. The more insulation, the better.

Want to learn more? See some of our completed wine cellar builders custom wine cellars installed in Texas. Or ready to get started? Simply fill in this wine cellar design request and we will create a design for you FREE of charge and without obligation! Kick-off your wine cellar conversion today!

Why Your Texas Custom Wine Cellar Must be Built by an Expert

Having your Texas wine cellar designed and built by an expert will prevent waste of time and money. There are important factors that need to be considered in wine cellar construction, thus hiring a wine cellar specialist is necessary. This will ensure that your wines are stored in a safe place, allowing them to age for years to come.

A Texas Wine Cellar Built by an Expert Will Keep Your Wines Safe

Texas wine cellar racking

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.

Wine reaches proper maturation when it is stored in an environment with stable temperature and humidity. The ideal wine storage conditions in Texas wine cellars cannot be achieved without the help of a builder who has extensive experience in wine cellar design and installation.

Your chosen wine cellar company should aim not only to create an exceptional design for your wine storage space, but also to ensure that your prized collection is stored in a climate-controlled environment.

They should 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. Continue reading

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.

Preparing the Room to Meet Wine Storage Requirements

  • wine cellar insulation TexasPrepare your wine cellar before installing your cooling unit.
  • Put a vapor barrier in place in the walls and ceiling. A vapor barrier consists of  6 mils plastic sheeting and must be installed on the warm side to serve as a barrier between the cellar and the rest of your home. The room should be wrapped like a package so no moisture can escape.
  • Put a vapor barrier on the floor. If the floor is concrete, you can use a product that goes on with a trowel found at most hardware stores. One recommended product is Bosticks MVP4.

Any tile or wood flooring can be installed right over this product once it drys. If your floor is above ground, you will want to add your vapor barrier and insulation just as you did on the walls and ceiling, while building up the floor.

  • The proper insulation should then be installed in the walls and ceiling. A minimum of R-13 in the walls and R-19 in the ceiling. However, the more the better. The more insulation you add, the less work your cooling unit will have to do. This could save you money in the long run… so insulate well.
  • Before installing your walls, depending on the cooling unit you are using, you may want to run a drain line, your copper lines (if applicable) and be sure to wire for your electrical. All units will need a place to drain and must have a dedicated circuit for the compressor.
  • wine cooling systems Texas

    An Efficient Wine Cooling Unit is a Vital Component of Wine Cellars

    For the walls, you have a choice. You can use any moisture-resistant material. You can put a ½” plywood down first to make it easier to attach your racking to the walls… recommended especially if using metal racking. Then add a green board, or something similar.

  • Another method is to add a heavy paneling such as a tongue and groove board or other board material that you might like to see in your room. Just make sure it is moisture resistant. If you are painting the walls, use latex paint.
  • Now install your wine cooling unit. Again, depending on the unit you use, you may need to hire a licensed HVACR contractor for this. An HVACR contractor is required for your warranty to be valid if you are using any split system.

These are very basic steps. Clearly, there is more to building a Texas wine cellar in your home than the steps we list above, but we list them to give you an idea of the work involved in creating a space in your home that will perfectly preserve and help age any wine you store. Experts can help you throughout the process, from deciding the kind of cellar you want and where you want it to doing the actual work.

Best Conditions for Wine

wine cellar racks Texas

Once your cellar is in place, you get to move on to the fun part – actually storing your wine. We will cover in a series of other blog posts the types of racks you can use in your Texas wine cellar, but here, let’s briefly talk about the best conditions under which to store your red and white wine.

wine temperatureBoth red and white wines should be stored at the same temperature when it comes to storage. Ideal storage conditions protect wine from harmful environmental factors, preserving its desirable characteristics.

Drinking temperature is a different issue. Keep in mind that serving wine too hot or too cold can result in flat flavors and aromas. The right serving temperature can help preserve the freshness and fruitiness of the wine.

White wines may not be chilled enough in your wine cellar. Before serving a white wine, take the wine out of your cellar and put it into an ice bucket before you are planning to serve it. Serving champagne? Definitely chill champagne on ice before serving it. If you add water to the ice, the wine will chill faster.

The 55-degree storage temperature is equally important, if not more so, with your red wines. They typically are the wines that need more time to age before drinking. However, the 55 degrees is not the temperature you will want to drink your red wines at either.

Contrary to popular belief, red wine should not be served at normal room temperature. Depending upon the wine you are drinking, the ideal drinking temperature varies. There are many charts available online to help you along the way.

