How To Build A Mini Wine Cellar
When you are passionate about wine you start to collect it … and when you begin collecting it you need a place to store your wine collection.
A closet can readily be converted into a mini wine cellar to store a growing wine collection.
Before you begin converting your closet into a wine cellar consider the position of the closet relative to the rest of the house.
Try not to convert a closet against an outside wall into a wine cellar. The outer walls of your home can be subject to wide seasonal temperature fluctuations in temperature. Ideally, choose an internal closet where your wine will be able to be stored at a more constant temperature.
The speed and degree of any temperature changes are critical in successfully storing and aging wine. A gradual change of a few degrees between from winter to summer won’t matter. A similar change each day will certainly cause harm to your wines by ageing them too quickly.
The most important rule when you are storing your wine is to avoid wide fluctuations in temperature. Damage of this type will be evident immediately from the stickiness that often forms around the capsule. Over time, the continued expansion then contraction of the wine will damage the integrity of the cork. It’s just like having the cork removed and replaced every day. When this occurs, tiny quantities of wine may be pushed out along the edge of the cork – between the cork and the neck of the bottle – allowing air to seep back in. Once the air comes into contact with your wine the process of oxidation begins and your wine will be ruined.
At 55º to 58ºF the wine will age gracefully, enabling it to fully develop as the winemaker intended. Higher temperatures will age wine more rapidly and cooler temperatures will slow down the ageing process. The damage done to your wine will be irreversible if it is stored at a temperature above 82ºF for even a month.
The most difficult part of creating a mini wine cellar in a closet can be finding other places to store the original contents of the closet! Don’t hesitate … remove all the present contents (move them elsewhere / give away / auction them) and start out with an empty closet!
Purchase inexpensive wine racks from an online retailer, hardware store or storage shop and you’ll have a simple but effective mini wine cellar.
Wine rack designs vary greatly in bottle density; price variations have more to do with the aesthetic appeal of the racks than their efficiency.
Individual racks makes it easy to select bottles. If you place racks against only one wall of the closet you may still have space available on the floor or shelves to store wines purchased by the case.
