Buyers Guide to Wine Refrigeration

Wine tasting is an incredibly popular hobby domestically and internationally. Most tasters are just that, people who enjoy a glass of wine with dinner or at a chic party. However, the true connoisseur is measured by his or her wine cellar. Building an impressive collection takes patience, will power and means, both financial and spacial. Buying wine can be expensive and keeping it properly stored is crucial to a successful aging process. That said a trustworthy wine refrigerator is essential.

Like most investments, wealth does not come overnight. In wine speak; grapes grow on the vine, not bottles. When you make the commitment to collect, odds are you won’t have much to store. Therefore, a fifteen to thirty bottle mini-fridge is appropriate and cost effective. Mini-fridges vary in price from $100 to $150. Plus, they will not take up space. The Little Tavern Deluxe Wine Cooler is such a model.

Once your cellar nears the one hundred bottle mark, you could stock up on a bunch of Little Taverns or to truly wow your friends and family, take the size matters approach to shopping.

A lovely addition to your den, living room or kitchen is the Vintage Keeper wine cabinet. With a cellaring capacity of 100 to 250 depending on the size of the model, its wood veneer options and KOOLSPACE cooling system provides an aesthetically pleasing and expertly chilled system. Again, this storage option is for the increasingly serious collection and is priced accordingly. Prices range from $750 to $1500.

So now you have your vast array of vino but you are still in greedy collector mode. I suppose you could bring the 1970’s trend of wood paneling back in fashion with wall to wall oak or cedar lined Vintage Keeper cabinets. Still, in the back of every aficionados mind from the beginning is having the old fashioned, drafty and near arctic basement cellar with bottles by the thousands. Such a collection is literally decades in the making. Homeowners with tons of room could certainly manufacture such a conversation piece. Yet, urban dwellers living in apartments and condominiums do not have this luxury. Honestly, the same effect can be had for less work and perhaps considerable savings in the long run.

EuroCave cellar conditioners produce a similar, energy efficient cooling effect to that of the traditional cellar. The overriding benefit of the EuroCave conditioner is that it can convert any room into a cellar whether it is the basement, garage or attic. It is easy to use and install, comparable in size to a standard home air conditioner. EuroCave offers professional insulation and installation assistance. Although they are based out of the United Kingdom, those buyers in the United States may purchase a conditioner through their U.S. distributor, The Wine Enthusiast. The average amount you will have to fork down in American dollars is $2750, $2200 in the Euro.

But before you get to this level, remember to start small. Before you have fifteen bottles stored, you will have one. Hopefully, you already have a regular refrigerator to keep your initial bottles in. If not, you have a problem.