When in doubt, serve the wine a few degrees cooler than room temperature. The richer aroma is released as the wine warms up to room temperature. No wine should be served over 68 degrees F.  Keep in mind that the cooling process helps age your wine and will let you store it for longer periods of time than just putting it away elsewhere.

One unit can serve to store red and white and conditions ideal for them, but remember you may need to take an extra step (cooling or “warming”) before serving.

Essential Wine Accessories for Serving Wine in Your Texas Wine Cellar

In addition to serving wine at the right temperature, you can invest in wine accessories to enhance your wine-drinking experience.

Aerator

An aerator is a must-have gadget of wine enthusiasts. It is used to reduce the level of carbon dioxide in wine. This process is called aeration, which can help increase your pleasure of drinking your precious wines, especially young ones. Aeration allows the wine to be exposed to the right amount of air, giving the wine a smoother texture and pleasant aromas.

Decanter

Another important wine cellar accessory is the decanter. The dark residuals in your glass or wine bottles are known as sediments. Before drinking wine, these sediments should be separated from the liquid to eliminate harsh flavors. It is a common practice to let a bottle stand vertically for at least 24-36 hours prior to decanting. This will allow for easy decanting because the sediments will settle at the bottom of the bottle.

Other Tips in Serving Wine

  • When pouring wine, the wineglass must be on the table, not in your hand.
  • Use a bigger wine glass for reds, and smaller ones for whites.
  • Pour only 5-6 ounces of wine in a glass.

 

Wine Cellars – Design & 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 wine cellar will look, and whether or not it will match how the rest of your house looks, should be a secondary concern.

Wine Cellars – Design & Efficiency

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.

Making sure your cellar is efficient means that your wine cooling unit must be the proper size for the room and emit the proper BTU’s to efficiently cool the room according to your specific conditions. (see other blog posts for information on cooling unit options)

Your cooling unit, more than likely, is going to look and sound very different from what you might be thinking. Depending upon which type of unit you can use in your situation, the look of your cooling unit could vary greatly.

Selecting the right Wine Cellar Cooling Units

climate control system Texas

Wine Cellar Climate-Control System

When you pick your wine cellar cooling unit, there is usually an external temperature display on it. The wine cellars’ cooling unit will help you monitor and regulate your wine cellar’s temperature. With some units this display can be placed in a spot inside or outside of your wine cellar.

On others, it is attached to the unit itself. This temperature display will show you how hot or cold your cellar is, and if the temperature fluctuates out of your preset range, it will “tell” the cooling unit to readjust the temperature inside the cellar. This should happen automatically.

Because your wine cellar, as one expert puts it, is “dark and damp,” always install moisture-resistant materials during the build-out of the project. These materials can be covered with a latex paint.

Types of Wine Cooling Systems for Texas Custom Wine Cellars

Depending on how you plan to use your wine cellar (is it for an investment, or do you plan to drink the bottles of wine you will store in your cellar), you will want to choose the best cooling option for you. Wine Cellar Specialists can help you decide the system to put in place in your home.

Through the Wall or Self-Contained Units

self-contained wine cooling system

Self-Contained Cooling System

When it comes to practicality and ease of installation, the self-contained or through the wall cooling system is a top choice. Since this cooling option does not require a licensed HVAC/R technician, it will save you from the labor cost. The unit can be mounted between the wall studs.

An adjacent room, which must be at least twice the size of the cellar, is required. It serves as an exhaust of the heat generated by the refrigeration unit.

Ducted Self-Contained Systems

ducted self-contained refrigeration system

Ducted Self-Contained System

With a ducted self-contained unit, noise is reduced. The unit is installed 25 ducted feet away from your Texas custom wine cellar, resulting in a quieter operation compared to the self-contained system.

Another advantage of choosing this type of refrigeration system is that no cooling equipment is visible in your wine storage space. If you want a clean look in your cellar, go for the ducted self-contained system.  

Split Refrigeration Systems

split wine cooling system

Split Refrigeration Systems

Just like the ducted-self-contained cooling system, the split system allows for quiet operation. The condenser and the evaporator are installed separately. The condenser, which is a noisy component of a refrigeration system, is installed outside your wine cellar, while the evaporator is placed in the room.

Incorporating a wine cellar into your house is not overly complicated. Doing it right means taking your time, focusing on efficiency, and making sure you have the right people helping you make the right decisions that will best protect your investment and give you your desired result.