Wine is becoming an ever-increasing favorite of many people. With over 1000 different wine varieties, the choices one has seem nearly infinite. Wine tasting parties are very popular and great events to get to know other people. The proper pre-party storage of wine is important to maintain the wine for its maximum enjoyment and that is why an investment in a wine cooler is a good choice. However, the temperature the wine needs to be stored at is not necessarily its proper serving temperature for your party. Additionally, wine stored in your wine refrigerator cannot necessarily be readily viewed by your party guests. Displaying your favorite vintages in a classy wine rack at your party will stimulate conversation about the wines and contribute to your party’s success.

The broad based interest in wine can be a stimulus for an entirely new “Gift Du jour” for your friends and family. Everyone can benefit from changing your thinking about what gift to buy, especially you men like me. You can forget about that gift card from one of the large “box stores”. No more stopping at the supermarket so you can get flowers for your loved one on the way home. You will not have to get your “Uncle Jack” that knitted sweater with reindeer on it. In addition, grandma will not have to eat another box of chocolate that was made six months before it became a gift. It is paramount to get that special gift right this time.

Wine accessories, wine racks, wine furniture and wine coolers will be appreciated and considered great gifts. Wine related products are marketed in a broad array of sizes, colors, prices, etc. making gifts that are easy to match to your favorite person and your budget. They are made in every type of material imaginable- wood, wire, steel, etc.

Key wine accessories that will make excellent gifts are corkscrews, wine thermometers, electric wine serving coolers, butcher board cheese servers and a portable wine cooler that plugs into your car’s electrical system making chilled wine at your picnic or on your boat a reality.

Displaying your favorite wines in a classy and colorful wine rack will make you proud. Wine bottle racks can be found with luxurious metal and wood finishes that are sure to compliment any home’s decor. Wine bottle holders will hold from just a few to several bottles and, by mixing various reds and whites, will make a colorful display. Wine rack furniture is becoming more popular because it can be used for more than a single purpose.

However, the best gift to give someone that loves wine is their first wine cooler refrigerator. These handy appliances will allow that favorite person of yours to get on the move to becoming a “budding” wine connoisseur. If space is a problem for your gift receiver, several countertop wine coolers can be purchased to fit their space. If your favorite person is environmentally sensitive, a thermoelectric wine cooler will help them “go green”. The choices available to match your favorite person’s taste are unlimited.

So, let us all get off the old gift-giving quandary and present our favorite people with the “Gift Du jour” that fits in with the ever-increasing interest in wine. They will enjoy their gifts and will have no need to join the “return” lines at your local box store, see the flowers go “toes up” in a day or worry when the gift card expires.

For more information go to: http://idealwinecoolers.com/page/home/index.html

Author: Ronald Senn, VP Ideal Wine Coolers, October 2009

Ideal Wine Coolers’ Haier 42 Bottle Wine Cooler is for freestanding applications and includes a locking glass door.  This handsome wine cellar, with soft lighting and silver metal trim, allows you to display your finest wines in style.  The flat glass door has blue-gray tint with a heavy-duty towel bar style brushed metal handle.  This wine cooler is less than 20 inches wide making it slim enough to fit anywhere in your home.  A dual-function LED display monitors your temperature selection and the internal wine cooler temperature at the same time.  Special features include soft interior light, black matte worktop, door lock, and leveling legs. The black interior features sturdy wire metal shelving that will tenderly cradle your best vintages.  This wine cooler would be a classy addition to your home decor.  This wine cooler is one of our better selections in our Locking Wine Cooler category.

Features:

  *Flat Glass Door with Blue-Gray Tint and Graphite Trim
  *Heavy-duty Brushed Medal Handle
  *Adjustable Electronic Thermostat
  *Automatic setting for Red and White Wines
  *6 Flat Chrome Storage Racks and 2 half-depth Flat Racks
  *Dual-function LED Read-out
  *Lock and key
  *Graphite Matte Work Top
  *Soft Interior Lighting
  *Leveling Legs
  *Dimensions W 19 15/16″, D 21 3/4″, H 38 17/32″

Weight: 110.5 Lbs.

