Basic rules
Simply put, you want a place that has consistent cool temperature—in a perfect world that’s 14°C. You don’t want any sunlight to hit the wine. You want wine in a cool, dark place. You ideally want it to be kept on its side as well as having the wine in a remote enough place so it doesn't get jostled or moved around a lot.Just like temperature, you need to monitor the room’s humidity at different times of the day and year so invest in a hygrometer. If the room is too humid, you might want to think about buying a small dehumidifier that allows you to control the percentage in the room. Another trick if you’re struggling with an area that’s too dry is to spread sand on the floor and regularly sprinkle it with water to increase the level of humidity.
Preferably use basement if available to keep the wine cool
If there is a cool basement space you can trust without light, you can definitely keep wine at a fairly good temperature throughout the entire year. Sure, there are times in summer you may want to move it into an air-conditioned apartment. When wine gets to a certain temperature, it can accelerate the aging process. If you keep your home at a cold temperature all the time, around, like, 16°, you can keep your wine in a dark room or in the bottom of a closet. The cooler you can keep it, the better.
Keep the air flowing
Make sure that wherever you store your collection there is proper ventilation. Both strong and stale smells can affect the flavor of your wine so add a vent (if there isn’t one already) in the room to keep the air circulating
What's more creative than refurbishing old furniture
If you can work within those guidelines set before (cool space, on the side, little movement), you can put wine in anything. You can use cheap, stacked cinder blocks. You can use old furniture. I’ve done it before. I’ve used a chest of drawers. That looks great. The best and cheapest is to get Metro Shelving. It’s all-purpose, cheap metal shelving. You can buy as many shelves as you want. The bottles can slide in easily.
Scratch-and-Dent Options
Scratch-and-dent wine coolers are similar to open-box units in that they were previously owned by someone else, but in this case they might show a bit of wear and tear. The extent of the scratches and dents can vary greatly, but the appliance operates just fine. These units are often even cheaper than the open-box appliances, seeing as they don’t look quite as aesthetically pleasing as you might want. These appliances are a great way to incorporate a wine refrigerator into your wine cellar without going over budget.
Set your priorities - Not all wines are meant for cellaring
There are many wines you want to drink fresh. There are people who like wines in their youth, and don’t want wine with five to 10 years of age. If you keep your home at a good temperature and keep wine away from sunlight, you can keep it on a small rack, but it depends on your long-term goals.
