Choosing the Perfect Wine Cooler for You

There are many variables that can make the purchase of a wine cooler seem daunting. As with any big purchase an informed decision is the best decision. It’s helpful to make a list of everything you would like in a wine cooler, but where do you begin?

Grab a glass of wine and let’s consider three things you need to think about to before you buy:

How much wine do you plan to store or have on-hand?

Many people enjoy a glass of wine or two with dinner, which means for an average household, a couple of wine bottles may be consumed each week. Entertaining also plays a factor in your choice of wine cooler.

If you entertain frequently, you may want to keep a larger inventory with different varieties on-hand. Saving your bottles of wine for special occasions? You may require a smaller cooler. Capacity is a major consideration when choosing a wine cooler.

Small Wine Coolers

On the small end of the spectrum are 6 – 25 bottle wine coolers, which give the casual wine-with-dinner drinker almost 1 – 2 weeks’ worth of wine storage at time. The Koldfront 12 Bottle Stainless Steel Slim-Fit Wine Cooler is a great example of a smaller scale wine refrigerator.

Large Wine Coolers

On the other end of the spectrum, are the 53+ bottle wine refrigerators, which are ideal for serious collectors or frequent entertainers that need storage space for extensive amounts of wine at a time. A great example of a large capacity wine cooler is the EdgeStar 121 Bottle Built-In Wine Cooler.

Everything In Between

And then, of course, is everything in between. There are a plethora of different wine refrigerator capacities, such as 26 – 37 bottle and 38 – 52 bottle units.

Just be sure to take into account how often you drink a bottle, how often you entertain guests, how large your existing collection currently is, and how much you’d like that collection to grow.

Where do you plan to put your wine cooler?

Most wine coolers can be divided into two categories that help you to decide on their placement: freestanding or built-in.

Because they vent from the back, a freestanding wine refrigerator requires 2 – 4” of clearance on each side. Otherwise, with nowhere to dissipate, the warm air will become trapped and cause the unit to overwork itself.

Notice how the EdgeStar 34 Bottle Dual Zone Wine Cooler does not have a visible vent. This unit is a freestanding wine cooler.

A built-in or undercounter wine refrigerator vents from the front of the unit. Because of this front ventilation, the unit can be placed in tight spaces and built-in flush-with-cabinetry. Notice the visible kick plate ventilation of the EdgeStar 36 Bottle Built-In Dual Zone French Door Wine Cooler.

This is the clearest indicator, other than mention in the name, that a unit is undercounter or built-in capable.

Do you prefer red or white wines or both?

There are some wine drinkers who only drink red or white wines and then there are those who love it all. If you only love one type of wine and only need a wine refrigerator set up to store that one type of wine, then you will most likely need a single zone wine cooler, such as the Koldfront 30 Bottle Freestanding Wine Cooler or the EdgeStar 53 Bottle Built-In Wine Cooler.

If you are in a house-divided or if you yourself like to drink all different types of wine, you should consider a dual zone wine refrigerator. Dual zone units allow you to have two independently controlled temperature zones housed within one unit. Just as single zone wine coolers do, dual zone units come in different capacities, sizes, and styles.

The EdgeStar 32 Bottle Dual Zone Stainless Steel Wine Cooler w/ French Doors and the Koldfront 32 Bottle Freestanding Dual Zone Wine Cooler are just two examples of your many dual zone options.

With all of the different factors to consider it is easy to get intimidated. We suggest that to make the process easier, simply focus on the answers to these three questions and you are sure to find the perfect wine refrigerator to meet your wine storing needs. A trip to our Learning Center or a call to a product expert at 877.607.2517 can help to answer some lingering questions, as well.

Happy shopping, my friends!