Warranty:  12 months parts and labor:  5 years on sealed system

For current price and shipping information go to: http://idealwinecoolers.com/product/HVF042BBG

Haier 42 Bottle Wine Cooler

This great product will add a touch of class to your home.  Let’s go SHOPPING now.

Author: Ronald Senn, VP Ideal Wine Coolers, 10/23/09

A sports fan as defined in the dictionary is “an enthusiastic devotee or follower of sports.” A sports fanatic, as I am, is “a person with an extreme enthusiasm or zeal for sports.” The difference between a fan and fanatic is a matter of degree. A fanatic will follow, watch and comment on any and every sport that is on the forefront for the day.

A sports fanatic will know something about every sport played. They know whether a sport is presided over by a referee, umpire, official, timer or judge. They know which sport requires the players to police and enforce their own rules. When asked in what sport do the game officials run around in shorts, a fanatic will know the answer. They know that some sports officials are “zebras,” and they know why.

A sports fan or fanatic will try his or her best to attend every sport in person. Most of the time that is impossible. Therefore, sports fans and fanatics need a minimum set of tools to advance their passions. The first tool is old school, the AM/FM radio. Of course, satellite radios with multiple sports channels are an advancement that is often pursued. The next tool in the set is the various kinds of computers and hand-held electronic devices that can send text messages, pictures, e-mails, news flashes, surf the web, etc.

The ultimate and most vital tool is the television, but not just any ordinary one. The television must be Hi-Def with a screen as big as a drive-in movie theater. The sound system must be multi-speaker surround sound that will rattle the walls. The theater furniture must include big soft couches, recliners and footstools, enough for all your sports-watching friends. You cannot claim to have been there “to see it” unless at least you watch it on TV.

To complete the ambiance of the sports watching experience you also need food, chips, dip, peanuts, pizza, nuts and of course the basic hot dog with mustard, ketchup and onions. The last item is the beverage. Canned beverages are okay, but just like being at the ballpark, the draft beer would be the ultimate.

Today, there are many options for draft beer at home. Some companies offer mini-kegs that easily slip into the refrigerator, if there is room. A better solution is to purchase one of the many keg refrigerators, coolers or dispensers now available on the market. There are mini, pony and standard keg refrigerators that can handle pressurized or non-pressurized products. Some keg coolers are set up to dispense more than one type of beer, are insulated for indoor as well as outdoor use and can convert to keep other beverages cool as well.

Whether you are a sports fan or a rabid fanatic, the enjoyment is the experience of seeing the “big play” or the “once in a life time match up.” My home theater is fully equipped and ready for use with my sports friends. I was lucky in life because I found and married another sports fanatic. Actually, I would have to say she is more like a sports “nut,” which is even more severe than a fanatic is.

For more information see: http://www.idealwinecoolers.com/page/home/index.html

Author: Ronald Senn, Vice-president, Ideal Wine Coolers  

Let us say that you have finally decided to get serious about having and properly maintaining a wine collection.   However, when thinking about having several bottles of wine on hand for future use and aging them to perfection, you know your refrigerator is a poor choice for storing your wine.  An investment in a wine cooler is an investment in improving your enjoyment of wine by storing it properly.

In your decision making process, you decided on a size (e.g., 24 bottle capacity), a specific application (e.g., counter top, free standing or under counter wine cooler) and color scheme (e.g., black cabinet with stainless steel door trim).  Now all you have to do is to go buy one.  There are many other critical options that you should consider and at the same time recognize that they incrementally will add to the cost of your wine cooler.

A key consideration that should be a part of your final decision-making is the need to secure your wine collection.  If you have children, you do not want them opening and closing the wine cooler or messing with the bottles that are so tenderly cradled within it.  For that matter, you may be in a situation that your family or friends might have an uncontrolled need to investigate for themselves what you so carefully have stored away.  If security is an issue, you will need to purchase a locking wine cooler.  There is nothing like a locked door to maintain your collection in the undisturbed condition that good wine aging requires.

