Wine cellers for the common folk

It has been interesting to watch the changes in home design over the years. I vividly remember proposing a timber floor to some customers for their living room in the early Nineties, and being regarded as a radical with terribly modern ideas.

Sometimes these shifts follow technological development, or develop due to demand and marketing. En-suite bathrooms, under-floor heating and home cinemas have all become popular in recent years, whereas before they were very much the exception.

One specialist feature that has recently emerged is wine storage. It will be interesting to see how the various storage units shift this Christmas – I can’t imagine that this boom in storage is due to anything but our gastronomic development over the past decade. But wine storage doesn’t end with racks for the kitchen counter. You can call in specialist firms to dig you a wine cellar.

The most important factors to consider when storing bottles of wine for more than a few weeks are temperature, humidity, stability and isolation. In short, like Greta Garbo, the wine just wants to be left alone.

Ideally, wine should be stored at a steady 10C. Although a fluctuation of up to 5C either way is acceptable, it is important to avoid sudden changes in temperature. The humidity should be stable, too. Again, the ideal is 70 per cent non-condensing, to ensure that the cork will not dry out. If the cork dries, it will shrink, allowing the wine to oxidise. For the same reason, bottles should be kept horizontal to keep the wine in contact with the cork on the inside.

Stability is also important, so try to keep your wine undisturbed over a long period. Vibrationscan upset delicate vintages; even those caused by household noise. Sunlight can damage wine, too, and even paper and food can be contaminants.

So where best should wine be stored? There seem to be two popular answers: either in a special fridge-like cabinet, or in a wine cellar.

In many kitchen showrooms, the wine cabinet has become the de rigueur requirement alongside the fridge, oven and dishwasher. These are special (and quite expensive) temperature and humidity controlled appliances that generally look much like a glass-fronted fridge. It strikes me, however, that the potential for vibration of the chiller pump, combined with the temperature variation every time the fridge door is opened and closed, would make these less than ideal. If you are lucky enough to have a cellar beneath your house, it may be convertible for wine-storage. Failing that, the best solutions I have come across are by a company called Spiral Cellars (www.spiralcellars.com).

These are a range of prefabricated storage units that can be buried into your kitchen or utility-room floor, accessed via a trapdoor. Concrete wine racks form part of the structure and provide stable storage, taking full advantage of the thermal mass of the earth below ground level to maintain a steady temperature. Generally, they require a floor space of approximately 2.5m square, but this depends upon the model and capacity you choose.

The trapdoors can be laid with the same floor finish as the existing one; alternatively, it can be formed in glass so that you can gaze lovingly at your precious wines from above.

Most models have some form of spiral steps for ease of access (hence the name). They do require ventilation, but passive ventilation is sufficient via two plastic waste pipes, so there is no need for pumps or motors, and the vibration that they cause. Better still, you’ll be making use of space that’s currently doing nothing, rather than clogging up your kitchen with yet another piece of kit.

Project: Adding wine storage

How much will it cost?

An appliance-type wine cabinet will cost in the region of £900 to £4,000, whereas a concrete, in-floor wine cellar starts from £7,000, depending upon the style and its capacity. The labour costs involved in installation will also vary, and depend on the existing construction of your floor, so this needs to be factored in, too.

How much hassle is it?

Having a large hole dug into your kitchen floor is likely to be disruptive if you are trying to live and function around the works. While these things can be fitted very swiftly, it may be judicious to plan a strategic holiday to coincide with the cellar’s arrival.

Where do I start?

First, do a little research; look at the websites for various alternative products and try to find the one that best fits your individual circumstances. If you have specific needs that a proprietary product will not meet, an architect could design a bespoke solution, although there is likely to be a more significant cost for something one-off.

source: independent

Facts