Liebherr Group is a manufacturing juggernaut with German origins that has been making wine fridges since the early 1990’s. Initially they only created large refrigerators for high-end restaurants, wineries, and hotels, but it wasn’t long before public demand for their commercial refrigeration systems found them producing smaller residential models too. And now the firm frequently wins design awards all over the world. Rosehill Wine Cellars is proud to offer Liebherr wine fridges in Mississauga Canada.
Liebherr German engineered built-in kitchen wine cabinets
Liebherr wine fridges are German engineered to address long term wine storage factors such as temperature, humidity, lighting and vibrations.
Today Liebherr Group is comprised of over one hundred and thirty different companies organized into eleven separate business divisions. They make tons of earthmoving and mining equipment, and they sell mobile cranes, machine tools and many other automated systems. They assemble many industry-leading domestic appliances too and make the components inside other popular products we use every day. The company’s worldwide workforce has grown to over 40,000 employees at the time of this writing.
Liebherr Canada head office at 1015 Sutton Dr, Burlington, Ontario
In the year 2007, Liebherr was officially recognized as the world’s largest crane company and what’s more remarkable is that it’s still entirely owned by the Liebherr family. Isolde (daughter of Hans) is the chief executive officer and Willi (son of Hans) Liebherr is chairman of Liebherr-International AG which is now headquartered in Bulle, Switzerland. And these blood relatives are not alone at the top. Several other family members are also involved in the management of the business ‘group’ which is the official name of a corporation with many facets in multiple sectors. Nathaniel H Leff’s book, Industrial Organization and Entrepreneurship in the Developing Countries: The Economic Groups defines a business Group as being, “a group of companies that does business in different markets under common administrative control and whose members are linked by relations of interpersonal trust on the basis of similar personal ethnic or commercial background”. Well that’s what Liebherr has become now and they started on that path in the 1970s when they began to establish new companies overseas including Liebherr-Canada Ltd which was founded in 1973 to facilitate sales, marketing and aftersales of select Liebherr products.
History of the Liebherr Group begins with Hans Liebherr Maschinenfabrik
Karl Liebherr
The story of the Liebherr Group is fused with the person who founded the firm in 1949 in Kirchdorf an der Iller, Baden-Württemberg, Germany.
Liebherr’s first industrial product was very successful and soon the demand for his crane far exceeded supply. Hans Liebherr set up an engineering works in Kirchdorf an der Iller which he called the Hans Liebherr Maschinenfabrik.
Hans Liebherr was a master builder, inventor and draftsman. Later in life he evolved into a skilled businessman and manufacturing pioneer. In 1949, his home country of Germany needed rebuilding after World War II, and Hans Liebherr helped the cause as manager of his parents’ building firm. He was in his late twenties when he recognized the need for better hoisting tools and bigger machinery for the building industry and domestic construction in general. Together with design engineers and tradesmen, he developed the first mobile tower crane in 1949. The TK 10 was a game-changer because it could be easily transported and was easy to erect at job sites.
Liebherr’s first construction crane, TK10 – 1949
Larger and more sophisticated crane models followed the TK10 and Karl Liebherr’s parent’s tiny construction company started its transformation into a multi-national manufacturer of construction machinery.
In the mid 1950s, Karl Liebherr made the move from construction equipment to kitchen appliances. At this time, despite the booming economy that helped Germany rebuild very quickly after the war, ninety percent of German households still didn’t own an electric refrigerator. Could you imagine not having a fridge in your kitchen? Nationally, this has dietary and labour implications, and Hans Liebherr saw an opportunity to enter the sector by developing, manufacturing, and then continually improving refrigerators for the German people.
1955 Liebherr refrigerator advertisement for Geman market
The first Liebherr refrigerator was produced in 1954 and as the years went by the company became a well-known refrigeration specialist across Europe and then all over the world. They spent a lot of money on Research & Development and continually produced new technology and marketed bold innovations in the refrigeration and freezing sector all through the nineteen seventies and eighties. NoFrost technology, launched in 1987, is one example of an industry-changing innovation that Liebherr pioneered. NoFrost technology is still used today to prevent the inside of the freezer compartment from frosting over and jamming the door. This one little breakthrough changed refrigeration forever as the time-consuming and difficult task of defrosting the icebox, or the whole fridge, really did become old news. Now its something we tell our kids. “When I was your age we routinely unplugged our fridge for a day so we could clean the ice off the freezer section just so we could close the door.” They can’t believe it.
