How
do you solve the modern-day problem of finding space and the right wine
rack for your wine collection?. This article provides 7 great tips on
how to choose the wine rack that suits your needs.
Have you just bought a dozen expensive European reds, but have no
suitable wine rack to store them? Are you a budding wine enthusiast and
wondering how to choose the right wine rack for your growing wine
collection?
Well-designed wine racks that keep wines from being moved too much
could be the answer to your wine storage problems. By keeping bottles
in a horizontal position, good wine racks allow the wine to keep the
cork moist so that it doesn’t dry out and allow air into the bottle.
It was the Romans who developed better wine storage methods, keeping
wine in barrels and bottles. But how do you solve the modern-day
problem of finding space and the right wine rack for your wine
collection?
Tips on how to choose the right wine rack for your wine collection
1. It is important to ask how many bottles you're going to store and when you're going to drink them.
- If you have a dozen bottles, ready for drinking within a month or
two, then all you may need is a wine rack that sits on the floor in a
closet somewhere on the north side of the house.
- If you are a serious collector and want to store your wines for more
than a year to maybe ten years, then you may need modular wine racks
that hold hundreds of bottles of wine. A cellar or converted cellar
measuring less than 3 meters square will easily hold 100 dozen bottle
bottles or wine.
2. The second most important question is where are you going to put
your wine racks? The best place for wine storage is a cellar or
cellar-like place that is dim, cool, and stable in temperature and
movement, slightly humid and with few odors. The worst place would be
the top of the fridge where you get vibration, constantly changing
temperature, heat from the kitchen and constant exposure to light.
In most modern homes the cellar-like place can be a large closet, a
walk-in wine pantry, space under a stairway, a specially constructed
and insulated room with wine racks and wine cellar cooling systems, or
even a converted corner of the garage.
3. What material do you want for your wine rack?
- If you want a modern look, you may opt for a stainless steel wine rack.
- If you want the traditional look of wood, then you can choose from
inexpensive pine to more expensive oak, walnut, cherry, western red
cedar or mahogany.
- If you want novel styles and shapes then you may opt for wrought iron
which can be moulded into various shapes and powder-coated in various
colors to match your home décor.
4. What style do you want?
- Do you have enough space for a freestanding wine rack?
- Do you want your wine racks incorporated into fitted cupboards?
- Do you want them hanging or mounted to the wall if space is limited?
- Or do you want stackable wine racks that allow you to increase your storage space when you need it?
5. Is your wine rack sturdy, stable and strong enough to bear the
weight of your wine bottles? Is the wine rack made of durable and
attractive material such as Philippine mahogany? Does the wine rack
have full 13.5 inch-deep shelves for full bottle depth and added
stability? Does the manufacturer provide at least one year warranty?
6. Other important questions to ask would be:
- Do you have enough space not only to store your wine bottles on their
side but to be able to rotate them occasionally to preserve their
flavour?
- Does your wine rack have slightly wider openings allowing storage for
most Champagne and Burgundy style bottles, as well as standard size 750
ml bottles?
- Does it have angled front slats to avoid damage to labels and your hands?
- If you are buying a wine rack kit, are they pre-drilled and screw together using simple tools for easy assembly?
7. And last but not least what is your budget? Most wine rack stores -
whether online or brick and mortar- stock a range of wine racks to suit
all budget and tastes and some even include free shipping.
For less than $30, you can get a stackable metal wine rack with simple
lines that hold up to 4 bottles. Or for less than $200, you could get a
wooden wine rack in handsome mahogany, 6 columns wide and 9 rows high
that will hold 60 bottles of your favorite wines. Take your pick.
