San Clemente Wine Cellar Project – Custom Built Wine Cellars

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The San Clemente wine cellar project was one of the more memorable jobs we were tasked with this year. This project gave us a lot of unique challenges that tested our knowledge on laying out a wine cellar design. Were we up to the task? Well, you be the judge of it by reading how we did so below.

This is one of the blueprints of the San Clemente Home Wine Cellar Project

A Home Wine Cellar Fit for San Clemente Living

Back in February 2015, we were contacted by a client who had recently purchased a home in the gorgeous seaside town of San Clemente. One of the “perks” that came with buying the home was a functional wine cellar. However, he was hesitating on using it for two reasons: one, the structure was woefully dated; and two, the cellar was already experiencing problems with insulation because of the single pane glass installed on the interior windows and the glass door.

The walls were stripped prior to renovating the old wine cellar

We then proceeded to seal the walls tightly with dual pane glass for both the interior windows and the wine cellar door.  It was easy enough to insulate the entire room since it is modestly spaced. However, the real challenge was thinking of a way to create an ideal refrigeration system that wouldn’t compromise the limited space inside the cellar.

A Standalone Wine Cellar Cooling Unit in Wine Guardian

Back then, wine cellar cooling systems had been designed with the intent of getting installed in large spaces. Obviously, this is getting to be quite impractical now; modern design sensibilities are now pointing the way to spaces being used in the most efficient way possible. Specifically, any homeowner nowadays should find a way to make use of space within his or her property without making it seem too “cluttered”. It certainly offers a challenge, but it can be done.

Thankfully, the Coastal Wine Cellars team found the right refrigeration system for the client’s purpose. We eventually decided that the right unit for this purpose was the Wine Guardian Ducted System. It is one of the more popular line of products from the Wine Guardian brand, and with good reason: everything about the unit—from its size to its versatility—just screams “modern”.

The engraving on the San Clemente home wine cellar

The Wine Guardian Ducted System houses an integrated humidification module that allows the client to easily control the temperature. Another feature is this standalone unit can be hidden inside the wine enclosure; it only measures up to 400 cubic feet, after all. Considering that the client has an 800-strong wine bottle collection, the system’s space-conserving feature has proven to be a definite advantage for the project.

One neat thing about this unit is that it can be easily installed, too. By simply putting up a grille on the inside wall of the cellar, the product can be connected to the room through the use of an insulated ductwork. In other words, not only is the Wine Guardian Ducted System relatively inconspicuous, but is also very quiet, when its settings are turned on full blast it only emits the most quiet of humming sounds.

The refurbished wine cellar door with the Wine Guardian thermostat on the right

Alder Wine Racks That Are to Die For

We then moved on to designing what is probably most important instrument of any home wine cellar: the wine racks themselves. We designed the wine racks, that were about to be installed, to hold all 856 bottles (and more) of the client’s collection; so it was important for the wine cellar to service both functional and aesthetic needs.

We were able to meet the client’s requests by advising him on choosing Alder wood as the primary material for his wine racks. He then decided on painting the racks with a classic chestnut stain, and we then finished it off with a clear lacquer finish.

After three months, the entire San Clemente wine cellar project was completed in April 2015. He was so proud of his new “baby” that he essentially allowed the Coastal Wine Cellars team to feature his home on our website. For more information, you can look at our custom wine cellar projects on Yorba Linda, California and Baltimore, Maryland.

The San Clemente Wine Cellar Project in its finished form