What are the special benefits of an N’Finity unit?

As a restaurateur, wine retailer or wine maker you will be able to provide proper and convenient wine service for your customers with a unit designed to fit your needs.

•    The N’finity cellars allow easy access to wines by simply sliding out one of the many included rolling shelves to find a customer’s selection
•    The front vented technology enables you to place the unit in a corner of the restaurant, on your selling floor or in any storage room without occupying important floor space.
•    Smooth, elegant, blue interior lighting will add to the ambiance of your space, rather than taking away from it.
•    Reversible doors mean you’ll find an N’Finity unit that is perfect for your space
•    Two-zone digital temperature control gives you flexibility with storage and service temperatures for both reds and whites.

About 2 weeks ago, a client of mine in the NY metropolitan area was handling a major corporate event party. Unfortunately, they ran out of Chardonnay within the first hour of the event! Because of the dual temperature zones, the sommelier was able to re-stock the N’Finity’s top (cooler) compartment and chill the whites down to 44 degrees, making them ready-to-serve by the time the main course was out. A major fiasco avoided! The flexibility this unit has brought to that establishment has been huge.

Myself and the team are so happy to have this custom-built, dream wine service unit to offer, with many happy customers already putting them to great use. Any questions? Give us a call at 800.377.3330

Our customer, Neal, took advantage of our Designer Series Kits, giving his cellar a personal touch with the efficiency of kit racking.

Neal had this to say about his new cellar:

“My basement has changed since installing the wine cellar.  It has gone from a place of storage to an oasis of tranquility you enter to get away from the crap stored in a basement.  The terra cotta colors matching the tiles of the floor give a clean yet rustic look.  the racking makes it fun to work on filling it with frequent runs to the wine store or vineyards.  Organizing it is a joy also,  with its various compartments for cases or single slots for more individual bottle purchases.”

If you are interested in building a cellar like this or of a different style, simply call us at 800.377.3330 and one of our wine storage consultants will be happy to help!

Collecting wine doesn’t sound difficult, but I’ve made plenty of boneheaded decisions over the past 20-plus years. Just when I think I’ve started to figure it out, I realize my cellar is so far from where I want it to be that I want to give up and send it all off to auction. Here are some of the seemingly contradictory things I’ve learned along the way.
Good storage conditions are vital. When I first started collecting wine, I lived in a garden apartment with basement storage. Then I lived in a first-floor apartment and kept my wine in an interior closet or my parents’ basement. I have only a few bottles left from those early days, but when I open one up, it is invariably disappointing. In retrospect, I wasted several hundred dollars on Bordeaux, not to mention all of the costs I’ve incurred holding it since then. If you can’t provide proper storage, don’t buy the wine.

Ideal storage conditions aren’t necessary. Although the wines I purchased back in the 1980s haven’t held up, by the early 1990s I had a house with a cellar that was better suited to storing wine. In the deepest, darkest corner, away from the furnace and hot-water heater, I framed out a small space and thoroughly insulated it. Wines that I stored in this passive cellar continue to show well. Even though the temperatures ranged from approximately 50–65 degrees over the course of the year, they changed slowly, and the wines evolved harmoniously. For the past 10 years, my wines have been stored at 55 degrees or less, and their development has slowed even further—I’ve sometimes been surprised to find a wine relatively unevolved.

Buy wines that will age. Don’t stock the cellar with wines that have short life spans. Stick to wines with track records for aging: Bordeaux, Burgundy, Rhône, Barolo, vintage Port and (some) California Cabernets. Feel free to gamble around the fringes with new wine regions or styles—New Zealand Pinot Noir, South African reds—but understand that those are high-risk bottles that may not always pan out. Having tried a few, I know that not every hot new California Chardonnay is the next Corton-Charlemagne, nor have my Long Island Merlots aged like top Pomerols.

Buy wines that you like. On the other hand, there’s no point in buying wines that will age if you don’t like them. The problem with buying what you like is that if you are anything like me, your tastes will change over time. So buy what you like—but do so judiciously. I find that I am drinking through wines acquired during my “California phase” as quickly as I can, and am now cellaring more wines from France, Germany and Italy. Still, be careful….

Don’t buy too much of a particular wine or wine style. Not only may your tastes change, wines do not age indefinitely. During the late ’90s, I really enjoyed the Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays coming from cool regions of Sonoma, but I overbought. Now I’m stuck with some tired, butterscotchy Chards and $50 Pinots good only for making expensive coq au vin.