Built-In Wine Cabinets with Insulated Glass Doors
Liebherr’s wine storage cabinets and multi-temperature wine cabinets have insulated glass doors which lend themselves perfectly to flush installation in-line with other appliances in modern kitchens. These convenient glass doors not only protect the wine against harmful UV rays, they also ensure an optimum view, showcasing the wines to their best advantage.
Leibherr 24′ wine fridge with UV protected / insulated glass door
Another reason that Liebherr is recognized as an industry leader in wine fridges may be some of that famous ‘German engineering’ that went into the creation of these machines. And of course their insistence on using only premium quality materials with cutting edge design and innovative features that are made-to-fit wine collectors’ busy lifestyles. Plus, exclusive components and trademark production processes ensure energy efficiency and improved performance for years to come
Liebherr Wine Cabinet HW 8000
Liebherr Wine Cabinet HW 8000 is one of their more popular models here in Canada likely due to its uniquely tall and thin shape. As such it can be made to fit into tall and narrow spaces where it works to jazz-up a kitchen or wine serving room.
Liebherr HW 8000 wine cabinet
This built-in wine storage cabinet with glass holds eighty 750 mL wine bottles and features dual temperature zones which is very handy for serving red and white wines and champagne at the same party. The cabinet has an insulated glass door with UV protection. Telescoping rails support beech wood presentation shelves. The stainless steel door (or panel) ships with hinges on the right hand side, but this can be changed and the door flipped so the hinges are on the left hand side if desired.
Liebherr wine fridges are really quiet and indeed they have trademarked a word for their low-noise assembly which they call SuperQuiet. This noise reduction is achieved by using virtually silent, speed controlled compressors with a low noise cooling circuit. And this is done while also ensuring exact performance, energy efficiency and longevity.
Another system that’s unique to Liebherr is the patented SoftSystem which is often used in high-end cabinetry as it ensures the wine cabinet door closes gently, even when fully loaded. Plus the door opening angle can be reduced to 90 degrees allowing for more design options within modern kitchen décor.
Beechwood presentation shelf under Vinidor wine cabinet control panel
Activated Charcoal Filter – Liebherr wine cabinets have a permanent supply of odorless fresh air via an easily changed activated charcoal filter.
The presentation shelf was an early design feature and something other manufacturers emulated. The practical shelf (often made of beechwood) in the Vinidor models fulfills both bottle storage and presentation functions.
Liebherr appliances regularly win design accolades from independent awarding bodies. The basic wine fridge has evolved a great deal since first being introduced in the 1990s. Liebherr wine cabinets are more than just appliances for cooling wine and champagne before serving; such high quality wine fridges with insulated and specially protected UV glass doors can now be trusted for long term storage of your wine collection.
Wine collectors sometimes refer to their rare vintages as treasures. So it only makes sense that some wine cabinets should look like fortified treasure chests (they do), and some glass-enclosed wine cellars could be made to look like silver jewellery boxes.
wine cellar design inspiration reference
This is just what Rosehill’s wine cellar construction service was asked to design and build by a wine loving man who wanted to recreate the stately look of his wife’s jewelery box downstairs in their home recreation room. They provided a sketch of this ‘reference’ that did indeed look like a silver box jewelry case perched on its side. Needless to say, we absolutely loved the idea and we brought it to life, adding double doors and plenty of other amenities which you can learn about below.
Glass enclosed (or Plexiglass) wine cellars with specially coated thermal and UV light protected glass panes usually have Vintage View metal wine racks and LED lighting and can be assembled just about anywhere inside any home or business. No longer does wine need to be stored away out of sight in a musty cellar space. Nowadays our wine cellar design team can put an attractive collection just about anywhere in the home. With deep racks, a floor to ceiling model can accommodate hundreds of bottles in the sedate chill required for long term wine storage.
