So I have been working on designing a built in for my dining room. I was planning on having 2 small wine fridges in the base and some bottle storage above counter height. This would be along one wall and have a cork countertop. On the opposite side of the room I was planning on 2 smaller cabinets to store china and such. I’m now thinking it may be a better idea to store the wine bottles in those 2 cabinets as I can have the bottles behind wooden doors thereby eliminating light exposure, also the bottles would be a bit lower in the room which may help temp wise but probably not much. I am hoping down the road to set up some storage in my basement but for now I don’t have that much to store and the basement would be a big project that I can’t really justify right now.
This was my plan originally-
So now the area showing bottles would just be closed in storage for china or whatever. I don’t want to move the wine storage to the lower portion of this unit as that part is 24" deep and I need that storage for bigger stuff, whereas the other cabinet will be about 14" deep, just right for most of my bottles.
Am I helping at all by moving the wine bottles to a closed cabinet or is the change negligible?
A big factor in regards to wine storage is temperature. If you may be storing some bottles for months rather than weeks, then I think the ambient temperature in a living room will be too high. The wines will “age” prematurely, in a bad way, getting flabby, somewhat tasteless, and with advanced color. The only approach is with some cooling - i.e. like a temperature controlled cabinet. I am not exactly fond of that approach either as I don’t trust the cooling units to last for many years! No personal experience, just suspicion. If the coolant gas slowly leaks out, the unit loses its ability to cool, and I think most of these units have no way to easily recharge them, unless a manufacturer’s service facility is nearby! But maybe someone else can add some more information about this. So one may have to plan to purchase a new cooling cabinet every 5 years or so!??
So, bottom line, long-term storage is best in a basement, and even then the high temperature for the year shouldn’t get above 70.
I would have no issues keeping my daily drinkers in that racking.
Personally I would keep my heavy reds, my meritage, my merlot, my cabs in the racking, I would keep on fridge full of pinot and one full of whites.
I would feel fine with a year like that. If I were intentionally buying 70.00+ bottles to age, I may change my mind, but sub 30 drink whenevers…no issues with this storage.
Thanks, most of mine would be sub $30 as mentioned.
My plan was to have one fridge set for reds and one for whites. So are you saying it should be no big deal to store the extra bottles(not refrigerated) in the pic like I have shown? I would also be storing some liquor there as well, the taller bottles of vodka, whiskey, whatever would fit is the plan.
Like I said I would hope to do basement storage at some point but that just isn’t in the cards right now, so the dining room is it. I’m trying to find the best way to store in the dining room.
Luckily my dining room is on the north side of the house so I don’t get sunlight streaming in the windows.
Annette: Honestly, I don’t know why you don’t go with the basement. Storage doesn’t have to be pretty, since what you are doing is just storing. To keep away from higher temperature upstairs and assuming the basement is safe and dry, go buy a $50 (or similarly cheap) unfinished rack from World Market or similar and stick them in the basement (even if it’s just sitting on concrete in unfinished space). That’s what I started with (two 4x11 racks for up to 88 bottles). Go grab them when you want to drink, and stick a couple whites in the regular fridge to keep ready. If you want something that looks nice, sure, do something upstairs, but its not about storage. At any rate, from your recent posts you are just getting into this…your storage needs (and long term storage plans) may change drastically over the next few years…I wouldn’t invest in anything with a long term goal in mind now. Plus, if you don’t buy a couple wine fridges, you’ll have more disposable income for actual wine (stored away in the ugly basement ).
I have friends in Richmond VA who have about 30 bottles. They have had these stored in a box in the basement for years. They only drink 5-6 a year, and they buy 5-6 a year. They have wines stored like this going back 7 years now (vintage date)
They usually open one when I am there. I would guess most of these were 20-40 dollar bottles. I have never had a bad bottle.
Dont get hung up on all the things you see on this board, it can overwhelm you quickly. Just go drink wine and have fun…you dont really need much storage right now, one little wine fridge or like sean said, a simple rack will do fine. Too much good wine available at the stores to really store much until you start to pin down what you like.
Storage is a concern for long-term aging. I wouldn’t be concerned for weeks, months, or even a year or two with absolutely no temp control (assuming temps aren’t above 80). YMMV, of course.
Right now the basement is an exercise room, a guest room and bath, a kennel room, my husbands wood shop, the Christmas and camping storage closet and the furnace room. The only space I can use would be the camping and Christmas storage closet which is currently bursting at the seams. I will get around to cleaning it out but it will be a serious project to convince someone to get rid of camping gear .
I agree with “use the basement”, although I would suggest buying a less expensive wine fridge for basement instead of two more expensive built in units for your built in (those are very expensive per bottle). Keep some of the racking on your dining room built-in for short term storage of less expensive wines (or those you want for dinner the following night).
Deal with a larger solution in the basement down the road . . . the space you have in the built in will never be adequate for a full-on collection so really doesn’t do much for you.
I wouldn’t build the racking and open glass storage. Not that I think you will do any damage for short term storage but because the higher ambient temps won’t yield pleasurable serving temperatures. Those exposed glasses will be dust magnets.
Just a thought, but if you ditch your husband and the dogs, you could have a heck of a wine cellar and still stay fit and warm while your friends are in town for Christmas.
Hi Annette, I lived in Atlanta for 20 years and know all about the summer heat. The problem with keeping your wine in the upstairs living area is that you will need to run the A/C all the time, even when you are away on vacation. Daily drinkers will be fine for as long as a year at temps in the 70s, but any short excursions into the 80s will not do them any good at all. Also IME white wines do not do as well as reds at higher temps.
Your best bet is to clear out a small area in the basement, preferably on the North side, and next to the wall that is deepest underground. The temperature there will change very slowly and likely stay well below 80°F at summer peak. During the rest of the year the basement will likely be cooler than your living area. This worked well for me for many years, I didn’t build an active cellar until the value of my collection scared me into it.