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Our History
My passion with building custom wine cellars began in 1989. The residence was in upstate New York. The client
purchased a late 1800's farmhouse. At the time, the old house was under extensive renovations. Our crew
(myself and two helpers) was given the task of converting the existing large dirt crawl space into what
would become the new wine cellar. With the aid of no mechanical equipment, we used picks and shovels and
five gallon pails to remove 4,800 cubic feet of hard clay and rubble stones (equivalent to a room 40 x 20 x 8).
Because this was a basement cellar, all dirt and stone from the dig was carried up thirty steps of an adjacent
concrete staircase to a dump truck at ground level. After six weeks the excavation was now complete, the room
was clear and we were ready for the real work to begin. (Note: Every job I've done requires some degree of
planning and prep work. I always say, "If you start right, you will finish right." So don't overlook the
necessary early planning stage of your wine cellar construction. It will make a world of difference in the
finished product!)
We collected all our arch stones for this project from the client's farm property. We also purchased limestone from the Ohio Valley for our coin corners and rubble wall stone. We proceeded to pour concrete footers to support all of our hand-forged iron wine racks that would be installed later. We then laid all our stone columns at the end of each designated wine rack area. I built all stone arches, laid all Ohio state limestone on wall areas, and mixed and applied colored stucco to non-stone wall areas. After all wall stone work was completed, I proceeded to hand bush hammer every piece of two-inch thick limestone for the floor, then cut it to fit and set all random pieces of limestone to complete the wine cellar floor. With all the stone and stucco work completed, we then installed the hand-hewn beams above the stone work to support the wood ceiling, and installed the antique wooden cellar door and hardware. Our blacksmith installed the hand-forged iron wine racks; our electrician installed the finished chandelier and sconce lighting. Of course, the client stocked the cellars with 5,000 bottles of wine! It's a wonderful feeling when you achieve the goals you strive for. That's what got me started building custom wine cellars. After completing my first wine cellar, I stood there and said, "You know, it really looks like it's a couple of hundred years old." That was a great feeling; my passion is the same today. I start with a great design and add all the new technologies available, as well as some old-fashioned hard work. Thirty years of construction experience and European craftsmanship is obvious in the details of every custom wine cellar I build. That's something I personally guarantee! Click to see the custom wine cellar mentioned above. Please contact us now located in Nashville, Tennessee, where we look forward to scheduling a consulting appointment with you concerning your own custom wine cellar! Cheers, 
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