Best Wine Fridge for a Bar or Restaurant in Australia: Bottle Capacity, Zones and Sizes

The best wine fridge is the one that holds the bottles you actually keep, at the temperature you serve them, in the space you have. In our range, single-door wine fridges run from 24 bottles in a 430 mm wide under bench unit to 271 bottles in an 800 mm wide upright, and two-door models hold 218 bottles in a metre of wall. Choose single zone if you keep one kind of wine, or dual zone if you serve reds and whites from the same cabinet.

This guide compares the wine fridges we sell by bottle count, zones, temperature range and size, using each maker's own figures.

Wine fridge sizes compared

Sizes are width x depth x height. Bottle counts are the makers' maximums.

Model	Bottles	Zones	Temperature range	Size (mm)	Rated for rooms
Thermaster WB-24H	Up to 24	Single	5 to 18°C	430 x 480 x 756	10 to 38°C
Electrolux Professional WC50BK1Z	Up to 50	Single	6 to 18°C	595 x 562 x 820	Up to 38°C
Thermaster WB-51A	Up to 51	Single	5 to 22°C	595 x 575 x 820	10 to 32°C
Thermaster WB-155B	Up to 155	Dual	See listing	598 x 690 x 1600	10 to 38°C
Electrolux Professional WC170BKMZ	Up to 170	Single zone mode	See listing	595 x 602 x 1850	See listing
Thermaster WB-194B	194	Single	5 to 18°C	655 x 695 x 1840	10 to 38°C
Thermaster WB-218B	218	Dual, two doors	5 to 22°C	1000 x 600 x 1900	10 to 38°C
Thermaster WB-271B	Up to 271	Single	5 to 22°C	800 x 690 x 2015	10 to 38°C

How many bottles do you really get?

Bottle counts are based on standard 750 ml Bordeaux bottles. Electrolux Professional states its capacity as 50 x 750 ml Bordeaux bottles, Polar notes that its maximum is based on Bordeaux style bottles, and Thermaster lists its counts as "depending on size". Champagne, Burgundy and Riesling bottles are wider or taller, so a mixed cellar holds fewer than the headline number.

Buy for the bottles you hold at your busiest, plus room to grow. A wine fridge that is packed tight is hard to work from during service, because every bottle you pull means moving two others.

Single zone or dual zone?

• Single zone: the whole cabinet sits at one temperature. Right for long-term storage, or when the fridge holds only whites and sparkling, or only reds.
• Dual zone: two sections, each set to its own temperature, so reds and whites are both ready to pour. The Thermaster WB-218B does this with two doors side by side in 1,000 mm of width; the WB-155B does it in one 598 mm wide cabinet.

Check the temperature range against what you serve. Most of the models above can be set between 5°C and 18°C or 22°C, which covers chilled whites through to cellar-temperature reds.

Under bench, upright or built into the wall?

• Under bench (756 to 820 mm high): 24 to 51 bottles. The WB-51A and the WC50BK1Z are both 595 mm wide, so they suit a standard 600 mm bay under a bar or counter. The WB-24H needs only 430 mm.
• Upright (1,600 to 2,015 mm high): 155 to 271 bottles on roughly the floor space of a household fridge. The single-door uprights in the table are 595 to 800 mm wide.
• Wine cellar walls: the Fagor wine cellars are 862 mm wide with one door or 1,697 mm wide with two, in 2,300 or 2,600 mm heights, single or dual zone, with a 4°C to 18°C range. They are for a dining room feature wall, not a back bar. The two-door models need a 15 amp outlet.

Will it cope with a warm bar or restaurant?

Every fridge has a room temperature range it is built for. Most Thermaster wine coolers in the table are rated for rooms from 10°C to 38°C, the Electrolux Professional WC50BK1Z is guaranteed up to 38°C, and the Fagor cellars are rated to 40°C at 40% humidity. The Thermaster WB-51A is rated to 32°C, so keep it away from ovens, dishwashers and west-facing glass.

Features that protect the wine

• UV-protected glass. Light ages wine. The Thermaster WB-24H has a double-glazed, UV-protected tinted glass door; the Electrolux Professional models use UV treated glass, triple glazed on the WC50BK1Z.
• Low vibration. Vibration disturbs sediment. Thermaster lists a low vibration design and Electrolux Professional a vibration reduction system.
• Timber shelves. The WB-24H has beech wood shelves.
• A lock. Wine is easy to walk off with. The WB-24H, WB-194B, WB-218B and WC50BK1Z all list a lock.
• Lighting and display. LED lighting and a clear temperature display let the cabinet sell the wine list for you.

Wine fridge or bar fridge?

A wine fridge holds bottles on their sides at a steady temperature between about 5°C and 22°C. A bar fridge stands bottles upright and runs colder, for beer, mixers and soft drinks. Most venues need both: a wine fridge for the list and back bar fridges or bar fridges for everything else. For soft drinks out the front, see beverage fridges; for kitchen storage see under bench fridges.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best wine fridge for a restaurant? One sized to your list with the zones you need. For a short list, an under bench unit holding 24 to 51 bottles is enough. For a full list, an upright holding 155 to 271 bottles, dual zone if you pour both reds and whites from it.

How big is a 50 bottle wine fridge? About 595 mm wide and 820 mm high in our range, so it fits under a bench. The Thermaster WB-51A is 595 x 575 x 820 mm and the Electrolux Professional WC50BK1Z is 595 x 562 x 820 mm.

What temperature should a wine fridge be set to? It depends on the wine and how you serve it. The fridges in our table can be set from 5°C or 6°C up to 18°C or 22°C, so one cabinet can be set cool for whites or warmer for reds.

Do I need a dual zone wine fridge? Only if you want reds and whites ready to serve from one cabinet. If the fridge is for storage, or holds one style, single zone is simpler.

Can a commercial wine fridge go in a home? Yes. The under bench models are 430 to 595 mm wide and the Thermaster WB-271B, the largest single-door model in the table, lists a 10 amp plug at 220 W.

Sources: each model's capacity, zones, temperature range, room rating and size as listed by its maker on our product pages.