Spent most of today digging all (please don't laugh) my wine out of a friends storeroom to catalogue it as it is starting to get to a point where I don't quite know what I've got and I don't want any nasty surprises in 10 years time. The stats for those interested:
102 bottles
49 Cabernet Sauvignon (incl blends)
30 Shiraz
40 wines from Margaret River
18 from Barossa
12 from Coonawarra
12 from Great Southern
Prized possessions
2 x Moss Wood 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon
2 x Woodlands 2001 Kevin Cab Sauv
2 x Cullen 2004 Diana Madeline
I know it's not much but at 28 I've got time on my side (I hope!!).
My fledgling cellar!
Mine's probably slightly larger (130-150) with my prized possessions being:
- last 4 vintages of Duck Muck
- last 3 vintages of Rockford BP
- last 3 vintages of Stonyridge Larose
- and some 1998's (from when I started collecting)
So at 34 I also like to think I have time on my side
- last 4 vintages of Duck Muck
- last 3 vintages of Rockford BP
- last 3 vintages of Stonyridge Larose
- and some 1998's (from when I started collecting)
So at 34 I also like to think I have time on my side
Ciao,
michaelw
You know it makes sense!
michaelw
You know it makes sense!
I have about 180 bottles in Pro Storage and am also a Youngie at 28. I expect to break 200 very soon even though I am trying to cut back on buying wine {As If 
} and buy shares instead {not that I buy wine to sell!!}..as I have orders with Bindi,Giaconda and will order some Mount Mary and Noon.
I have a few special occasion single bottles such as
1x Penfolds Bin 90A
1x Penfolds Block 42 96
1x Burge Family Draycott Reserve 98
1x Dom Perignon 1996
1x Torbreck descendant 2003 {My favourite of their range when i visited even with 2002 Runrig included so had to get 1}
1x Wolf Blass Platinum 2001
Probly a couple more I cant think of..Looking to get a few single bottles of very good Burgs Red/White and some mid price Bordeaux in there too.
(Some) Favourite Wines that I have More than 1 of but find hard to resist not drinking all now are..
3x Wirra Wirra Chook Blocks 02
3x Orlando Jacaranda Ridge 98
4x St Peters 02
5x Balnaves The Tally 04
3x Epis Pinot current release
Combo of 96/98 389's
2x Mount Mary Chard 04
} and buy shares instead {not that I buy wine to sell!!}..as I have orders with Bindi,Giaconda and will order some Mount Mary and Noon.
I have a few special occasion single bottles such as
1x Penfolds Bin 90A
1x Penfolds Block 42 96
1x Burge Family Draycott Reserve 98
1x Dom Perignon 1996
1x Torbreck descendant 2003 {My favourite of their range when i visited even with 2002 Runrig included so had to get 1}
1x Wolf Blass Platinum 2001
Probly a couple more I cant think of..Looking to get a few single bottles of very good Burgs Red/White and some mid price Bordeaux in there too.
(Some) Favourite Wines that I have More than 1 of but find hard to resist not drinking all now are..
3x Wirra Wirra Chook Blocks 02
3x Orlando Jacaranda Ridge 98
4x St Peters 02
5x Balnaves The Tally 04
3x Epis Pinot current release
Combo of 96/98 389's
2x Mount Mary Chard 04
Logically you'll have a pretty good choice when you think "what do I fancy to drink tonight". Maybe half of those really need more age on them, but the remainder would be fine, albeit maybe with a vigourous decant. That still leaves plenty of choice. Logically your cellar doesn't need to grow much more. However it usually does and it's a very good time to contemplate this.
For many the cellar grows out of control, because they see a great review of a wine and want to try it (e.g. Mamre Brook, Woodlands).
Others see certain wines as a slice of history and want a piece of it (e.g. Wendouree, Tahbilk 1860's vines)
Others see a potential star in the making and want to "get onboard" before the price goes crazy (e.g. Teusner, Torbreck)
Others want a selection of long ageing wines, so go for good solid cellar builders (e.g. Grosset Rieslings, Wynns Black Label)
Others chase bargains and can't turn down a great offer (e.g. various sales, auctions, Gavins irresistable deals
).
