While they were previously considered a luxury interior feature for the mega-rich, bespoke wine cellars are now becoming increasingly popular among ordinary homeowners, particularly those who have a penchant for collecting many bottles over several years. We outline the top benefits of having a wine cellar fitted in your home.

Keeps wine unspoiled

Any wine connoisseur worth their title knows that there are very specific conditions in which wine should be stored to prevent it from going bad, which is why having a cellar fitted by a professional is highly beneficial.

An expert wine cellar fitter knows the optimal temperature and humidity controlled environment needed to properly store wine and will advise you to include cellar conditioners, whilst ensuring the materials used and product dimensions within the cellar are all fit for purpose.

While wine fridges or coolers may be used by those with a hobby who want to store a few bottles for drinking sooner rather than later, they are not ideal for storing wine long-term since they have been known to produce heat. Instead, serious wine collectors will want to have a wine cellar fitted, which is ideal for storing and preserving bottles for years to come.

Organisation

Built-in home wine cellars are a great way to organise your inventory in one place and means you are aware of exactly which wines you have acquired over time. This means you have easy and direct access to any given bottle and can plan when to drink them based on peak ageing and quality.

For those amongst us who are lucky enough to have a very large collection and a big wine cellar, there is also technology available to help with coordinating and categorising bottles, making life easier.

Adds value to your home

Having a home wine cellar will undoubtedly add extra value to your property, whether it be extending an existing area of the home, such as the basement, or planning a wine cellar for a new build. Any person serious about wine would be thrilled at the chance to live in a home with a built-in area for their passion, meaning someone could be willing to pay far more for your property with that extra feature.

Moreover, hiring an expert to fit a bespoke wine cellar means you are able to choose the materials and features you would like and which perfectly suits the style and interior of your home.

Increases your knowledge

Taking your wine collection seriously by having a cellar installed can only serve to enhance your knowledge and fascination with the world of wine. This may also affect your travel choices as you seek to visit international wine regions and local vineyards in order to update and add to your collection.

Moreover, wine cellars look seriously impressive and are a great way to show off both your cellar and your skillset to dinner guests. Why not even go one step further and think about installing a tasting table?

Lowers costs

People with ample room to store their prized wines normally find that they save money in the long run, by purchasing vintages when they are reasonably priced and keeping them stored in their cellar for future investment when they reach peak ageing. Having a bigger space also allows collectors to buy wine in bulk cases rather than in single bottles, also lowering purchase costs.

Get in touch with us on +44 (0)115 944 1434 for advice on wine cellars or discuss your needs.

Wine is the crème de la crème of the party beverage. Going to a party? Buy a bottle of wine. Fancy a night in and a microwave meal? Bottle of wine, please. Meeting your partner’s family for dinner around their house? You got it, wine me up. But if a wine bottle is not stored properly, it can lose a lot of its colour and taste. This is why you need a wine rack to store all of your bottles and make sure that you do not dish out dodgy wine when you start hitting those summer garden parties, whether it be a solid pine wine rack or a gleaming metal wine rack. Not convinced about whether you should use a wine rack or not? Here is why you definitely should use a wine rack and what is the best type wine rack to get.

There are, of course, many ways that you can store wine, but the general consensus is that the best and easiest way to store your wine is through a wine rack. Wine racks make sure that your wine is safe when stored, even if that is only for a short amount of time. You must also worry about the condition that wine is stored in to make sure it matures properly such as temperature, light condition, humidity and movement. So make sure you keep these conditions in mind when picking out the size and shape of your wine rack too!

The most important factor when choosing a wine rack is, of course, finding one that will store your wine properly. The style of wine racks available to the casual wine drinker is increasing dramatically. There are now styles such as wall mounts, side mounts and stack systems, all coming in various different shapes and sizes and holding as little as three bottles or as many as a hundred.

The reason you should be investing in a horizontal wine rack in order to store your wine properly is that a horizontal wine rack will prevent the cork from drying out and start to shrink which brings air into the bottle of wine and will ruin it. Vertical racks are fine for storing wines for short periods of time., but if you are looking to lay down a bottle of wine for a month or more then you will be in danger of ruining that bottle. It is, therefore, commonly argued that horizontal racks are the best racks for storing wine as it is better to be safe than sorry if you don’t know when you are going to be cracking open the next bottle, it is better to leave it in a horizontal position. Horizontal racks are also easily added to if you feel you need more bottle spaces.

Not only do you have to pick the shape of your wine rack, but it is also important to think about what materials you would like your wine rack to be made out of. Wine racks can be finished in a range of materials. You can normally select the materials, style, design and colour of your rack when going to the right supplier. This can include a large variety of woods and stains, recyclable materials or metal. If you want to hang racks on the walls, especially smaller ones as decoration, you should consider racks made of lighter materials to avoid causing to damage the walls.

No matter what size your wine collection is, you can find the right rack for your lovely home. A little bit of time and effort into making sure you know what you want can go a long way to give you the collection of your dreams.

One of the most important ways to keep your wine in optimum condition is to store it correctly. It’s not as simple as throwing a few bottles on to a wine rack. No, there are a few more things to consider. Use our handy guide, to make sure that your fine wines are being stored correctly.

The first thing that you should think about is the ‘climate’ of your wine cellar. Climate is made up of the temperature and the humidity. They work closely together, to ensure that your wine ages well.

Temperature

This is the most critical element of your wine cellar. Try to keep the temperature of your wine cellar as constant as possible. Ideally, aim for between 10 and 14 degrees centigrade. The cellar should absolutely never reach higher than 25 degrees centigrade. If wines are exposed to temperatures that are too high, this will age them prematurely.

Humidity

The next vital factor for creating and ideal climate in your wine cellar is to control the humidity.

Why is humidity important?

Humidity is the amount of water vapour in the atmosphere.

If humidity is too low…

If the humidity of the cellar is too low, organic corks may begin to dry out. If this happens, oxygen may get into the wine.

If humidity is too high…

There is also a risk to the quality of your wine, if the humidity in your cellar is too high. Firstly, the moisture will spoil the labels on the bottles. Secondly and more importantly, there is a possibility that you are creating the optimum conditions for fungus to grow on your wine bottles.

Controlling humidity can be tricky. However, a simple solution from A&W Moore is a cellar conditioner, which has amazing dual functionality – controlling both temperature and humidity. It can be tempting to buy a regular air conditioner but unfortunately, they can make the atmosphere too dry, as they are not designed for your wine cellar specific needs.

Lighting

The darkness of your cellar is a huge factor in ensuring that your wine is stored correctly. Ultraviolet light can be detrimental to the quality of your wine. It’s important to note than some wines are more susceptible to degradation than others but they all need to be protected. There is science behind ultraviolet light’s effect on wine but it’s quite easy to understand. First of all, the excessive exposure is called ‘lightstrike’. The UV light reacts with the wine, creating compounds which destroy the taste. Along with ensuring a dark environment, wines in coloured glass stand a much better chance of avoiding lightstrike.

Successful wine storage takes some practice and planning, but when it’s done correctly, it is a satisfying and rewarding activity. You’ll enjoy the maximum benefit from the wines you invest in, when it has the best conditions to mature in.

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