The "In-Home" Cellar - A Luxury We CAN All afford

Having recently been to a wine tasting party hosted by a colleague, I had the chance to mingle and chat with other "amateur" wine enthusiasts about wines, the industry and other related topics. While chatting within a group I was completely shocked to hear someone say "yeah - these wines are great but I'd hate to buy them and have them spoil at home..." he later went on to clarify that he felt he didn't have the appropriate storage space to keep a collection of good-to-decent wines in fear that the conditions would eventually spoil them over time.

The shocking part was that within the group of 6-7 people I was speaking with, 4-5 of them nodded and agreed with the comments! Right away, I thought to myself, if 4 out of 7 people think they are unable to purchase good wines due to storage, the wine industry is doing a poor job marketing their products.

Being in the industry, I thought I would do my duty ;) and try to improve on that statistic by shedding some light on how practically EVERY home owner can have adequate wine storage facilities at an affordable cost.

First the basics. In order to store wine, here are the IDEAL conditions:

1. Keep your wine bottles away from direct sunlight
2. Avoid large fluctuations in temperature and keep within 50ºF and 60ºF (10ºC - 15ºC).
3. Avoid extremely dry conditions and aim for a humidity level of 50% (Not too dry, not too humid)
4. Keep the area well ventilated.

All the above factors basically aid in allowing the wine bottle to age without any external factors like sunlight or odors hampering the aging process.

Lucky for us, these conditions can simply be duplicated in any type of home whether it be a condo, a home with or without a basement.

If you live in a house with a basement:
You've got it made! About 90% of homes with a basement usually come with a little cold room or storage build in to the foundation as displayed by the following video submitted by one of our customer. These types of room are ideal as they almost perfectly meet the requirements for an ideal wine storage setting.

If you live in a condo or home without a basement:
Pantries, closets, kitchen cabinets are all adequate places for wine storage. Ideally, you want to find a south-facing wall that doesn't get sun exposure and doesn't heat up throughout the day. Most homes are always somewhat humid (ranging between 30-40% depending where in the country you live) so you never have to worry about having the cork dry up on you. Here are some pictures of wines being stored in this fashion.

Wine-Wall.com Product Used: Exibit-6

Wine-Wall.com Product Used: Exibit-1 Wine Hooks

Wine-Wall.com Products Used: Exibit-1 & Exibit-3 Wine Racks---

Wine-Wall.com Management
info@wine-wall.com
www.wine-wall.com
Bookmark In del.icio.us

Re-designed Exibit-1 and Exibit-3/Exibit-6 Wine Rack Hooks

Wine-Wall is proud to announce that based on popular demand, we've re-designed our flagship products' look based on your comments and suggestions.

We've modified the wine rack hooks on the Exibit-1, Exbit-3 and Exibit-6 wine racks with a cleaner look, smoother edges and a more decorative look.

The wine rack hooks are currently in production and should be available for purchase in May of 2008!

---
Wine-Wall.com Management
info@wine-wall.com
www.wine-wall.com
Bookmark In del.icio.us

Wine And The Kitchen

Are you wondering what "wine" and "kitchen" have in common? Well, over the past few years, we've had a lot of customers ask us what's the best way to incorporate wine within a kitchen. The way the kitchen is evolving, it is becoming more of a social setting (where people hang out and socialize) as well as a functional setting (for cooking, preparing meals etc...). People are now making their kitchens bigger and also combining their dining room within the walls of the kitchen.

We thought it would be a great idea to post a blog about how you can turn your kitchen into a "wine-ready" kitchen to accommodate for easy socializing and convenient gourmet cooking!

Over the past few years we've received some fabulous pictures of customers decorating their kitchens with wine racks purchased at Wine-Wall.com. Not only is this a neat way to add a decorative piece to a room but it also serves 2 purposes. Since most people gather in the kitchen, you are able to create a conversation piece by displaying a neat wine rack and some wines mounted on the wine racks. Many wine racks now mount wines in a way that allows the labels to be displayed (such as our Wine Tube wine rack) rather than the pigeon hole wine racks which hides the wines. Although these wine racks are functional in a cellar setting, for decorative purposes, wine racks that display the bottle and labels nicely make for a much nicer presentation. Check out our wine racks section on our website (click here). Wine-Wall.com takes pride in only selling wine racks that showcase your wines!

The second purpose for ALWAYS having wine in the kitchen is because wines make a great cooking ingredient. I won't go into any recipes (I'm sure Google can help with that!) but will tell you some basics that will turn your mac'n'cheese cooking skills into gourmet chef-like skills!