Buy enough of a wine so you can follow its evolution. The British authors I found myself reading when I was just getting into collecting were big proponents of this, sometimes even advocating the purchase of twice what you wanted, so you could send half to auction and drink the remaining wine “for free.” A fine idea, if you can be sure the wine will appreciate enough in value to make this work, and that you’ll enjoy drinking the same wine repeatedly over the years. It’s true that I’ve learned a lot by following the evolution of my various ’86 Bordeaux, but you needn’t buy case lots to accomplish this. Three or six bottles will suffice.

Don’t assume that only expensive wines age well. The days of those ’86 Bordeaux I purchased on release for under $15 per bottle may be over, but savvy shoppers can still find ageworthy wines for under $40. Look to some of the best cru bourgeois from top vintages, such as 2005, for wines that will improve up to 10 or 15 years.

Buy only from the best vintages. Conventional wisdom is that these are the wines that will age the best and the longest, and may increase in value the most. Passing on buying 1990 Bordeaux futures because they looked expensive coming after the 1989s has to rank as one of my bigger blunders. Does anyone who has tasted them side by side prefer the ’89 Leoville Barton to the ’90? Guess which one I have. That said, see the next piece of advice.

There’s always another vintage. Unless you are buying to commemorate a specific year, don’t get hung up on any “vintage of the century” hype. So despite my regret for not having bought 1990 Bordeaux, it’s not as if other worthwhile years didn’t come along. The ’95s and ’96s are doing fine, as are the ’98s from the Right Bank. More recently, the hype over the 2000s was memorable, but the 2005s are super wines, too. Even the ’06 and ’08 vintages offer some nice surprises. In warm regions, vintage choice tends to be less important, so if you miss out one year, don’t worry; another will be along in 12 short months.

Follow these simple rules, and soon you’ll have a cellar like a pro.

For more articles from Wine Enthusiast magazine visit WineMag.com

1. Change the charcoal filters annually. This filter is located on the back wall in the interior upper left of the cabinet and regulates any dust or odor from entering the cabinet.  To replace this carbon filter, simply pop it out w/ your fingers or a butter knife and insert the new filter.  If not done routinely, frost or ice build up may occur on the back walls, along with a greater fluctuation in temperature. It is crucial to replace the filters as we don’t want to interrupt the natural occurrence inside of your Eurocave.  Eurocave charcoal filters can be purchased from Wine Enthusiast.  They are individually wrapped and have an unlimited shelf life if unopened.  I recommend purchasing a 4-pack, which essentially gives you one filter for free.

2. Dust the condenser every 6 months. The condenser is the “wire racks” located on the back of the unit.

3. If needed, you also can carry out a complete cleaning of your Eurocave Cabinet.  If you’ve neglected to do the above steps you may need to conduct a full cleaning. Simply unload your Eurocave and use water and a gentle cleaning agent.

Any questions? Call us at 800.377.3330

Before I could begin on a wine cellar design for Mr. Lippert we had to address a problem: his old cellar had mold.  See, Mr. Lippert already had a wine cellar in the room but the previous installer didn’t protect the walls. This caused moisture to build up in the walls, creating a mold problem. What good would a beautiful custom wine cellar be if the room was not built out properly to be a wine cellar?  We had to remedy the problem and prep the walls, before doing anything else. This is done by taking the existing walls down, placing vapor barrier (6- mil polyethylene plastic) in between the studs, rigid foam insulation, and covering the interior walls with a moisture-resistant drywall.  With the mold issue resolved, we were ready for the fun part!

Mr. Lippert wanted a wine cellar to accommodate approximately 3000 to 4000 bottles.  The majority of his storage needs consisted of traditional Bordeaux bottles, some magnums, splits(1/2 size wine bottles), and case storage.  As you enter the wine cellar a portion of the exterior walls are glass.  I felt this would be a great opportunity to place a focal point of the cellar on the opposing wall.  I decided to incorporate an archway on this wall with individual racking to the left and right of the archway.  The individual racking also consisted of high reveal displays (this allows full visibility of your finest wines with no obstructions) with L.E.D lighting (light emitting diodes-gives off very low heat and has low voltage) for a nice accent. Below the archway included both diamond bin and diamond cube storage.  The diamond racks look great and are excellent for accommodating larger format bottles.  I also incorporated double deep (gives you twice the amount of storage of single deep) individual racks with double deep case storage below in order to get Mr. Lippert’s bottle capacity up towards where he wanted it to be.

We put the finishing touches on Mr. Lippert’s wine cellar by customizing a wine storage table in the center of the wine cellar.  This table is a great area to open bottles, pour wine, and enjoy company within the cellar! Below the table top is specific storage for cases, double magnums, magnums, and splits.

