What is the Miele KWT 6322 UG?
The Miele KWT 6322 UG is not a wine cooler; It is a construction wine conditioning unit under two levels controlled by temperature and humidity. The difference probably has a lot to do with your choice of wine. If your favorite drink is the value of Tesco Pinot Grigio, continue right now.
If you fall in the category of connoisseur of wine lovers, the luxurious KWT 6322 UK from Miele is the answer. Incredibly stable temperatures, vibration-free operation and noise, an automatic door opener, and an excellent fit and finish contribute greatly to justify its dazzling price.
Miele KWT 6322 UG – Design and features
The KWT 6322 UG is by far the most ambitious wine cabinet we have tested. It offers two independent zones of controlled temperature for different wine styles, Active AirClean filters toilets and humidity control DynaCool. To ensure that your wine stays as stable as possible, there is an anti-vibration motor and UV protection. If the room temperature falls below the set temperature, a heating element will heat the compartment.
This machine is designed to keep your wines in optimal conditions and display them with an elegance and luxury that is second to none.
You can adjust the temperature for any zone between 5-20ºC, with completely independent controls for each one. The lower area has a slightly higher capacity. You can polarize your red (warmer temperature) / white (colder) division in both directions. The touch controls are located on the center panel inside to keep the exterior elegant.
The door has double glazing with UV blocking glass. It is also without buttons and without drivers. Gently press the glass and the motorized opener pushes the door open a few degrees. Then you can grab the frame to open the door. If it does not, a few seconds later it closes automatically to keep the temperature constant. Just push the door backwards after you have drunk the wine and the automatic soft closing mechanism does the rest. That is properly exuberant.
The luminaires and accessories inside take Miele's legendary build quality and raise it to 11. The three wooden shelves extend easily over the telescopic runners with ball bearings. This guarantees the minimum vibration when you select your wine.
The shelves are fully configurable, since all the wooden rails are hooked and unhooked in various positions. For larger diameter bottles, such as Champagne, for example, the spacing of the more separated corridors will accommodate very well.
LED lighting is placed in various parts of the compartment to illuminate each shelf. Open the door and the lights will light softly and disappear once the door is closed. You can also set the lights permanently, with the user's brightness control, to show the wine. The control panel allows you to adjust the brightness of the screen, activate and deactivate the key tones, lock the keyboard and activate the DynaCool function.
DynaCool increases relative humidity and uses fans to evenly distribute moisture and air with controlled temperature inside. It uses a little more electricity, but for perfect long-term wine storage conditions, it is best to leave it on.
To the right of the control panel is the Active AirClean filter that filters and conditions the air sucked into the appliance. The filter has a life expectancy of around 12 months. A small warning light appears on the screen when it needs to be replaced.
You can also get smarter with the storage and packaging of your wine with the optional MKS XKS 300 Z wireless module (£ 99). This allows the KWT 6322 UG to communicate with the Miele @ home application and display the temperature of the compartment, activate the warnings and so on.
Miele KWT 6322 UG – How noisy is it?
We are very used to modern high quality refrigerators that measure 40dB or even less. That's a little quieter than, say, a library. It's hard for us to measure anything below 38 dB as ambient wind sound around the building and a distant road is higher than that.
Miele claims that it only has a noise output of 36 dB for the KWT 63322 UG. That figure is supported by the same number on the energy label. In fact, that's the lowest number we've seen for noise output on an energy label on any appliance. The work done to guarantee zero vibrations of the engine, once again to ensure that the wine is not disturbed, has also damped the sound output.
In the middle of a still night, crawling through the lab in slippers and a monkey, we measured 36dB. However, that was just the ambient noise from the lab, even with the Miele turned off. We had to admit the defeat and say that the KWT 6322 UG was so silent that we could not measure it. Wow
Miele KWT 6322 UG – How much can I get?
The KWT 6322 UG is classified as a 34-bottle wine conditioner. That means Bordeaux-style bottles of standard shape and size. Fourteen of them fit in the upper zone and 20 in the lower zone. The larger bottles and the stranger shapes can be easily accommodated thanks to the adjustable wooden runners, but obviously you will not get that many. It is not necessary to stack bottles, since each one has its own place in a shelf free of vibrations.