The wine cabinet you see below is made out of wood, but it’s finished in metallic silver paint and so it looks like the jewelry box reference that the customer provided, set on its side.
This stunning custom wine cabinet has wall-mounted triple deep Vintage View metal racks. These racks are perfect for maximizing the space and provide a perfect showcase for wine stored inside the casement.
This modern looking metallic wine cellar is made of wood with special effect paint to look like brushed silver metal. Four doors in total allow for easy access to wine bottles within.
A showpiece within a home family room, this elegant modern wine cabinet has seamless concealed hinges and state of the art multi-point lock system to secure the wine within.
The silver box shaped wine cabinet is the new centerpiece display in the rec room.
As discussed above, the exterior finish of the wine cabinet was designed to match a jewelry box supplied by the customer. To complete the effect, the back wall of the wine cellar installation is painted mirror black.
Temperature Controlled Wine Cabinet in Faux Metal
The enclosure is cooled with a split ducted cellar pro 3000s. The condensing unit is located in a nearby storage area inside the home. Cellar Pro cooling units can accommodate a number of complicated installs for perfect storing and serving temperature.
Metal wine racks within the climate controlled wine cabinet.
The vertical wine bottle display mixes metal, wood, glass and mirror to make this wine cabinet the focal point and key design feature of the billiards room. The black Vintage View metal wine racks inside allow wine to become the focal point of the room.
Rosehill Wine Cellars Design Team is ready to help you make your new wine cellar installation or basement renovation dream come true.
Add Classic Decor with Howard Miller Wine Furniture
For many good reasons, a wine cellar is NOT the best room in your house in which to conduct wine tastings. It’s just too cold to be comfortable, and too small to be accommodating. Your wine cellar is probably not furnished with comfy chairs or couches, and so there’s likely nowhere to sit down or relax. And it’s dark down there, and turning on the lights is not recommended. These are the most obvious reasons homeowners don’t host wine tastings in wine cellars. With all your eggs in one basket, why put your wine at risk? Human bodies affect temperature and humidity. They change the lighting and make vibrations just by talking loudly and stomping around (looking for a place to sit down) and even worse, strangers have the tendency to touch the bottles.
Rosehall Run’s Wine Room, Photo Credit: Daniel Vaughan, Photo courtesy VisitPEC ca
How is a wine room different than a wine cellar?
A wine room denotes an area of a modern residential home which is just like any other room, except that wine is stored here in climate-controlled wine cabinets, and possibly there is some furniture for people to sit around and enjoy the wine. A wine cellar by comparison is a purpose-built dimly lit refrigerated room for aging wine that has no accouterments for human comfort or wine appreciation.
If you do a search on the words ‘wine room’ on Wikipedia, you’ll be directed to their wine cellar page. That’s because few humans really understand the difference. At Rosehill Wine Cellars we believe a wine room is very different than a wine cellar.
A wine room denotes an area in a residential home or business where wine is stored in climate-controlled wine cabinets. Wine rooms themselves are set at comfortable 72 degrees Fahrenheit – room temperature. And the space often is furnished with tables, chairs and couches and the walls decorated with suitable artwork. Strangers are welcome to sit in the wine room and admire the wine collection that is safe behind glass in wine cabinets and wine refrigerators in that room.
A wine cellar by contrast is a specially contained area in a home or business that exists behind an exterior quality door. The dark and chilly room is specially designed for long-term storage of wine. It may have an attractive glass door, but the space inside is likely off-limits to unaccompanied strangers.
Wine tasting room at Closson Chase winery in Prince Edward County – photo courtesy of Sandbanks Vacations / PEC Wine Tours
A commercial wine room is often called a wine tasting room and is generally focused around a walk-up bar counter where staff offer guests small samples from a list of products produced by the featured winery (and usually for a fee). Wine is poured by staff that has been trained in the particulars of that operation’s products and production practices. In most tasting rooms, the proprietors encourage the tasters to keep their glassware which generally has the name of the brand stenciled on the side. Destination marketing is more important than ever for modern wineries targeting tourists and hoping to make a memorable brand association. Instead of promoting just the wine cellar door there’s a need to broaden the offering and this includes upscale tasting room experiences. We can learn from the wine industry as we design comfortable wine tasting rooms in residential houses.