All racking was completed in top of the line all-heart redwood with a natural finish.  The wine cellar is climate controlled by a split wine cooling system (wall mounted evaporator connected to an outdoor condenser for quiet operation.)

To ensure the installation went smoothly we called on our master wine cellar builder-Mr. John Seitz to assemble the custom racking.  Needless to say, a job well done.

Good communication is essential when designing a custom wine cellar.  By addressing his specific wine cellar needs combined with style and class we created the wine cellar of Mr. Lippert’s dreams.

If you’d like to discover how to build the wine cellar of your dreams, Contact a Wine Enthusiast Cellar Consultant Today for a FREE Wine Storage Consultation – Call 800.377.3330

In either case, our wine storage specialists are here to help you make the correct decision for all of your storage needs. If you have any further questions or are ready to make a wine cellar purchase, give us a call at 800.377.3330

As a Wine Cellar Design Specialist, I’m often asked: “where do you start?” The task of planning and building a wine cellar can sound difficult, but we do our best to make the process simple. Of the utmost importance is of course a customer’s satisfaction with the end result. One of my recent clients, the Santos family, was so happy that they sent photos of our design work. The key is open communication and listening to your customers needs.  Before doing anything, we discussed their wine cellar dreams, so that I could tailor the cellar to meet them.

It can begin with a simple hand sketch showing the dimensions of the proposed space.  This is the point where I would spend some time reviewing goals and needs such as bottle count, storage of large formatted bottles, and determining if the wine cellar is for function or a showpiece.

Our goal for the Santoses was to build a wine cellar that would exceed 1000 bottles.  In the cellar, they were looking to create an atmosphere surrounding their showcase cellar. The outside room is detailed with winemaking equipment, a bar and a center dining table. Leading to the entrance, we have vintage oak barrel ends near their custom etched glass door.  We soffited around the ceiling so we could install elevated, raised panels. We created space for bulk storage, utilizing diamond bins and cubes.  These areas are great for large format bottles and cases of the same varietal.  In creating a showcase cellar, we had to address the need for a quiet, efficient, long lasting commercial-grade cooling system.

In addition, the family didn’t want to see any ductwork running throughout their cellar and their adjacent entertaining room, so we opted for a ductless split system where we have a remote condenser and a wall-mounted evaporator that was concealed within the racking. Having a fully customized door with an etched logo that matched the wine cellar racks really tied the two spaces together and created one magnificent room. To enhance their cellar even further, we dipped and hand-rubbed their racks with a beautiful light Danish stain that brought out the beauty of the All Heart Redwood color and grain.  We hid the evaporator from our custom cooling system with a latticed grill that was incorporated within the racking.  There was custom art displaying in their center arch and lead lights that would illuminate throughout the high reveal portions of the racking.

It was satisfying to see the end result and to learn how pleased the Santos family was with our work. They were a real pleasure and I love being a part of the enjoyment we all share in everything wine!  If you would like a FREE custom wine cellar consultation, call us at  800.377.3330

Here’s why:

• Climate control: both temperature and humidity, is far superior to any other free-standing wine cellar made.
• They’re quiet, vibration free
• They block out all harmful light, and
• They last two to three times longer than most other units!

If you are looking for a 200+ bottle free-standing unit, EuroCave has two distinct lines.

So, a question I am asked quite often is, “What is the difference between Comfort and Performance?” Allow me to shed some light on that comparison.

Firstly, How Are They Alike?
All EuroCaves, including both the Performance & Comfort lines, have cooling and heating coils in all 3 walls which create an extremely tight temperature gradient. They both also have an airflow system in the back that allows air to be brought in from the outside. When that outside air mixes with the inside air, it creates condensation that sticks to the interior aluminum walls, maintaining the humidity. And, all Comforts and Performance units have a digital temperature control and read out.

Now, How Are They Different?
Digital Temperature Controls: While both have a digital temperature control and read- out, the Performance also comes standard with a hygrometer, alarm system and interior lighting located in its sophisticated control board. The alarm monitors the temperature, humidity, door, and charcoal filter.

Bottle Capacities: Both units can hold between 160-230 bottles depending on how the shelving is set up, and have the exact same dimensions. The Performance Series is also available in a smaller under-counter fingerprint that holds up to 54 bottles, and a larger built-in series that can hold up to 165 bottles.

Temperature-Zones & Built-In Capabilities: The Comfort unit only comes in a 1 temperature zone option and in a black finish. The Performance can be purchased in 1,2, or 3 temperature zone options, and can be ordered in custom finishes including Stainless Steel and in the Elite option, which encloses the unit in solid wood cabinetry. The Performance is available as a built-in cellar, as a front-vented unit to fit underneath a kitchen counter or build into cabinetry, while the Comfort is only available as a free-standing unit.

