What You Need For Your Own Do IT Yourself DIY Wine Cellar

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Most people think a wine cellar is only for the very rich and for upscale restaurants and maybe it used to be like that 50 years ago but now a days? There are many wine enthusiast that are building their own DIY wine cellar these days and those DIY wine cellar are nothing like you might think.

You do not need a basement in order to create a DIY wine cellar, just an enclosed space that will get some air circulation as well as some steady temperature and humidity control. A nook in your dining room, an unused closet or even the kitchen pantry could be transformed into a working DIY wine cellar to house your wine collection.

You need to create a stable temperature and a good humidity control

For wine to be at its best, it must be stored at a stable temperature in the dark without movement and be well-ventilated with a controlled humidity. Your DIY wine cellar area, whether it is a closet or something else requires insulation to help provide those controlled conditions. If you are not ready to dig a deep dark hole in the ground for steady storage conditions, you need to look into using polystyrene as the basis for the insulation inside your cellar walls.

Wines are best when stored in a wine cellar at a steady temperature of 49-50 Â°F because warmer temperatures of 75 Â°F and over age them rapidly and they lose flavor. Each type of wine will age at different rates so it is important that you create a designated dark, temperature controlled DIY wine cellar until consumption. The use of a hygrothermometer which measures temperature as well as the moisture in the air (humidity) can help you maintain a constant environment.

The hygrothermometer, as mentioned above, measures the water vapor in the air or humidity and 70% is the optimal goal for a humidity reading. When the atmosphere in your DIY wine cellar is too dry, the cork seal of the bottle shrinks a bit allowing air to move into the bottle, altering the flavor. When humidity in your DIY wine cellar is too high, your wine will continue to age wonderfully but you can expect mold to grow on the wine bottle label which decreases its value and attractiveness.

Keep it in the dark

Your DIY wine cellar should be dark, only lit when you must retrieve a bottle for your enjoyment, because light will cause your wine to age far too early. Dark colored bottles are best because they let in less light than clear bottles but ensuring the absence of light will take care of any aging problems. It is important also that no ultraviolet light be in your DIY wine cellar as it can cause your wine to break down the organic components which are what make the wine taste and smell good.

Horizontal Position

You also need to store your wines in the right position. The wine should be in contact with the cork in order to stop it from drying out. Because when the cork gets dry it shrinks a little bit and air can get into the bottle, this will degrade your wine. Your DIY wine cellar should be made with the possibility to store the wine horizontally with labels face up allows your wine to age more beautifully.

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