Wine Cooler Question

[jrohrer]

My rents got the wifey and I a 12 bottle wine cooler for christmas...but I can;t seem to remember which type of cooling agent took the moisture out of the air, and which was safe for aging sticks:scratchhe

it's a vinotemp 12 bottle thermo-electric cooler.

I don't want to use the whole thing for cigars, I was thinking using the bottom level to store a box or two...thus leaving room for 9-10 bottles of wine to keep cool.

is the thermo-electric good for keeping humidity or no??
I'm assuming heartfelt beads would be the way to go?? If not, please help with reco's/suggestions:thumbsup:

 

[AZsteelman]

you got it dude...the thermo electric is the trick...nice gift! the beads will take care of your needs.

 

[Boppa-Wasch]

Post a Pic when you get it set up!

 

[N2Advnture]

Yep, thermo electric is the way to go. :thumbsup:

If yours ends up anything like mine, there will eventually be no room for any wine

~Mark

 

[Jwrussell]

Yeah, good luck with that (wine). Mine has three bottles and it's really only to say to the wife, "See, there's wine in there." :rofl:

Seriously though, keeping it cool enough for wine might make it difficult to regulate the humidity, I don't know. I bought mine for cigars so I really don't worry about the wine.

 

[Kingston]

I store both wine and cigars in mine. It works just fine. I picked around 59-62 degrees for a happy medium for wine and cigars.

 

[Boppa-Wasch]

As Long a it's a red wine, room temp is good.55-65

 

[Greg]

55-65 room temp??......brrrrrrrr

 

[Boppa-Wasch]

The basement is more stable in temp then the upstairs living area!!!!!

 

[jrohrer]

thanks for the info gentlemen...I will definately post a pic when it's all set up.

would you guys recommend lining the bottom layer with spanish cedar...or will this not make a difference if their kept in the box?

 

[Ratbert]

While it's really not absolutely necessary to line it with the spanish cedar when you have your smokes in the boxes, I do think that it helps, as long as you're not losing valuable space.

I'm of the opinion that every piece that can absorb and retain moisture helps to maintain the humidity, especially since it can be prone to fluctuate in a wine cooler (at least until it finally stabilizes, which took mine about two weeks).

I have a 28 bottle cooler and have solid spanish cedar on the bottom and three shelves made out of slatted sc. I just like the idea of them being able to hold moisture and aid in regulation.

I picked up the spanish cedar on eBay quite easily...it was sold in 1/4" planks that were 2' x 3'.

 

[Boppa-Wasch]

Would the cedar have to be any specific thickness? Is there a minimum!

 

[Electric Sheep]

Personally, I wouldn't recommend mixing the wine and cigars in the same cooler...for that matter, I wouldn't recommend mixing red and white in the same cooler, either. The correct temp for red wine is a bit too low for cigars, and white wine is WAY to low. We actually have 3 wine coolers; one for white, one for red, and one for cigars. We run all three at thier own specific temperature.

Also you may find that, like most wine coolers, the WARMEST setting still is too cold for cigars. You will likely have to purchase an external beer brewing temp controller.

And btw, a 12-bottle thermoelectric wine cooler will comfortably hold 8 boxes of cigars, and depending on size & arrangement, you can possibly squeeze in 10 boxes.

 

[jrohrer]

Duane...great info thanks Bro

I was so excited to have the cooler I didn;t even think about the temperature range...what would you say the lowest possible temp should be to properly age a box or two (or eight or ten). I know 65 is optimal, but if that is not available...what would be acceptable?

 

[Boppa-Wasch]

Whats the preferred temp range for cigar storage????

 

[Electric Sheep]

I wouldn't go any lower than 60, and I'd make sure the humidity was rock-solid stable at 65%.

FYI, my cooler stays between 67 and 69 degrees, and 64% to 66% humidity. I have very, very little swing in mine...very solid!

 

[Boppa-Wasch]

Thanks!!

 

[jrohrer]

just checked...the cooler has a range from 50-66 degrees F programmable...so apparently temp is no longer a concern

now it's just a matter of stabalizing humidity and throwing a few boxes in!

 

[jrohrer]

you said I can get SC on ebay...but do you think SC liners from a few boxes would work...or should I go for something a little thicker?...I really want to preserve as much precious space as possible

 

[Electric Sheep]

You can order SC from www.rockler.com as well...and they may even have a retail location in your area---there's one just a couple miles from my house.

But IMHO, you don't NEED to line the entire thing in SC if you're storing the cigars in boxes. I do have SC shelves, and a couple of blocks of solid SC sitting around here and there, but no lining at all.