Others want to collect verticals of a wine, or at least multiple bottles of multiple vintages and love tracking the wines as they age.
Some buy for investment (thankfully less in Oz than in Europe and in relation to Bordeaux), with plenty buying young as they perceive they won't be able to afford to buy it at mature wine prices (again this one's Bordeaux focussed)
Others just enjoy buying wine and it certainly is an easy addiction to acquire.
I'm sure we see some of these in all of us
If you can decide now WHY you want to collect wine, it may help in focussing your collecting.
It's also a good idea to recognise your consumption and work out how long your cellar would last without another purchase. Anything under a year is undoubtedly too short unless you generally prefer young quaffers. Around 2-3 years is fairly healthy and allows you to buy further quaffers or mature bottles. Around 5 years is quite typical and starts to represent a risk that the habit is growing out of control. 10 years or above means that unless a severe brake is put on buying it, then you'll never drink it all (or even close) and a lot of bottles will get shipped off the auction when you pop your cork.
Finally the old comment, is watch for changing tastes and don't put all your eggs in the same basket. My tastes have switched from an Oz focus to a wider spread still including Oz, but also Italy, mature bordeaux, NZ, Musar and burgundy and Spain are creeping interests alongside others.
Currently we have around 230-240 bottles and thankfully space limitations restrict us to around 260-270 max, otherwise I'd probably have double that (and growing).
regards
Ian
For many the cellar grows out of control, because they see a great review of a wine and want to try it (e.g. Mamre Brook, Woodlands).
Others see certain wines as a slice of history and want a piece of it (e.g. Wendouree, Tahbilk 1860's vines)
Others see a potential star in the making and want to "get onboard" before the price goes crazy (e.g. Teusner, Torbreck)
Others want a selection of long ageing wines, so go for good solid cellar builders (e.g. Grosset Rieslings, Wynns Black Label)
Others chase bargains and can't turn down a great offer (e.g. various sales, auctions, Gavins irresistable deals
).
Others want to collect verticals of a wine, or at least multiple bottles of multiple vintages and love tracking the wines as they age.
Some buy for investment (thankfully less in Oz than in Europe and in relation to Bordeaux), with plenty buying young as they perceive they won't be able to afford to buy it at mature wine prices (again this one's Bordeaux focussed)
Others just enjoy buying wine and it certainly is an easy addiction to acquire.
I'm sure we see some of these in all of us
If you can decide now WHY you want to collect wine, it may help in focussing your collecting.
It's also a good idea to recognise your consumption and work out how long your cellar would last without another purchase. Anything under a year is undoubtedly too short unless you generally prefer young quaffers. Around 2-3 years is fairly healthy and allows you to buy further quaffers or mature bottles. Around 5 years is quite typical and starts to represent a risk that the habit is growing out of control. 10 years or above means that unless a severe brake is put on buying it, then you'll never drink it all (or even close) and a lot of bottles will get shipped off the auction when you pop your cork.
Finally the old comment, is watch for changing tastes and don't put all your eggs in the same basket. My tastes have switched from an Oz focus to a wider spread still including Oz, but also Italy, mature bordeaux, NZ, Musar and burgundy and Spain are creeping interests alongside others.
Currently we have around 230-240 bottles and thankfully space limitations restrict us to around 260-270 max, otherwise I'd probably have double that (and growing).
regards
Ian
still a bit of time on my side. ive kept my cellar between 300 and 350 for the last 8 years, which suits my purposes fine. shifting house soon so im sure i will appreciate it hasnt grown any bigger since my last move! I have a few cases of obscenely expensive wine but just a bottle or two of each.
riesling is my future - still cheap at top quality levels
riesling is my future - still cheap at top quality levels
Follow me on Vivino for tasting notes Craig Thomson
Ian there is so much in what you say that is familiar for me.
Been there, over it now. Trust your palate, dont have absolute faith in reviews.