Ambient Temperatures: The Performance can be set at higher and lower temperatures than the Comfort, and can also withstand higher and lower surrounding ambient temperatures thanks to the Extreme Cooling upgrade that comes standard on the unit. The EuroCave wine cellar is the only wine cellar we would recommend for a garage, especially for those who live in the nation’s warmest or coldest climates.

Lava Rocks: The Performance also has a basket of lava rocks and interior fan that allow you to manipulate the humidity in the cabinet. The alarm will let you know when the humidity has gone too low. The Comfort will simply maintain the humidity.

So, Which Unit Is Right For You?
That will depend on a lot of factors. The bottom line is there is no right or wrong way to go. It all depends upon your wants and needs as a wine drinker and collector. Wine Enthusiast wine storage consultants are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to help make your EuroCave buying decision a pleasurable one. Either way, as long as you are getting a Eurocave, you are getting our top-of-the-line wine cellar that you can be confident will store your wine properly for years to come.

Regardless if you are a novice just starting your collection, or an experienced wine connoisseur that has had thousands of bottles stored for decades, there are 4 basic reasons why anyone who enjoys having wine in their home should have some form of proper wine storage. We call them the 4 P’s:

PLEASURE – This is the main reason why any of us started getting interested in wine in the first place. Think of the wonderful aromas and bouquet that emanate from that ripe Napa Cabernet, or the layered complexity of that vintage Bordeaux that is just at its peak. Or the swirling of that delicate Pinot Noir in its glass that can be absolutely mesmerizing. The memories and emotions that are elicited by that certain wine that remind you of a wonderful experience. These pleasures are why wine drinkers are so enthralled and passionate about wine in general. Without the proper storage, these things may never occur. A bottle that should be at its peak can turn sour, resulting in huge disappointment.

PROTECTION – To be able to enjoy the security of knowing that your wines are stored in a climate (both temperature and humidity) controlled environment, so they can mature to their peak of perfection. The same way you would want to protect anything that needs to be for future enjoyment, wine is no different. If neglected and unprotected, the chances are it will lead to a disappointing experience instead of the memorable one you anticipate.

PROFIT – Just as you would take the proper steps to help your assets grow, the same is true for your “liquid” assets. In this day and age, selling older vintage wines, wine futures, etc. is a huge business. If you are in the business of selling off parts of your collection, buyers want to know that they are purchasing from a seller who has had their wine stored properly. Not only will your wines increase in monetary value, but in enjoyment value as well. The flavors, aromas, and color nuances are all significantly improved when stored in the proper climate.

PRIDE – Whether opening a single bottle for dinner or hosting a wine tasting for a group of friends, the display of your fine wine collection is a reflection of your good taste. Whether it is a small cabinet in your dining room, or a large custom cellar in your basement, your wine cellar is a part of your home. Your friends and family will marvel in seeing how you have incorporated your passion as part of your everyday life. When you take pride in your collection, and share that pride with those close to you, it makes for memorable occasions which is what the enjoyment of wine is all about.

If you have any questions about putting a wine cellar in your home, feel free to contact our wine storage consultants at 800.377.3330

1. Temperature Variations. The cellar room I was working in had a EuroCave INOA cooling unit to keep it at the perfect 55 degrees. (Anywhere between 50 and 57 is fine). This temperature prevented the wines from overheating or chilling, which would force them to either oxidize or freeze the aging process. The temperature must stay consistent. Wines in oscillating temperatures and changing environments can easily turn bad. Steady temperature is #1 when it comes to the rules for cellaring.

2. Light. Having a dark cellar is extremely necessary. UV rays can easily damage wine by penetrating the glass. The wine cellar room I worked in was pitch black with the lights turned out in the basement. Ideal for keeping wines for long periods of time.

3. Low Humidity. The corks, which are one of the key factors in protecting the wine, need a balance in humidity. A dry cork will crumble or allow air to enter the bottle. A custom wine built cellar or a free standing Eurocave will keep the humidity at a perfect level all the time.

4. Vibration. Last but certainly not least, stillness is essential in allowing wines to age well and continue to drink beautifully. Excessive vibration can generate unneeded heat that causes corks to shift.

The original wine cellars were actually caves. Cave is even the French word for wine cellar. So if you think about the environment of a cave: cold, dark, still and slightly humid you’ll understand how to store wine optimally. A EuroCave or a custom built cellar is ideal for protecting your wine against the enemies and keeping your wine happy, for the long term.

How do you protect your wine against the enemies? Leave us a comment, and let us know!

Call 800.377.3330 for a Free Wine Storage Consultation.