Wine Cabinets - What Features Should I Look For?

More and more wine lovers are deciding to store their wine in wine cabinets - they’re a reliable and effective way to store your wine, and can be perfect for ageing your valued wine collection.

When storing your wine, you should consider factors such as temperature, humidity, sunlight, and vibrations - especially when it comes to long-term storage. Wine coolers are great at storing your wine in the short term or for serving, but wine cabinets are your best bet if you’re storing your wine for longer periods of time, or for ageing your wine.

Quality wine cabinets can consider these key storage factors, but what features should you look for when browsing wine cabinets? Keep reading to find out some of the top features that you should look for in a wine cabinet, from temperature zones to the type of shelving.

Temperature Zones

When browsing for a quality wine cabinet, you may want to look for a wine cabinet with dual temperature zones or multiple temperature zones. However, depending on your needs, a single zone wine cabinet may do the trick.

As most wine cabinets are designed for long term wine storage, the majority of wine cabinets will have a single temperature zone, as in the long term, wine is best stored at one single temperature within the range of 11 and 14 degrees Celsius. Single zone wine cabinets maintain a single temperature throughout the cabinet, which allows you to mature your wine until it reaches its prime.

However, if you plan on storing some of your wine collection in the long term whilst also storing some bottles in the short term for serving, then a dual-zone wine cabinet may come in handy. Different wines are best served at different temperatures - and the general rule of thumb is that white and sparkling wines are best served at cooler temperatures whereas red wines are best served at warmer temperatures (e.g room temperature). Dual zone wine cabinets are ideal if you have a variety of types of wine, or you plan on using your wine cabinet for different functions.

Installation Type

Wine cabinets come in three different designs, each with their own installation requirements. When you’re choosing a wine cabinet, you want something that will effortlessly blend with your décor.

If you’re looking for a sleek and modern design, why not opt for a fully integrated wine cabinet or a built-in wine cabinet? This type of wine cabinet is designed to be installed into kitchen spaces such as under counters, inside alcoves, or inside kitchen cabinets. Be sure to map out the best place for your cabinet to be installed in advance so you definitely have the right amount of space to install it.

Freestanding wine cabinets have vents at the rear of the unit, so they need space around the rear and sides of the unit for airflow. This type of wine cabinet isn’t designed to be installed in small spaces, and isn’t suitable for under counter placement.

Shelving

Shelves are one of the most important things that you should consider when choosing the perfect wine cabinet for you and your wine collection. Most wine cabinets are designed to accommodate standard Bordeaux bottles, but you can find wine cabinets with shelving suitable for storing larger bottles such as Champagne bottles.

Most wine cabinets feature wooden shelves that allow you to store your wine horizontally. You can also find wine coolers that feature display shelves that allow you to store some bottles vertically. This allows you to display your favourite or most expensive bottles and showcasing the labels, and is especially useful for storing opened bottles of wine.

You can also find wine cabinets that feature extra shelves for displaying wine accessories such as decanters, glass holders, and other glassware. The number of shelves a wine cabinet has typically determines the capacity of the wine cabinet.

Lighting

Another key feature to look out for when purchasing a wine cabinet is lighting. Many wine cabinets will feature LED lighting that allows you to display your wine collection in all its glory.

When choosing a wine cooler with interior lighting, opt for LED lighting as other lights may warm up your wine collection and have a negative impact on the wine storage. You can find wine cabinets that feature glass doors, which is perfect for displaying your wine collection. You should be able to choose between a variety of colours, whether it be a bright white, blue, or orange.

Locks

If you have young children or pesky teenagers in your home, then you may want to consider purchasing a wine cabinet with a lock. Locks are a great way of protecting your wine collection from younger household members, and can also come in useful if you live in a house share, or if you’re placing your wine cabinet in a commercial environment.

Usually, wine cabinets with a lock will unlock with a key. If you lose your key, you could always contact the manufacturer for a replacement. However, more modern wine cabinets may unlock with a digital code, which is a great way of keeping your precious wine collection safe.

Odour Elimination

When you’re storing your wine for long periods of time, it’s important that you opt for features in a wine cabinet that makes wine storage easier. One of the most convenient features of wine cabinets is a charcoal filter.

Over time, the corks in your wine bottles may deteriorate and allow aromas and odours to flow in and out of the bottle, which can affect the quality of the wine inside.

Charcoal filters prevent bad odours from lingering inside the wine cabinet, ensuring that your wine remains in top condition. Be sure to check up on and change the coal filter on a regular basis to ensure that it’s still working effectively. You can also find wine cabinets with odour proof glass, which is a super convenient feature to look for when storing your wine collection in the long term.