Do you keep your wine in a cupboard in your kitchen? Wine bottles should be stored horizontally so that the wine prevents the cork from drying out. Wine racks are perfect for storing your wine bottles and are a stylish addition to any kitchen or bar.
As a cabinetmaker, I’m only going to talk about wooden wine racks, although there are several metal racks available. Wine racks can be as simple as a 5 bottle unit in an existing cabinet to a full climate controlled wine cellar that holds thousands.
A simple design is generally two horizontal boards parallel to each other with U-shaped cutouts to hold the bottles. These can be placed back in an open cabinet which is great decoration and storage. Another design is wall-mounted wine racks, which can have wine glass holders added to the bottom.
Freestanding wine racks usually contain several bottles, but they are not part of the cabinets. Hanging wine racks are beautiful, more common in wet bars, and often include wine glass holders underneath. Wine racks in climate-controlled wineries should be constructed of redwood or cedar wood to withstand temperature over the years.
The construction of wine racks can be done in many ways, from the parallel board design to the diamond box design. Another method is to build stairs with ¾ “x ¾” material for the rungs, these are placed side by side so that the bottles rest on two opposite rungs. Wine racks constructed in this way can hold hundreds of bottles.
If you are looking to purchase a wine rack for your home or bar, you can find thousands of different pre-made units online and in stores. However, if you want a custom wine rack built to fit your home perfectly, call your local cabinetmaker for design advice and a free estimate.