If you are considering building a wine cellar for your home, whether it will be in your basement or a loft area, there are many options and requirements to consider.
- Will the space be used for entertaining?
- Do you want a climate controlled system?
- What type of lighting?
- Wood or metal racking?
- Do I need a vapor barrier?
- Custom or “kit” racking?
- What type of door is best for my cellar?
My first suggestion is to pick an experienced wine cellar company like Joseph & Curtis Custom Wine Cellars, someone who designs and installs custom wine cellars for a living, not as a hobby. Many general builders or contractors THINK they can build a wine “room” and then the homeowner usually realizes they are in over their heads.
Once you have selected a custom wine cellar company you then need to figure out what type of wine cellar design you are looking for. A professional company like Joseph & Curtis Custom Wine Cellars will design a 3D CAD drawing so their clients can see EXACTLY what their space can look like.
At this point, Joseph & Curtis would try to determine the customer’s specific wine storage needs (mags, champs, horizontal space, glassware, tasting table) and whether or not the client wants to create an area for entertainment and tasting (either in or outside the wine cellar).
Once the cellar design is finalized it is now time to decide what type of racking (wood, metal etc) and then what species and whether or not its going to be custom racking or “kit” or “modular” racking. There can be a very large difference in cost between kit and custom racking. This is one reason it’s important to hire a professional company that conducts honest and fair dealings, a company with a reputation like Joseph & Curtis.
The next step is to decide if the space will have a wine cellar cooling system. If your new cellar requires a cooling system, you will need to choose a wood species (mahogany,redwood are great choices) AND the room will have to undergo a specific process to ensure there is a proper vapor barrier and proper insulation. This step CANNOT be stressed enough. If the vapor barrier is not sufficient, mold can and will be created. The walls should be made of mold resistant rock like (green or purple board). Also, the climate control system needs to be chosen based on the size of the space, windows, doors etc.
The flooring (like everything else) depends if the cellar space has cooling. If it does we suggest stone, tile or brick.
Lighting should be minimal (led being the best choice) and in areas of the room which will highlight specific “high reveal” display areas, artwork and of course the racking.
Some other “extras” like venetian plaster over the walls, or other faux finishes can really make the space pop.
When choosing a wine cellar door (depending on cooling once again) the door needs to be an exterior grade door if there is cooling. This is not only the grand entrance and first impression for your guests when they visit your wine cellar, but more importantly the door is the seal that separates the climate controlled environment from the rest of your home. This ensures the proper preservation of your fine wine collection.
The last step after the cellar construction is complete is to stock the cellar with your favorite wines and others. You can use cellar management tools like Italian Wine Merchant in NYC, simple bottle tags, or just keeping specific areas of the cellar for specific wines, perhaps by type (Bordeaux, Tuscany, Burgundy, Barolo, Amarone, Chardonnay, Merlot, etc.), by country (Italy, France, Chile, USA California, etc.) or even by color (red, white etc). Proper inventory of the cellar will keep you and your guests drinking wines when they are meant to be consumed, and leaving other wines down until they reach their maximum potential.
Joseph & Curtis have a blog about building wine cellars, you should check it out for news and notes about specific projects they have worked on and everything that has to do with wine cellar design and construction.
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