Howdy everyone,
I am increasingly feeling unsatisfied with the common professional storage facility set up: above ground warehouses with lots of air conditioning units running all the time, with maybe some active humidification. Perhaps I’m crazy, and the result of temperature and humidity is perfect. But for whatever reason, I’m getting an itch in my brain that passive is better. Less vibration, that natural dampness that a real cellar has–that’s what I want, right or wrong.
So, I’m here to ask: does anyone know of any professional storage facilities where you can store your wine that are truly passive? I’ve heard that Horse Ridge Cellars in CT is relatively passive and underground, but I haven’t made it up there to check it out in person yet. I live in NYC, so something in the northeast is ideal, but I’m willing to deal with a move if the facility is great.
Thanks, everyone, for your help.
Mine is this way. I bring in wine to store and he makes crappy comments about my buying choices. I tell him I need to access my locker at a certain time and he shows up a half hour late. Lately he’s starting to make more personal comments. I wore a Christmas sweater to the storage facility the other day and he said, “I bet you won the contest.” Sometimes I just want to punch him in the face. But instead I let the air out of his tires.
Edited to add: my bad, I thought you said passive aggressive professional storage facilities. Oops!
There is (or used to be) a place in Kingston, NY that was in a cave with a spring running, with the absolute worst web site in the world. They had too much humidity. But regardless, the owner comes across as a total whack job.
20 years ago when I was starting Seattle Wine Storage, the place we leased (still here for another few months) was below grade and built back into a steep hillside. I thought about going passive to save on start up costs, but determined that a) people don’t pay for nearly perfect storage conditions, they want perfect, and b) the money saved was nothing when spread over the years. I thought about going with a slightly lower storage rate, but realized that charging a normal rate compared to other facilities would pay for the refrigeration cost dozens of times over. We were the first storage facility in Seattle, and also might have lost our competitive edge if another place opened that was actively cooled. So, I said screw it and actively cooled.