Avenue Vine

Originally, for me, it was the need to move the family collection someplace safe until re-settlement and other arrangements could be made. And of late I needed a place close by for a short tern solution to deal with what else--a few bottles of wine. Cases and pieces were due to arrive over the next few weeks and I needed a place to stash them until I made time to integrate my storage schemas. The at-home was full and my long term storage is a two hundred mile round trip.

Ever since I was a child I can remember going down to the locker with my father to either add or remove game or different meats from long term freezing. The lockers were an extension off the back of a large ice company in my home town.

I remember once and a while on hot days in the summer there would be this big pile of heavy snow piled to one side of the steps leading up to the locker entrance. While Dad was inside taking care of the meat, I’d slide down that snow mountain getting my butt all soaking wet–those were the days!

Between the steps and entrance door and the freezer lockers, there were two smaller rooms. Each room being separated by huge thick doors and those loud clanking pull type handles.

The first was ringed with six by eight feet compartments separated by nothing more than good ole’ chicken wire. This was the cool room where different business and people stored wines, liquor, beer and various other stuffs. The middle locker was way cooler than the first, but still not freezing, where sides of beef and venison were hung for aging–each of those compartments were of various sizes, still walled and gated with chicken wire, though. A different time in a small town where everybody knew everybody else–most didn’t even have lock on them. You just knew what was who’s!

So for me thoughts of using “offsite storage” come quite naturally, offsite storage for wine, meat and too much junk for the front closet or the garage is somewhat secondary--although today locks and security are foremost in most of our minds.

For many the reason is simply limited space at home and therefore off site storage is a must. The collection has out grown the home’s spacial allotment.

Let’s see why others might, or might not consider offsite storage:

Nigel Tufnel: said “I know for me, out of site out of mind! Less likely to be drawn to the dark side and open one.” Others have mentioned this as a good reason for stashing their wine away from home. Tom Mann writes “It keeps my hand out of the cookie jar, and stops me drinking stuff way to early--out of experimentations reach! Sounds like me and my Oregon Pinot Noir.

Mike: “I have offsite storage because of limited space at home. A place to stash oversized bottles, maybe?”

Dave: Off site storage is great! I keep a couple hundred bottles at the house and the rest in my local storage.

We have a built in cellar and that’s all it’ll hold, besides the humidity is not conducive to > 5 years of constant storage any way.

I can have wine delivered there at my “off site storage” and they’ll put it away for me. I visit my storage to drop off cases and that’s when I pick up bottles to replenish my home stores. I keep wines there, in storage, dating from the 30s right on through each decade to the 2002s-04s that I’m buying now.

It’s just another way to facilitate my addiction with ease–don’t have to worry about buying a new cellar every time I make a large purchase–frees up my brain and I’m not making plans to add a room onto the place that way either.

What’s that old saying? All your eggs in one basket... er something likethat?

"The house I grew up in had a great basement where we stored our wines. When we moved I needed to find someplace to store the family stash. I’ve never looked back, and never had a moments regret. Glad to have people who’ve been in the BIZZ for decades."

Remember one very important fact: THERE’S ALWAYS ROOM AT STORAGE!”

Offsite storage facilities often accept packages as a courtesy. They place it in a temperature controlled room until you can come by and sign for them.

“In bound shipment quantity well exceed available at home storage space.”

“A great reason to have off-site storage is the back-up generator provided by the off-site storage facilities.”

Martin Mohr: “For me, wineries cannot ship directly to Massachusetts, so they can bring/ship to offsite storage in California. Then I can ship it here. Also, I can store wines that I won't be drinking for a few years anyway.

“Offsite facilities can provide information about wines you may not have heard of.”

“Less wine at home for the wife to see?”

Mark Dignam: “ I have about 300-400 bottles in the house (under the stairs) and the rest in storage. In my case, I need constant temperature and more room. I have at least 3,000 bottles in storage. Put simply, factors are: Room, Theft/security and Temperature.”

Shane Runyon: “One other reason to love off-site storage is the wife factor... You can have that special locker to hide away those bottles you swore you were not going to buy. I know she buys shoes and gradually brings those out into poublic view and I do the same with wines. Don't you remember me buying those honey? You loved the last vintage... “

John Coop: “I know of about a half dozen customers that have off sight storage because of wife-factor.”

I had a customer that bought over 14 cases of 1989 Bordeaux futures. When he and the wife filed for divorce about 10 years later, her lawyer had their entire wine collection appraised. He basically had to 're-buy' her share of the wine if he wanted to keep them. He now keeps his Bordeaux's off sight!

Tom Mann: “I keep most of my wines off site for four simple reasons: 1) To defer cost - there I can keep the wines and not pay the tax until I want to drink them. 2) Should I want to sell them, it's very easy to do so from there - my warehouse will deliver them straight to the relevant merchant. 3) It keeps my hand out of the cookie jar, and stops me drinking stuff way to early (out of experimentation, you understand!) 4) The quality of the storage is much better than I have at home, and it saves me a lot of space!

Chuck Miller: “I thought I’d mentioned that unless you own (and plan to continue owning your house for a long time), built-in cellars don't make a lot of financial sense.

Also, if you are going to age something for 10-20 years, you might move several times during that time. Finding boxes, packing the stuff up, moving it and putting it back gets old quickly. With offsite storage you can leave it sitting there until you are ready to drink it, where ever you may be at the time!”

What does it cost? How much per bottle, per month or year?

David Wästberg: “In Stockholm I pay about $5/year for a bottle. But that also includes access to the private tasting room for me and ten guests (as often as I want) News letter etc. You could also store cases about $40 a year. Kind of expensive to me but there is not to many off-site locations in Stockholm.”

Andy Velebil: “Like most I keep most of my wines at offsite due to space issues (plus I am doing some interior remodeling at the house myself, which I figure will take about a year to finish). So, I sat down one day and figured out what it would cost a year for offsite, then looked at the cost of a large vinotemp (and simillar cellars), plus the electricity to run them, maintanence, etc. It ended up being cheaper to offsite for about the next 12-15 years.

I should say I keep a small 52 "Vinocab" bottle cellar at the house for short term cellaring and for things I will be drinking soon. It seems to do well cooling, only problem is it's only about 45-50% humidity. Which is fine by me since not much is in there past 6-8 months.”

John Richards: “I pay approx. $350/year for a 42 case locker. This comes to roughly $0.70/bottle/year. However, the actual cost is higher as I have more than one locker so I have been considering moving some shorter term bottles to a yet-to-be-purchased cabinet located more conveniently at my house (replacing the 50 bottle cabinets that never seem to have exactly what I want to drink on a particular evening). I plan to leave the longer term bottles where they are. Amortized over the span of 6-8 years the home cabinet will pay for itself.”

The two places I’ve researched since staring this adventured cost runs about $3.00 to $6.00 per bottle per year.

Think it all through first, think long term--both in terms of yourself and the place where you are planning to store your stash. How long have they been there, the place you plan to store your wines, security, back up power, etc. Above all make it work for you at your comfort level.

Here’s two in the area of Central California:

Grand Cru – see linked article.
2920 Arden Way Ste N
Sacramento, CA 95825

Tel 916-483-8738
Fax 916-486-1488
E-Mail: info@grandcru.ws

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55 DEGREES
Karen and Neil Aldoroty Proprietors
1210 Church St.
St. Helena, CA 94574

Tel (707) 963-5513
Fax (707) 963-5281
e-mail: wine@fiftyfivedegrees.com