Wines should be stored away from light.  Ultraviolet light (UV), especially with clear bottled wines, will damage your wine.  Sparkling wines are even more sensitive to UV rays.  Exposure to light may give wine unpleasant aromas and eventually ruin it.  Wine coolers are made with a broad array of different interior lighting systems and glass door tints.  Look for lighting that stays away from incandescent bulbs and for darkly tinted glass doors.  It is pleasing to the eye to look at your wine collection through a tinted front door glass, especially if your collection is lit with a soft blue LED light. 

Finally, wine does not like a “shake, rattle and roll” existence.  If you are aging your wines carefully, you will want to maintain them in as undisturbed condition as possible.  Thermoelectric wine coolers operate on a cooling system that is vibration free and are eco-friendly.  Standard compressor models can operate better when indoor ambient temperature fluctuations are a concern.

Additional contributions to wine disturbance are a function of the wine shelving you select.  Many wine coolers come with racking systems that are made of metal, vinyl coated metal or wood.   Mostly, these racking systems can be removed for cleaning, but essentially are designed to be stationary in the wine cooler.  Some wine coolers now come with slide-out, glide-out or rollout shelving.  This type of shelving is designed to allow access to your wine collection by merely pulling the shelf out.  This allows you to easily and gently remove the bottle that you want without the potential to disturb other stored bottles.

Deciding to buy a wine cooler is a good first step in protecting and improving your overall enjoyment of your favorite vintage.  The ability to entertain your friends and family with wine at just the right temperature will make them envious.  However, do not slight that initial investment of a wine cooler by not investing in the additional features that will take your wine storage from the minimal to the ultimate.   You may not appreciate that investment now, but you will as time moves forward.

For more information visit:  http://www.idealwinecoolers.com

Author:  Ronald Senn, VP Ideal Wine Coolers, October 2009

The bathroom and the kitchen in any house are critical to update if you are trying to sell your home or flip an investment house.  Of the bathroom or the kitchen, the kitchen upgrades are most likely to leave the best first impression when others are looking to buy your home.  Additionally when visiting, my family seems to gravitate to the kitchen as I imagine happens in most families.  The kitchen is where “it’s happening” and where enjoyment of your surroundings is most important.

In the kitchen, the obvious upgrades include new cabinets, countertops, flooring, paint and depending on the circumstances, maybe new appliances.  The traditional appliance approach would include refrigerator, dishwasher, stove/oven and built in microwave oven.  There are some important trends in society that may point to consideration of another class of under counter appliances, besides trash compactors and dishwashers, which will quickly present an air of sophistication to your remodel.

Consider the fact that wine is becoming an ever-increasing favorite of many people.  With over 1000 different wine varieties, the choices, which one has, seem nearly infinite. Many sources even tout the health benefits of drinking wine, in moderation of course.  It is time to ramp up and modernize our approach to the old-fashion kitchen remodel.

Today’s market place has a wide variety of quality products that will fit under counter remodel situations.  Three of those product categories focus on the current society trends in wine and beverage cooling needs.  Those categories include wine coolers, beverage coolers and icemakers.  Imagine a newly remodeled kitchen that can accommodate, in a standard 15 or 24-inch base cabinet space, a new wine or beverage cooler to fit your needs.  You should also be able to imagine never running out of ice again even if your refrigerators ice machine jams, as it always seems to do

Under counter appliances do cost slightly more that free standing ones, because they require front-vented cooling systems.  However, the efficient use of floor space more than compensates for the higher cost.  Generally, you will find quality under counter wine coolers, beverage centers and ice makers for approximately $350 to $1000 depending on what “bells and whistles” you want to incorporate.  Products are also available that are pantry size built in uprights that can accommodate over 160 bottles of wine or a combination of wine bottles and beverage cans.  These larger products will often cost from $1000 to $2000, also depending on the features you select.

Using a more up to date idea for kitchen remodeling will give your home a new and unique décor that you can be proud of and enjoy.  The sophisticated look to your new kitchen will make your home a showcase that will attract new buyers, because of your unique kitchen appliances.

For more information see:  http://www.idealwinecoolers.com

Author: Ronald Senn, VP Ideal Wine Coolers, October 2009