For the wine connoisseur, or the casual hobbyist, a wine cooler can store your acquisitions in a chilled environment, awaiting the opportunity to liven your evenings. No need to take up valuable space in your refrigerator or chill them to a less than ideal temperature. There are many wine coolers on the market, some holding a few bottles of your favorites or even a couple of cases. The best rated wine coolers for home use hold from eight to 32 bottles and have features that fit all your wine storage needs.
Many wine chillers have only fixed shelving to hold standard 750 ml bottles. If you like having Champagne or a Burgundy every now and then, get one with adjustable shelving. Tinted and double-paned glass on the doors is better for insulation and they’re better at keeping out UV rays that harm wine if the unit faces sunlight.
If you’re more of a beer drinker, you could consider getting a kegerator that’s designed to keep kegs of draught beer cold and fresh. If you need to just keep a few snacks and cans and bottles of various drinks cold and don’t have a lot of space, get a compact fridge or a mini fridge with freezer instead.
Where you place the cooler determines whether you should get a small countertop model, a built-in one to go between cabinets, or a large freestanding one to go in a corner.
Top Rated Wine Fridge Options
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Thermoelectric Vs Compressor Wine Cooler
Some units use thermal-electric cooling while others use compressor driven cooling that are typically used in refrigerators. If you want to store more than 20-30 bottles, you’ll need a compressor type. Thermo-electric coolers are more energy efficient, less noisy and less expensive, but compressor coolers can give you wider temperature ranges and can save on your energy bill in the long run. Here is a thorough run down of the differences between thermoelectric and compressor wine coolers.
Single Vs Dual Zone Wine Cooler
In addition to the above, there are a few other factors to consider before buying a wine cooler for the home. Do you like to drink only red wines or only white, or do you like both as well as champagne and dessert wines? Each type is best served at specific temperatures so you may want to look at getting a dual zone cooler. This kind can keep two separate areas at different temperatures so you can store your bottles in their respective zones.
Read our in depth wine refrigerator reviews below to see which ones we would choose.
Best Dual Zone Wine Cooler
Wine Enthusiast 32-Bottle Dual Zone MAX Compressor Wine Cooler
Storing 32 bottles at home doesn’t sound easy or cheap, but the freestanding dual zone wine refrigerator from Wine Enthusiast allows relatively large private wine collections to be kept in perfect conditions. This compressor technology wine cooler is 3 times more energy efficient than most competitors, CFC-free, and works silently to keep 32 bottles of reds, whites, champagnes and dessert wines at the perfect temperature at all times. You can control temperatures via the digital touchscreen on the exterior, and the lightly tinted reflective glass doors are so sleek that you can even keep this in your living room! An interior LED light helps you read labels easily.
The upper zone and lower zone can be separately programmed so that the upper one is set at a perfect serving temperature for whites and roses, while the lower one can be set at long term ageing temperature for reds. Or you can program the entire unit to be one single zone. The allowed range is 41° – 64°F. You can change settings to Celsius if you prefer. At the very bottom is a display shelf where you can show off your most prized wines! The rest of the shelves are scalloped chrome plated, adjustable, and can hold standard Bordeaux- sized bottles. If you have non-standard bottles, the capacity will be reduced a little.
This 32 bottle wine cooler runs silently and it is easy to level the legs when setting it up. We rate it as the best freestanding wine cooler for the home.
Phiestina 15 Inch Dual Zone Wine Cooler Refrigerator – 29 Bottle
This unit can be freestanding or built in, as it can be fitted under the kitchen counter if you want. Its dimensions are 14.9” W x 33.9” H x 22.4” D and there’s a kick plate at the bottom with a front air vent to prevent built up heat even if it is fitted in a tight space. The reversible door hinge means you can open the cooler door from the left or right.
You can set two different temperatures inside the cooler to store different types of wine or beverages. The upper zone range that’s good for white wine is 40-50℉, while the lower zone for red wine is 50-66℉. You can switch to Celcius if you want. The control buttons and display is set into the shelf in between the upper and lower zone.
The unit comes with 5 removable shelves and a capacity to hold 29 bottles. The shape of the shelves maximizes every inch of the interior for storage. There is a pair of stoppers at the back of the side walls to prevent the shelves from being accidentally pulled out completely. Because the shelves slant slightly upwards, you can store opened bottles with a stopper as well.
Single Zone 24 Bottle Wine Cooler
Wine Enthusiast 24-Bottle Compressor Wine Cooler with Upright Bottle Storage
The unit will chill wines at a range from 41° – 64° F and can be controlled from the exterior LCD temperature display panel, as can a blue LED light inside.
This is the only cooler of this size that has a space for storing up to 4 upright open bottles so that you can keep opened bottles correctly chilled too without the fear of leaks. The chrome shelves are scalloped to cradle your collection of up to 24 Bordeaux-sized bottles. You can also store larger or non-standard sized bottles but the capacity may be slightly reduced. The shelves are not adjustable.
Best Wine Cooler Under $200
Koolatron KWT10BN Wine Cooler with 10 Bottle Capacity
The 4 removable chrome racks slide out to make access easy and the flush back design saves space. The bottom shelf of the cooler can also hold slightly larger Burgundy bottles, but if you need to store even larger bottles, you can just remove a shelf.
Customers agree that this cooler gives you great value for money even though it is not a dual zone unit. Since the lowest temperature that it can go to is 46° F, it is just about good for dessert wines too. Even though one of its features is the ability to use either Celcius or Farenheit readings, some customers say that it refuses to stay in Celcius and switches back to Farenheit. At this price for a noise-free and reliable wine fridge, that’s a small inconvenience.
Countertop Wine Chiller
Nutrichef PKCWC150 15 Bottle Countertop Wine Cooler Refrigerator
Despite its compact size, this cooler can hold an impressive 15 bottles of standard size. There are 4 contoured chrome racks for holding bottles horizontally and one bottom standing rack to either display your favorite wines or to store open bottles.
This unit can operate between 41-64° degrees Fahrenheit even in the hotest climates. Located on the top of the door is a digital soft-touch button control panel to set the temperature and switch the interior blue LED light on or off. The panel will automatically lock itself after 20 seconds of any button press so that children can’t change the setting.
The reinforced glass door with air-tight seal will keep the unit energy-efficient and your wines at a good temperature. There’s a built-in circulation fan and ventilation grill to keep the unit from overheating, but it’s so silent that you’ll barely notice that it is running. If you do, then it means that the fan or vent needs to be adjusted.
Antarctic Star 1.6cu.ft Wine Cooler
The rotating temperature dial and ON/OFF switch are situated on the top right corner just behind the glass door. It allows you to adjust the temperature of your wine cooler from 40°F- 61°F. The stainless steel racks are full width and removable.
The tinted glass door is double-paned with a tight seal for insulation and will keep light from your bottles of wine. There’s a soft blue light on the roof for you to see inside without damaging the wine. You can open the from the left or the right, so you can place the unit next to any wall and the contents will be accessible. You only have to ensure that there’s a 2” clearance on all sides for proper ventilation. It is not the quietest of coolers, but it doesn’t annoy and it is vibration-free, which is good for keeping your wine from getting agitated.