1. These Diamond Cube wine racks.  You can stack them to fit your space perfectly, and the shape is so unique and cool.

2.  This Vinotheque Wine Credenza.  It’s a beautiful place to display your family photos, it’s a buffet table, and it’s top-of-the-line, climate-controlled wine cabinet.

3.  This 6-bottle Monterey WineKeeper system.  Ok, so you’d probably have to be a restaurant owner to need this model, but that doesn’t mean you can’t dream, right?  This system would mean that you could open multiple bottles at once for a tasting, and then keep them fresh for weeks. And we have the more reasonably-sized ones, too, if you just can’t see giving up your microwave for this baby.

4.  This VintageView Floor-to-Ceiling Wine Rack.  There’s something to be said for the modern touches in wine cellars, and it’s pretty cool to be able to display all your bottle labels.

5.  This Eurocave Performance 3-Temperature Wine Cabinet.  The king of all wine cabinets. Three temperature zones. No bottle need ever be improperly chilled again.

 Ideal wine storage conditions are a constant 55 degrees with a relative humidity about 70%, away for direct sunlight, heat and vibration.  When you consider a wine storage cabinet, my first recommendation: stay within your budget.  My second: consider the space or location available.  Wine cabinets come in all shapes and sizes, from 6 bottles to 600 so my last recommendation: don’t undersize. 

 When I began collecting, I made that error.  I filled a 56 bottle Avanti cabinet within 6 months.  After gaining some experience in the matter, a 220 bottle cabinet was the perfect size to fit my wine collecting habit.  Wine tasting and collecting can quickly become an addiction.  Allow yourself room to grow.

Location and available space are very important factors.  Wine cabinets and wine refrigerators come in all physical sizes but they have something in common: cooling.  There are front, side and rear venting cabinets designed to fit just about any space.  Make sure you consultant with a wine cabinet specialist to make sure the cooling system in the cabinet will work in your environment.  Not all cabinets can operate in a garage setting due to extreme summer temperatures.   Many wine cabinets can only operate with exterior temperatures less then 80 degrees.  A top venting wine cabinet will need about 17 inches of head room for air exchange.  Side and rear venting cabinets also need space to exchange air.  Consult an expert.   

 Keeping budget in mind (like all “appliances” or “furniture”) you can go affordable to top of the line.  There is a simple formula to consider: take the number of bottles the cabinet stores and multiply it by the average price per bottle you would store.  The more expensive your bottles, the more you want to protect that investment with the highest quality product available.   

 You may be at the beginning, middle or maxed out your collection.  Either way, make sure you consider budget, location and size when purchasing a wine cabinet.