Ideas for Decorating Wine Rooms
Ithaca Pub Table
Generally speaking, the wine collector’s own wine cabinets and wine fridges are the star attractions in the wine room. The exception to this rule is when the room has a fancy bar or another visual amenity, but in general the wine storage device is the central item on display and arguable the most important thing in the room.
Howard Miller’s beautifully crafted line of spirits and wine furniture offers a variety of styles and sizes of wood wine cabinets including a cleverly designed line of hide-a-bar cabinets. Please note these cabinets are not climate controlled but they are handy for storing amenities like openers, special glassware and wine glass coasters.
Below is the Shiraz Wine Cabinet, by Howard Miller. This is a Hide-A-Bar ™ wine cabinet console with raised door panels allows ample room for wine and spirits. The center console of the cabinet features a lazy-susan style door that spins like a secret panel to reveal additional storage.
Because there are so many styles of wine cabinets available these days, it’s easy to find a unit that matches your design theme.
There are Howard Miller wine cabinets with an art deco theme or all-wood construction or stainless steel finishes, but if you’re starting from scratch it might help to start with the best fitting furniture pieces, regardless of style, and then design and match the decor of the rest of the room around that centerpiece wine cabinet.
Two temperatures are sometimes required in wine rooms. One cabinet maybe set warmer for immediate serving temperatures, while another compartment or separate machine may be set for colder temperatures to better accommodate long term wine storage requirements.
Wine Glass Racks and Wine Glass Caddies for Wine Tasting Rooms
Crystal wine decanters for sale at Rosehill Wine Cellars showroom in Mississauga
In a wine cellar we talk about wine racks for bottles, but in a wine room we look for racks for glassware. Wine glass racks should accommodate at least three different styles of wine glasses, but we have laid out four different categories below.
The wine glasses in your wine room are very important. If you stock and serve red wine in your tasting room, you may consider buying premium glassware to help set the proper tone at these special occasions.
Zalto Stemware is made to very high standards in a boutique glassblowing factory in Austria, and because of its fine lines and the company’s attention to detail, the brand is widely praised in Europe by wine professionals and journalists. Glassware matters: Some researchers believe as much as eighty percent of what we taste happens in our nose, not on our tongues. If your guests can’t smell the wine they’re drinking, then they’ll not be able to properly taste it. So your wine glasses need to be the right shape to accommodate the bouquet that comes in every bottle.
Four Types of Glassware in the Wine Room
Four styles of glassware best suit the different types of wine served at tastings
Red Wine Glasses Red wine glasses are easily identified by their spherical bowl shape. They are often the largest type of wine glass because the larger bowl enhances the bouquet and flavor of red wines.
White Wine Glasses White wine glassware has a slightly longer stem, more upright, with a smaller more U-shaped bowl as white wines do not need to be aerated as much as red.
Sparkling Wine Glass (Flute) Sparkling wine glassware is commonly referred to as “flutes” or “champagne flutes”. This type of wine glass is typically used for all sparkling wine and not just champagne. With its long stem, the flute is tall and narrow. This design is necessary as the extra surface area within the glass helps capture the carbonation and retain the flavor.
Dessert Wine Glass Dessert wine glasses are smaller than other types of wine glasses. Common glasses for dessert wines are sippers, port glasses and sherry glasses. The main characteristics that these wine glasses have in common is their small, compact shape that will help accentuate their rich aromas and sweet flavors.
Wine Room Furniture Improves Tastings
George Nelson – Howard Miller clocks are still made today in the classic themes and styles he presented in the late 1960s and 1970s
Depending on your lifestyle, your wine room can be a highly social environment with a custom bar and stools, or tables and chairs, or it can be more intimate; two armchairs by a fireplace works equally well as the perfect setting for pouring and tasting fine wine. Whatever the case, you need to make sure it has style.
Howard Miller, the famed American clock-making company has also manufactured high quality furniture for wine rooms since the mid nineteen seventies; they make wooden cabinets, and tables and chairs that are iconic and have over the last forty years come to signify the quintessential style of a classic American wine rooms.
