Most wine bottles have standard sizes and shapes though some come in exotic forms. When you plan your cellar, you need to consider the bottle sizes in your collection before you move on to the design stage. The last thing you want is to create a cellar that can’t house several bottles of your wine collection. Wine bottle sizes can be tricky to plan for, but if you know what kind of options are available to you, you can create a cellar that can easily accommodate all. Let’s take a look at how wine bottle sizes matter in effective cellar design.

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Different Sizes

Most people only think of one size when they picture wine bottles but you’ll be surprised by the variety available to you. Wine bottles from different locations and manufacturers come in different sizes. For example, bottles of Bordeaux are different from bottles of Californian wines.

There are 9 standard bottles sizes available in the market and they are Split, Half, Bottle, Magnum, Jeroboam, Methusela, Salmanazar, Balthazar, and Nabuchadnezzar. There are other, more obscure sizes like Cylinder, Chopine, Clavelin, etc, but they’re not used as often.

Wines that are the aged longer are often stored in bigger bottles while wines that are consumed quickly come in small bottles. Bigger bottles have thicker glass, so they can protect the wine from the elements better.

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Different Shapes

  • Wine bottles also come in different shapes and some of them can be quite odd so they won’t fit into the traditional racks.
  • Bordeaux bottles have straight sides, tall shoulders, and a deep punt but Burgundy bottles are a little wider and are shaped like a pear.
  • Some wine bottles are thinner and have longer necks while others are larger and more rounded.
  • Champagne bottles have a distinctive shape that’s unique to that drink. The bottles are shaped to enhance their beauty and still be sturdy enough to withstand pressure from within. There are some producers that use short and squat shapes and the prime example of that is Gardine.

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How to Choose?

Most collectors have wine preferences so some like white wine, while others prefer red wines. You might prefer French wines or may be an avid collector of Australian-made wines. You’ll have a general understanding of the bottle sizes and shapes based on your preference. Here are some things you should consider when you plan a cellar:

The Kind of Collection You Intend to Have

If you’re fond of rare, interesting looking wine bottles, you might want to be a little more flexible with your design plans. Standard sized racks won’t store large-form or oddly shaped bottles. Have some racks in your cellar that can accommodate bottles of different shapes and sizes easily.

How Much Space Do You Have

If you intend to collect large amounts of wine, you also need to consider just how much room you have in your cellar. Some rack designs are created with space optimisation in mind.

Position of the Bottles

This is also an important consideration. The liquid in the wine bottle must always stay in contact with the cork. You also should be able to identify the wine without having to remove them from the slots.

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Rack Options Available to You

There are different storage options available to you. You should consult with an expert wine cellar designer to know which of these options is ideal for you.

  • Individual Bottle Storage
  • Case Storage
  • Diamond Bin Storage
  • Tabletops

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For any information about cellaring wine and getting custom designed wine cellars installed, call Signature Cellars at this number 02 9340 7515 or use this contact form to get in touch with us.

Thanks for reading,
Neil Smallman
Signature Cellars
1300 570 636