For most Houstonians keeping wine bottles in the kitchen pantry or in a small wine chiller are the more likely options. But for the avid wine connoisseurs and fans who like to collect bottles from the hundreds to the thousands, a demand for a wine cellar has become the new must have room for Houston’s luxury custom homes.

Nos Caves Vin is a Houston-based company that builds high-end wine cellars. They have been building wine cellars for approximately 200 Texas homes since 2010, and owner Jost Lunstroth has been in the wine industry since 2005.

Lunstroth relays to the Houston Business Journal that they don’t grow the grapes, make the wine or transport the wine either. They just fulfill the downstream wine business. Lunstroth says that he has seen constant growth in the number of wine cellars being built in Houston houses as Texas and Houston have become one of the top buyers for California wines. Within this year, Lunstroth plans to build wine cellars in four luxury homes from West University to Katy that will hold between 2,000 and 5,000 bottles worth around $1 million.

Homebuilders and homeowners usually work with Lunstroth to modify walk-in closets, home offices, elevator shafts into wine cellars. His cellars are fully insulated and have a unique refrigeration system that keeps the wine bottles cooled at a steady 55 degrees and 60 percent humidity. He does this for the purpose of keeping the wine from aging too quickly. Wine bottles are put in wooden or metal racks so that it keeps cool air circulating around the bottle. Some displays are decked out with special wire suspension systems and LED lighting to bring attention to collectors’ most coveted labels.

Wine cellars can range in cost from $50,000 to $140,000 to build, varying on size and type of construction. Homebuyers can get as creative as they want with it, like requesting glass doors and ceilings, hanging wine racks or installing spiral staircases with wine storage.

As the Baby Boomer generation retires, they’re downsizing into smaller townhomes, condominiums, and single-family homes that calls for some remodeling to hold their vast wine collections. Multifamily developers, like Marvy Finger who is an apartment developer and Randall Davis who is a condominium developer are building wine chillers and wine lockers into their projects.

The Finger Cos. has already welcomed some new residents to 1900 Yorktown, a new luxury apartment in the Galleria area. Located at 1900 Yorktown Drive near San Felipe Street is an eight-story, 262-unit complex, adjacent to a wide range of retail and dining venues, which includes the Galleria. The complex offers one to two-bedroom units that range from 755 to 1,529 square feet, and the rent price goes from $1,600 to $2,600 per month. The units feature a gas range, oak wood flooring, glass shower and or soaking tub, black granite or white quartz countertops, divided-light windows that can keep heat and noise out, and of course the wine chiller.

Randall Davis Co. is planning to break ground this month on a new high-rise condominium called Arabella, located at 4521 San Felipe. Arabella is planned for a 33-story, 99-unit condo tower that will feature 10 units with private terrace-top swimming pools. The building amenities will include an outdoor pool, indoor heated lap pool, fitness center, residents room, catering kitchen, sauna, massage and steam room, and of course a wine cellar with lockers for residents’ wines.

There are a number of homeowners that have too many wine bottles that they choose to store part of their collections in Nos Caves Vin’s two high-tech and climate-controlled storage facilities, located in Rice Village and Memorial City. What new must have room do you think will be the new trend for luxury home buyers in the future? 

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