Under Stairs Cellar

For many years, our client had been storing his wine collection in standard racking units in his garage, but when extensive remodelling work to his home in Wimbledon created a spacious entrance hallway, Professor M decided to take the opportunity to convert the under stair area into a fully conditioned wine cellar.

Our brief was to design a cellar which, while above ground, would convey all the imagery of a traditional basement cellar, presenting an eye-catching feature that would impress visitors as they walked around the foot of the staircase. Making full use of the relatively small space, our design solution can accommodate around 600 bottles.

To help create the look of an authentic cellar, we used real bricks (only 15mm thick) to line the entire back wall, and laid the floor in grey flagstones. The interior of the cellar is fitted out with hand-made units, all designed especially for this space, and fashioned from solid oak to perfectly match the existing staircase. There is a central display case, a slide-out stowage area for cases, and a mix of horizontal and vertical racking.

Space is optimised by using double-depth storage units, and a full glass front with integrated glass door seals the cellar environment.

Easy access was an important consideration; pull-out shelving together with a 400mm space between internal units and the glass front ensure all areas within the cellar can be reached to stow and remove bottles.

All lighting, including recessed LEDs and the antique bulkhead light which spotlights the display cabinet can be independently controlled to set the desired ambiance. By taking inspiration from, and referencing elements from traditional cellars, this wine space creates the illusion of a far larger, walk-in cellar.