Howard Miller – Niagara Games Table is a classic hexagon shaped Pub & Game Table that has a durable clear coat for wear protection. There’s a non- refrigerated cabinet in the base of the sturdy table. Its hexagon shaped top comfortably accommodates six people and features six full-extension drawers. Each drawer holds beverages and snacks and includes a removable sandstone drink coaster to absorb moisture. The reversible top features cherry veneers in a sunburst pattern on the dining surface side and a Texas Hold ‘Em pattern on the lounge side. Below are the chairs that could be matched with the table (the Niagara Club Chair in the center is the match to the Niagara Games Table above). All photos of Howard Miller furniture have been used courtesy of Howard Miller USA.
Howard Miller – Ithica, Niagara and Bonavista Club Chairs
Barware, corkscrews, glass decanters and other accessories
Classic Gold Pulltaps corkscrew
Widely used by restaurant and bar professionals, the Classic Gold colored Pulltaps corkscrew is made with a double lever design. This design feature allows any bottle of wine to be uncorked in two steps without damaging or breaking the corks.
Proper Lighting, Lamps and Sconces
Unlike the cellar where the overhead lighting is subdued to protect the collection, a wine room in a residential home can have wide open windows and bright lights, but often just the opposite is true. Wine tasting rooms set the mood with stone fireplaces, artwork, bookshelves and proper furniture.
Forgotten Furnishings in Wine Tasting Rooms
Silver wine spittoons for upscale wine tasting events at home.
Silver spittoons scale-up sophistication in wine tastings
Every tasting room needs a proper spittoon for people who wish only to taste the wine, and not consume so much they become inebriated. The best spittoons are made of silver which forgives everyone involved because of its semi-precious composition, history and tradition.
Rosehill Wine Cellars distributes authentic Oenosablier spittoons, each of which is laser signed L’Oenosablier as a mark of authenticity and to signify that this sturdy hourglass-shaped wine spittoon and not simply a wine spitting bucket. It’s L’Oenosablier.
The spittoon is designed for wine professionals and connoisseurs and is available in three styles. Because of its universally recognized classic style, the Oenosablier wine spittoon easily and quickly transforms an ordinary meeting into a professional tasting event.
Rosehill Wine Cellars has the accessories you need to protect your wine while on wine tours and back at home.
Summer is a great time to visit wineries. It’s the peak travel season, and tours are run more frequently. Many wineries schedule festivals and cultural events. You have a greater chance of meeting vintners, brewers, chefs, and artists at wineries during summertime, when revelry is at its peak. Whether it’s your first time to go wine touring or you could use a refresher, the following are helpful tips for getting the most out of wine tours. At Rosehill Wine Cellars, we are happy to provide custom wine cellars, wine cabinets, wine fridges, and all of the things needed to enjoy wine and store it properly. We like to remind wine lovers to remember to protect the wine while it’s in transit from the winery to your wine cellar, wine cabinet, or wine fridge.
1 – First things first
The first step in enjoying wine tours is to designate a driver or make arrangements with a transportation company, for a stress-free day. Wine is higher in alcohol content than beer. For instance, the amount of alcohol in 12 ounces of beer is equivalent to approximately 5 ounces of wine. It only takes 1.5 ounces of liquor in a shot glass to add up to the same amount of alcohol.
If you’re driving and still want to get in on the wine-tasting, be sure that you spit into the wine buckets at each winery you visit. In reality, though, what usually happens is more wine is tasted than intended. Be careful not to drive with an alcohol level above the legal limit.
2 – Taste without getting drunk
One of the major faux pas in etiquette at wine tastings is getting drunk. It’s not pleasant for others. Intake should be carefully moderated, to avoid being a drunk taster, the worst annoyance of tasting rooms everywhere.
3 – Protect your wine purchases
Summertime means the hot temperatures could spoil your wine. A short time of high temperatures might be okay, but it may not take long for wine to go past the point of no return. Be prepared on visits to wineries. Bring a wine carrier from a shipping store or from our selection of wine bags and backpacks at Rosehill Wine Cellars. Wine is ideally stored between 55 and 65 degrees. The threshold for damage to occur to wine begins at 70 degrees. Occasional spikes may be fine, but an entire day in a car that’s too warm will surely blight the wine.
