most compact way to store wine under the stairs

I have a couple hundred btls stored short term ( up to 3 years) under the stairs leading to my lower level. Many are for short term consumption and under $40 btls. My higher end / longer aging stuff goes in my temp controlled cabinet and offsite storage. The most delicate and / or valuable stuff goes in the cabinet / offsite immediately or within a week or two.

Currently, I have several btls stacked 5 high right on top of each other on one spot. Btl on btl takes the least space but its hard to dig through. Then the rest of the btls under the stairs are stored in standard wine six packs from local retailers. They’re pretty space saving too but they tend to wear out after a year. I have one long row of those.

Does anyone have a better way to store btls under the stairs that is both easy to access and space maximizing? I don’t want to stack too high either since the temp stays are 68 degrees within 18 inches of the floor. Higher, I guess might be too warm?

If your handy with tools, I’d build some double deep custom racking to fit the shape. Build horizontal levels with 1x4’s left to right with 24" 1x2’s on 3 1/2" centers going front to back. Then cut some dado joints into 4 2x4’s at 4 1/2" intervals and then use 3 1/2" deck screws to anchor the ends of the 1x4’s into the 2x4’s. Cross support the 2x4’s for stability, and finally secure the rack assembly to the sidewalls under the stairs. As over kill, I added an angle iron under each point where the 1x4s tied into the 2x4’s. Hope this makes sense.

These ready made cubes a space efficient ready made solution.

http://www.wineracksamerica.com/living-series/cubes/24-bottle.php?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIlcywsqHk3gIVeyCtBh1eYgqrEAYYBiABEgJpvvD_BwE

Tubes would work well I would think.

B11ECD4B-7E44-4CB5-884D-2FF12C22DF7D.jpeg
Pine ledger boards screwed to studs. Pine boards on top as shelves. Boxes used as storage. I hot glue box dividers to box to prevent bottles dropping as lower are removed.

I bought the Nook system at Wine Racks of America for short term storage of wine in our vacation home, as it can be assembled to fit any irregular space such as under stairs. Because the spacing is close, and yet able to accommodate Burgundy bottles, I was able to fit more bottles than any other rack I could find that would fit into the space. I went back to buy another set and extended it further. It is easy to assemble and stable. Drawback? It is expensive…not a cheap solution…but fabulous for fitting as much wine as possible under stairs.

Try some Weinboxes. I bought a bunch for moving into a new cellar and use them for overflow.

Yeah, PVC or solid cardboard tubes would be super easy, stackable, and 2-5 bottles deep, depending on your space.

+2

+1. Love these.

What are the dimensions of a Weinbox?

Nook…elegant fix but expensive:
StairCase_Master_Still_00001.jpg

Does anyone have a better way to store btls under the stairs

Sorry dude, but best idea I came up with, apologies in advance, is to drink the wine and then pee under the stairs. Smash the bottles under there too. They stack much more efficiently when they’re little shards.

10.5"w x 9.5"h x 19"d, Bdx and smaller Burg fit well, larger Burg not so well for a full case. I just use them stacked 3 high and top loaded now and haven’t tried to end load. When I get around to using longer term, I will most likely use for partial cases in addition to racking.

Thanks, very clever but not sure I have the skill set to get everything square and sturdy :slight_smile: But, its a great idea and I like the glue idea for the boxes. Might do that for an interim improvement.

Yea, this is very cool and likely the prefect solution for all my concerns. The cost will be significant for me and I’m weighing it but I love the product.

I stored over 20 cases under my stairs in the OCBs (original cardboard boxes) with the bottles cork down for years. Esay to mark the outside of the box with what is inside, they pack tightly, stack well and when you need to move them you can do that 12 bottles at a time.

My only comment is that I know a man - a well-to-do doctor - who stored all of his wine under the stairs. A “passive” cellar in San Francisco. He tossed more “defective” bottles down the drain than any of our wine group could understand. Then one night he showed me his wine cellar. Ooops. Then we all realized why he had so many “defective” bottles. Not corked, just not good. Heat damage, the rest of us realized.

Most of my wine is offsite or in temp controlled cabinets. This is just my stuff for early drinking and some stuff that will end up in my cabinets within six months of receipt. Anything delicate recently acquired stuff like already older highend btls go right into the cabinets or offsite.

I agree though if I was storing these btl for the long haul I’d have to bump up my offsite temp controlled space.

Trying to imagine getting your arm in 5 bottles deep to a tube.

Early on I bought a wood racking kit that’s basically a bunch of dowels and wood that you can assemble in any shape you want. Here’s a kit like what I have, but I think there are many sellers of this:

https://www.containerstore.com/s/kitchen/wine-racks-barware/j.k.-adams-hardwood-40-bottle-wine-rack/12d?productId=11005625&country=US&currency=USD&utm_source=tcscompshop&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=google&cid=cse:PLA&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIlIuN_qbr3gIVywOGCh0qpASkEAQYBSABEgK8OvD_BwE