New Wine Room

[Johnd]

Dunno why I expected to see a door with a "peep-hole" instead of huge glass???? LOL

Definitely more appropriate, that's just the door that was there when it was my exterior door. It's insulated, so it'll work for now, but I intend to replace it once the inside gets finished. I'd like to have a really nice wine room door, they're quite pricey, but it's towards the end of the want list at the moment.

 

[Floandgary]

Gotcha!!! Just poking fun!! Your project reflects insight and thorough planning as well as genuine craftsmanship. Congratulations! Oh BTW,,,, detailed plans/blueprints are available when and where???? LOL

 

[Johnd]

Gotcha!!! Just poking fun!! Your project reflects insight and thorough planning as well as genuine craftsmanship. Congratulations! Oh BTW,,,, detailed plans/blueprints are available when and where???? LOL

Feel free to comment!!! Your comment was also very true, the door doesn't fit the room!! Everyone's comments have challenged me and made the project better than if I was doing it in my own little bubble.

All of the elevations are in this thread a few pages back, but I'll get some detailed info on the rack and bottle holder spacing posted here pretty soon. I'm leaving in a couple of days on a cruise and trying to tie up a lot of loose ends, so if it doesn't happen before I leave, I promise to post a couple of dimensioned sketches when I return.

 

[mennyg19]

Gotcha!!! Just poking fun!! Your project reflects insight and thorough planning as well as genuine craftsmanship. Congratulations! Oh BTW,,,, detailed plans/blueprints are available when and where???? LOL

Check out the 60th post on this thread. John posted his blueprints.

 

[Scooter68]

Whew Quite an undertaking BUT - Is this guy on this forum:http://scribol.com/a/lifestyle/dude-excavated-hole-backyard-awesome/20/

This is the ultimate "Wine Forever" Wine cellar.
Gotta say some folks go all in for their projects.

 

[Johnd]

Better evening today than Friday, replaced the panel on the right with the new 3/8" panel and.........BINGO!!!!!

 

[Johnd]

So after that lesson, we were a little more conservative with the fit of the big diamond unit.......

 

[Johnd]

And we got the carboy storage into the room and set in place. All three new pieces need to be anchored and trimmed out, but damn they look good just being in there.

 

[user 32114]

whew you set a high bar to say the least, that's bitching nice for lack of better words,
Dawg

And we got the carboy storage into the room and set in place. All three new pieces need to be anchored and trimmed out, but damn they look good just being in there.

 

[user 32114]

does the carboy rack give you room to use a wine thief on your carboy,
Dawg

And we got the carboy storage into the room and set in place. All three new pieces need to be anchored and trimmed out, but damn they look good just being in there.

 

[cmsben61]

beautiful job!

 

[mennyg19]

Hi, im a newbie at winemaking so please excuse me if i sound clueless. I was just following this thread with alot of wishful thinking. I just have one question about wine cellars and rooms in general:
According to what I've read, wine bottles should be stored long term at a temp between 55 and 65 degrees. However, I've read that fermenting should be in the 70s. Yet I see alot of people with carboys and barrels in their wine rooms. Am I getting something wrong?

 

[ibglowin]

Am I getting something wrong?

The only time you want warm(er) temps is during fermentation and clearing. After that cooler is always better. You can ferment in a cold room by using a brew belt or heating pad to keep things at a warmer temp in the bucket while the room stays nice and cool.

 

[Johnd]

does the carboy rack give you room to use a wine thief on your carboy,
Dawg

Not a full sized one, but I've left enough space to be able to pull the airlock and bung out with no problem. I have two thieves, one will be cut down to be able to steal small samples for tasting without pulling the carboy from the rack.

There's also room to feed the tubing into the carboy from my super jet, so I'll be able to filter or rack with the pump from the one carboy to another. A slight tilt to the carboy will enable me to insert a racking cane for transfers as well. Truth be told, it's pretty simple to move the carboy a few feet to the work counter for any needed work, but the flexibility is nice.

 

[Johnd]

The only time you want warm(er) temps is during fermentation and clearing. After that cooler is always better. You can ferment in a cold room by using a brew belt or heating pad to keep things at a warmer temp in the bucket while the room stays nice and cool.

Only caveat I'd add to Mike's answer is that for white wines, lower temps in the 60 degree range can be beneficial, as it allows for better retention of the flavors and aromas in whites. Reds will still be fermented outside of the room. I do intend to ferment all whites in the room from here on out. When AF is over, they'll come out to warm up to room temp for KMS and degassing, and back into the cellar to sit in the carboy rack.

I won't move my barrels into the room until all of the woodwork is complete.

 

[user 32114]

thank you for the info, I'll be trying for no movement, left foot front half amputated, right leg amputated below the knee, back T2 thru T7 bulging (BULL) T12 crushed (HORSE) then top 7 inches of backbone grinded 5/16 wide to remove infection from spinal cord, but your cellar is way beyond A+,, UNTILL MY HEALTH WENT I did custom trim and custom laminates, so I can tell your system is a grade A+ system, but I think if I build a carboy rack I can slot in the center back about 6 inches or so, just half to run a header beam just back behind the slot , in my shape that little easy move does not exist for me anymore ,, but I have learned a lot from your pictures,, you have well earned the right of pride, my hats off to you,, GOD BLESS
keep your powder dry,
Dawg:: Richard,,,

Not a full sized one, but I've left enough space to be able to pull the airlock and bung out with no problem. I have two thieves, one will be cut down to be able to steal small samples for tasting without pulling the carboy from the rack.

There's also room to feed the tubing into the carboy from my super jet, so I'll be able to filter or rack with the pump from the one carboy to another. A slight tilt to the carboy will enable me to insert a racking cane for transfers as well. Truth be told, it's pretty simple to move the carboy a few feet to the work counter for any needed work, but the flexibility is nice.

 

[JohnT]

Yet I see alot of people with carboys and barrels in their wine rooms. Am I getting something wrong?

Most use barrels to age wine (although some like to barrel ferment).

 

[mennyg19]

Any updates?

 

[Johnd]

Any updates?

Sorry, just got back from a four day cruise today, been working in there since 9 AM. I did a lot. The only real woodwork left to do is the crown around the top, which I'll get tomorrow. Stone tops and back splashes scheduled for Wednesday, hope to then get the sink and disposal installed before the weekend.

Carboy storage installed and trimmed, been moving stuff in there last couple hours. Sorry bout the compressor in the pic, just didn't feel like moving it.

 

[Johnd]

Display area, cabinet doors installed, all trimmed out.