More to come
Look for more tips for summer wine tours. If you don’t have the ideal place for storing your wine, contact Rosehill Wine Cellars for a custom wine cellar, wine fridge, or wine cabinet in your home.
As the owner of a Wine Cell’R brand wine fridge, you’re protected by one of the best guarantees in the entire wine storage industry. Our goal is to ensure that wine cellars give as much pleasure to the wine lovers as the enthusiasm that we feel to develop and to offer you quality products for the conservation of your wines.
Wine Cellr, In-Line Kitchen Wine Cabinets
Great for catering professionals or the new wine connoisseur, Wine CellR built-in or free-standing wine cabinets are practical, cost effective cabinets.
A wine refrigeration system can be a great way to temporarily store your wine if you are not considering serving it right away. This is especially true if you have wine bottles lying around that aren’t being stored properly. The right wine fridge will bring a lot of happiness into your life!
There are tons of great wine fridge brands, but the Wine Cell’R brand wine fridge is a market leader for many reasons. This brand is definitely one of the best. Here are some reasons you consider a Wine Cell’R wine storage unit.
Let’s look at Wine Cell’R WC46 SSSZ4
Wine CellR WC46 SSSZ4 has a reversible glass door with a stainless steel handle. This wine cabinet features a reversible door with internal LED lights and displaym like the full sized model, and electronic tactile control on the door.
The wine cabinet has a forty six bottle capacity (750mL). Wine Cell’R offers it with its three new audacious and functional collections DIAMOND, BLACK DIAMOND, and BLACK PEARL. Until now no cellar offered you as much quality, durability and performance in this price range. Whether you are a wine lover or a professional, our ambition is to guarantee your wines the optimum conditions of conservation and service.
Wine Cell’R’s are available in many different shapes and sizes
Big or small, Wine Cell’R wine cabinets are available in many different shapes and sizes. They also have dual temperature zones available, as well as beverage centers. Therefore, no matter what your wine storage needs are, Wine Cell’R has you covered
Features o Most models are being changed to a reversible door. Standard hinge will be on the right when looking at the front of the cabinet. The door swing can easily be changed on site to left hinge. Should you wish Rosehill to change the hinge orientation prior to delivery, there will be a $50 charage.
The enclosure cut out needs only to be slightly larger than the dimensions of the cabinet to slide into space if being built in. Please note, the Wine Cell”R wine cabinets are NOT designed to sit flush with surrounding cabinetry. The door has to remain outside the enclosure to allow opening. (It’s not a zero clearance hinge – you need about ½” or so to allow the door to open. )
It’s rare to find something that is both reliable and affordable, but Wine Cell’R Wine Cabinets definitely are! Built for the modern day wine collector these wine storage units will store your wine collection safely. Most of these units feature an Embraco compressor, extendable shelving, anti-UV glass, a touch pad, a security lock, as well as many other great additions.
Front venting for inline wine fridge
Front venting is a very valuable feature because that means means the cabinet can be built-in to the kitchen counter or placed wherever you want. This is possible because the storage unit vents out of the front rather than the back. Inline kitchen appliances must have front venting of they cannot be placed under the counter or embedded in kitchen walls.
Wine cabinets are beautiful to behold
Wine Cell’R is ideal if you’re interested in purchasing a cabinet that has a great modern look. These contemporary wine cabinets are built with sleek stainless steel or black trim.
They are also lit with LED lighting, and feature digital temperature controls. These wine storage cabinets are ideal for your kitchen, and are sure to bring a sleek and stylish elegance into your home!
Make sure to check out Rosehill Wine Cellars for all of your wine storage and wine drinking needs!
Welcome to Rosehill Wine Cellar’s blog where we share our creativity and offer insights into the best practices for storing fine wines. Our blog details how recent scientific advancements meet old world traditions in the wine cellars we design and build. We display our installations and reveal our inspirations as we extol innovation across the entire industry. Our original photos and authentic stories celebrate good wine cellar designs and wherever possible we showcase the work of our experts and their efforts to further the art and science of proper wine storage.