As I'm sure you've heard in wine reviews, articles and other wine books, wines can be sweet, dry, fruity, nutty and a multitude of other flavors. When cooking consider these flavors and integrate them within the recipe. Instead of putting sugar, try putting a cup of a sweet fruity wine like a Merlot or a Port or a Sherry. One of my favorite recipes is Chicken with Sherry (there's your Google search terms!!) where the sherry is reduced to a syrup like consistency and then glazed on a chicken and roasted. Reductions help intensify the flavors of wine and make great sauces or glazes.

All this being said, you really can't get motivated until you try it and you really won't try it unless a bottle of wine is staring you in the face as you decide what's for dinner tonight or what can I serve my guests coming over!?

So pick a spot in your kitchen, mount a wine rack, fill it with wines and voila! For under $100 bucks you've just become a better cook, an innovative interior decorator and a socialite!

---
Wine-Wall.com Management
info@wine-wall.com
www.wine-wall.com
Bookmark In del.icio.us

Holiday Drinking & Driving: Some Tips For Hosts

Once again the holidays are upon us and unfortunately a statistic always creeps up around this time of year - that of accidents caused due to drinking and driving. The surprising thing is that many of these accidents and even deaths can easily be prevented with some simple preparation and a product that Wine-Wall.com is always glad to sell during the holiday season - The "Arrive Alive Breath Tester."

This unique product is a single-use, disposable breath tester that calculates the blood alcohol level in your system. You simply blow in the bag, wait a few minutes and the indicator clearly shows you if you are over or under the legal blood alcohol level. This product is no gimmick and is certified by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), used roadside by police throughout the world and especially used by responsible adults throughout America who host parties, and events for their friends and families.

To view and order the "Arrive Alive Breath Tester" visit our website at www.Wine-Wall.com or click here to go directly to the product page.

Also, remember these tips when hosting a party or an event over the holidays:

1. Always offer non-alcoholic drinks as an alternative
2. Serve alcoholic drinks yourself so you know how many drinks each individual has had.
3. Have plenty of food available and remember that salty snacks cause people to drink more!!
4. Have plenty of cash available for cab fare and be prepared to have some overnight guests
5. As people arrive, remind them there will be alcohol served and they should be prepared to take a cab home or use a designated driver - this can also be done ahead of time on the invitation or when you mention the event to your friends and family.
6. Stop serving alcohol a few hours before the end of the party. At this point you can offer non-alcoholic drinks and give your guests a few hours to sober up.
7. Try not to drink too much yourself. This will allow you to be aware of your guests and to judge the level of intoxication more effectively. If you can't judge whether someone is intoxicated easily YOU ARE INTOXICATED!

Remember that you are legally liable for damages caused to your guests while in your home and even after they've left.

Have a safe and happy holiday season from Wine-Wall.com

---
Wine-Wall.com Management
info@wine-wall.com
www.wine-wall.com
Bookmark In del.icio.us

Converting A Basement Wall Into A "Wine-Wall"

Over the past few years, we've had many customers ask us what's the best way to create a long term wine storage area within their homes. Since establishing a proper wine cellar or wine room in a home can be quite the costly home renovation project, this next solution is one that will meet anyone's wine decorating budget and still achieve similar results.

The products featured here are available at www.Wine-Wall.com . The specific product used here was the Exibit-6 wine rack. However, depending on your budget and style, many other wine racks can be used for this purpose.

Step 1 - Choose Your Wall

Choose a wall in your basement. Preferably one that isn't high traffic, doesn't get much light and isn't close to any heat source (for example: furnace, washer/dryer). In most parts of the world, a south facing wall is usually the best choice as the sun never directly hits that wall and is usually the coldest wall in the home.

Step 2 - Smooth Out Any Imperfections

Most concrete walls have imperfections, dents and holes. A good hammer and some poly fill should smooth out the wall and get it ready for the next step. You're not really looking for perfection here (unless you are a perfectionist!!) simply some cosmetic changes to get rid of the cold looking basement wall.

Step 3 - Paint It

Once the wall is smooth, choose a paint, design pattern or any other decorating style you might like to have on your wine wall. I simply chose to paint the wall white. A few design tips: Using stencils or those fancy "wall tatoos"that are now en vogue are perfect ways to personalize and decorate your "Wine Wall"

Step 4 - Mount Your Wine Racks

I used a cement bit on a hammer drill, pre-drilled the holes and inserted a plug. Then, lining up the wine rack, I mounted them with 2" drywall screws that fit into the plug. Ideally you want to make sure the wine rack is well secured since it will be holding full wine bottles. (on average, a wine bottle weighs 3-4 pounds!)

---
Wine-Wall.com Management
info@wine-wall.com
www.wine-wall.com
Bookmark In del.icio.us