On the front edge of each of the removable shelves there is a magnetic strip with a black finish. You can cut out magnetic markers or name tags, or use the chalk pen supplied by Miele to label the contents of the shelf. We decided to write with chalk instead of letting it feel luxurious, so we would look for some flexible magnetic labels.
There are two areas of fixed shelves. At the top, the wine bottles simply sit on a shaped shelf on the control panel. At the bottom, another wooden shelf simply sits at the base of the artifact.
The temperature in any of the compartments can be adjusted between 5ºC and 20ºC. The manual suggests some ideal storage temperatures for those who are new to the subject of wine. For example, light and fruity red wines are best preserved at 14-16ºC, while their Champagnes and sparkling wines (Asti Spumante from Tesco, always a winner here …) are best stored at 6-10ºC.
Miele also recommends storing wine at 1 to 2ºC cooler than the recommended temperature for drinking, as it warms a little when poured into the glass. Now we believe that it is just a kind of attention to detail of the user that this appliance deserves.
Of course, 34 bottles is not a large amount of wine, especially for wine enthusiasts. The answer, says Miele, is two KWT 6322 UG. For such configuration, Miele provides a side-by-side combination kit. The door of one of the appliances can be reversed to offer a comfort side by side of a closet and four temperature controlled zones for different wines. You also get a hole in your bank balance that you could otherwise buy a small car. Still, if you like your wine …
Miele KWT 6322 UG – Performance
It was no wonder that this Miele produced very consistent and stable temperatures everywhere. We tested the KWT 322 UG in our environmental chamber at a constant room temperature of 18ºC to reproduce an average kitchen in the United Kingdom.
We set the upper zone for red wines at 14 ºC and the lower zone for white wines at 6 ºC cold. Over the course of two weeks, the upper shelf averaged 14.4 ºC and the lower shelf 5 ºC. it was one degree below the target, but given Miele's suggestion of going down a grade or two to take into account the heating effect of the wine glass, that fits in very well.
In addition, temperatures were super-stable. In the upper part, the fluctuation was only +/- 0.5ºC during the compressor cycle. The lower compartment was even better with only +/- 0.3 ° C on the shelf and +/- 0.2 ° C on the lower shelf. Ironically, if he kept his fruits and vegetables here he would last for years with stable temperatures.
The machine does a small defrosting cycle every 18 hours or so. Here the air temperature varies around -2ºC at the top and + 3ºC at the bottom for around 20 minutes. Given the short duration, it is unlikely to have any effect on your premium wine.
Miele KWT 6322 UG: How much will it cost to run?
Given the sale price of the KWT 6322 UG, the operating costs are probably not too high for the possible concerns of the buyers we suspect. However, as befits a top quality appliance, this wine conditioner uses a large amount of Miele refrigerator technology and has an A rating for energy efficiency.
It may seem a bit low compared to A + and A ++ freezers, but also wine conditioners use electric current in fresh air that needs cooling (or heating) and keep humidity controlled precisely. During a two-week trial period, with temperatures set as indicated in the performance section, he used 6.12kWh. More than a year would amount to around 159kWh, or around £ 24 at an average UK electricity price of 15p / kWh.
The energy label suggests a bit lower at 144kWh, but the figure will be highly dependent on the temperatures you set. If you only store red wines at higher temperatures in both areas, you would use a little less electricity. On the contrary, configure both zones to cool that Asti value and use a little more. Similarly, if you want the LED lighting to stay on, add another couple of pounds per year on operating costs.
Why buy the Miele KWT 6322 UG?
While many may consider the sale price of KWT 6322 UG somewhere north of ridiculous, it does what it proposes and does it with unparalleled style and panache. It offers incredibly stable wine storage conditions in an active environment with an air filter, humidity and vibration control that will undoubtedly keep premium wines in excellent condition.
We can not blame the technical capabilities, features, usability or style of the KWT 6322 UG, and it's right there on our wish list of appliances in our fantasy kitchen. A couple of them, obviously. If wine is your thing and the sale price of Miele does not discourage you, then the KWT 6322 UG is a clear 5-star winner of an appliance.
Related: Best Refrigerator Freezers
Verdict
With its unparalleled performance, ease of use and style, the Miele KWT 6322 UG wine conditioner is the ultimate accessory for the wine connoisseur.