Homes & Estates Florida Portfolio February 2018 | Page 6

Jamie Beckwith Interiors
Show
and Tell
BY DRESDEN SCOT T
THE WINE CELLAR COMES
OF AGE, GIVING RISE TO A
NEW GENERATION OF WINE
ROOMS DESIGNED TO PUT
THE BEAUTY OF THE BOTTLE
ON FULL DISPLAY.
Brightwaters by Sire Design
and Genuwine Cellars
4 | Homes & Estates | Florida Portfolio
If
you want to know just how much
value collectors assign to their
wine, visit them at home. Chances
are, they are some of the many
modern-day oenophiles who are
bringing the residential wine room to the forefront.
What was once relegated to ancient caves in
Europe and dimly lit underground cellars has now been
elevated in the home — sometimes literally. Increasing
numbers of affl uent homeowners and budding oeno-
philes are building custom glass-enclosed wine rooms
with the goal of putting their collections on display.
Some are opting for large-scale trophy wine rooms
that double as entertaining spaces for storing, sipping,
dining and sharing with guests. Others are turning to
innovative racking solutions that transform bottles into
works of art on the wall. This may include pop-up spiral
staircases that save space and offer a “wow” moment
for guests. And it’s not only wine connoisseurs. Even
those who don’t drink wine recognize the impact on
resale value and are installing contemporary wine
rooms and racking systems in their homes.
“Wine is one of the greatest status symbols,”
says Jörn “Joey” Kleinhans, a certifi ed sommelier
and founder of Austin, Texas-based The Sommelier
Company. “The wine room phenomenon, especially
on the West Coast, is about signaling wealth, taste
and sophistication. People start building wine cellars
and wine rooms in their houses because they know
that when they go to sell them later, the houses will
be categorized as luxury homes.”
Behind the trend
The rise of the wine room began in the late
1990s and fully took off in the early 2000s. Accord-
ing to the Wine Institute, Americans’ wine consump-
tion has steadily increased for the last 25 consecu-
tive years. As a result, custom wine cellar design has
grown from a niche industry catering exclusively to
the ultra-wealthy into a fl ourishing multimillion-dollar