Apologies if there’s a thread on this, but I just moved to the Silver Lake area and see Yelp recommends either “Ideal 55” in Hollywood or “The Cave” in Glendale. Any intel on those or advice about other places on this side of town?
I have been very happy with the Wine Vault in Glendale.
Storbox in Pasadena is great, but a bit on the expensive side. Have friends at Wine Vault and they like it.
You’re closest to wine vault. Weird hours but cheap
Mr. Gold: your signature line says everything or everyone you aren’t. But you are a very, very accomplished writer, with my favorite being “The Plush Cocoon.” Hope you don’t mind being “outed.”
I store at The Wine Vault in Glendale. Like Charlie said, weird hours, but it is the cheapest option in town. Bonus for the staff being nice. You might not think nice staff is a big deal, but there is at least one other place in Southern California that I can think of where the ownership is so cantankerous I would never store my wine there regardless of price.
I store with Carte du Vin’s The Best Cellar. They pick up and deliver.
I used Ideal55 when I lived up there, but it was the Marina del Rey location. Overall it was fine (and I appreciated 24/7 access, which my current place doesn’t have), but there were some quirks. One thing I didn’t like was that for them to receive deliveries, the would be shipped to the North Hollywood location and then brought over at some later point. But if that’s the location you’re considering, maybe that part isn’t as much of an issue.
The Cave in Glendale is fantastic. Grey, the onsite person who runs the operation, is terrific and very helpful in arranging deliveries and pickups. It is located in what was formerly a speakeasy in the basement of the old Broadway-Glendale Hotel. Good luck finding a home for your wines!
Glomming onto this thread - how about the same question but in West LA? My needs are not that extensive - but I wouldn’t want to deal with a ghoul to get access to my wine if I don’t have to.
Any great places to recommend?
Oh, thank you, Merrill. I don’t mind. I tend on the boards to leave out the part of my name that makes me a professional, as I can type without it being, I dunno, canonical.
And thank you all for your recommendations. I have a few leads now.
G
The Wine Locker in Van Nuys. A bit of a drive for you. Every Saturday is a group bring food and open many bottles of great wine. Once a month Friday night “Big Red Big Meat” wine event. Everyone brings meat to grill and sides etc. Great reds from all over the world are opened and shared by the people who store there. Great to enjoy but also great to taste and learn about wine.
i second wine vault in glendale as well…been there for over 15 yrs. best price in town…however they are closed on monday and tuesday. also hours are 11am to 7pm
Both the Wine Vault and the Wine Cave are good options, and I think operate pretty similarly. It might be a little easier for you to access wine at the Cave vs the Vault. I am not sure about pricing at the Wine Cave.
A restaurant is opening up in the basement of the Wine Vault, which may or may not be a plus for you.
On the west side, I know of some people that have storage on Cotner, but I am unsure of the name.
Does the Wine Cave still reek of cigars? I’m assuming it must, as that smell never goes away. I’m not worried about it affecting the wine, but it always bothered me personally when I went there. Also note, if you have a very large collection, it is very difficult to get a large truck down to the Wine Cave. I always dreaded picking up consignments from that location.
I personally store at the Wine Vault. The prices are the best in town. Also, you get an interesting boudoir holiday card every year (although they’ve been quite tame the last couple of years.)
Do you mean it smells like a humidor in there? I think it did have more of an old cellar smell than other facilities but didn’t equate it to someone storing cigars. The driveway can be a pain, increasing with the size of the vehicle.
Nancy worked with a new photographer for her cards. She’s a little fancier. 
Actually, it was pipe smoke, not cigars. The guy who used to run the place just sat in that little office and smoked a pipe all day. It was really awful. I think he passed away and they got a new manager or owner.
+1 The Cave Wine Storage in Glendale, I’ve been there for a couple years and the manager Grey is super nice, and I’ve experienced zero issues with the storage there (no frills), and when I first was shopping around it was one of the more inexpensive.
Gotcha. It doesn’t smell like that anymore, thankfully. Couldn’t imagine doing inventory with that going on.
The Cave is very romantic, but they’re full. The Wine Vault is a trip. I like it.