The only winerly where I've done this is Rockford, and I'm now questioning whether that is a good idea.
Done this with Savaterre and Castagna, but its too late, the prices are already crazy!
Usually go for 5 to 7 years ageing to get secondary characters without giving up all the primary fruit
yes, do a bit of this
I've ended up with verticals where I'm trying to support a winery and not get kicked off their list, rather than to explicitly create a vertical.
again. I'll admit there is an element of peer pressure too. As many of us do, I share my drinking time with like minded friends with with reasonably similar palates, tastes and budgets. This drives me to keep a cellar with variety and to a similar standard.
Great metric Ian. I've contemplated all sorts of maths around this, with "cellar duration curves", etc, but this is simple and works well.
Oh hell yes, my tastes have moved all over the place in the last 10 years, and I've turned over my 700-800 bottle cellar once through auction sales as I realise I dont actualy like certain styles. I cant agree strongly enough not to go to crazy on one style for exactly this reason.
Oh, and still have some days to go before I leave my 30s, so I have some time on my side.
To al the twentysomethings, be patient, you really, really dont want to end up with a 5000 bottle cellar full of robbish.
AB
Ian S wrote:For many the cellar grows out of control, because they see a great review of a wine and want to try it (e.g. Mamre Brook, Woodlands).
Been there, over it now. Trust your palate, dont have absolute faith in reviews.
Ian S wrote:Others see certain wines as a slice of history and want a piece of it (e.g. Wendouree, Tahbilk 1860's vines)
The only winerly where I've done this is Rockford, and I'm now questioning whether that is a good idea.
Ian S wrote:Others see a potential star in the making and want to "get onboard" before the price goes crazy (e.g. Teusner, Torbreck)
Done this with Savaterre and Castagna, but its too late, the prices are already crazy!
Ian S wrote:Others want a selection of long ageing wines, so go for good solid cellar builders (e.g. Grosset Rieslings, Wynns Black Label)
Usually go for 5 to 7 years ageing to get secondary characters without giving up all the primary fruit
Ian S wrote:Others chase bargains and can't turn down a great offer (e.g. various sales, auctions, Gavins irresistable deals
yes, do a bit of thisIan S wrote:Others want to collect verticals of a wine, or at least multiple bottles of multiple vintages and love tracking the wines as they age.
I've ended up with verticals where I'm trying to support a winery and not get kicked off their list, rather than to explicitly create a vertical.
Ian S wrote:Others just enjoy buying wine and it certainly is an easy addiction to acquire.
again. I'll admit there is an element of peer pressure too. As many of us do, I share my drinking time with like minded friends with with reasonably similar palates, tastes and budgets. This drives me to keep a cellar with variety and to a similar standard.Ian S wrote:It's also a good idea to recognise your consumption and work out how long your cellar would last without another purchase. Anything under a year is undoubtedly too short unless you generally prefer young quaffers. Around 2-3 years is fairly healthy and allows you to buy further quaffers or mature bottles. Around 5 years is quite typical and starts to represent a risk that the habit is growing out of control. 10 years or above means that unless a severe brake is put on buying it, then you'll never drink it all (or even close) and a lot of bottles will get shipped off the auction when you pop your cork.
Great metric Ian. I've contemplated all sorts of maths around this, with "cellar duration curves", etc, but this is simple and works well.
Ian S wrote:Finally the old comment, is watch for changing tastes and don't put all your eggs in the same basket. My tastes have switched from an Oz focus to a wider spread still including Oz, but also Italy, mature bordeaux, NZ, Musar and burgundy and Spain are creeping interests alongside others.
Oh hell yes, my tastes have moved all over the place in the last 10 years, and I've turned over my 700-800 bottle cellar once through auction sales as I realise I dont actualy like certain styles. I cant agree strongly enough not to go to crazy on one style for exactly this reason.
Oh, and still have some days to go before I leave my 30s, so I have some time on my side.
To al the twentysomethings, be patient, you really, really dont want to end up with a 5000 bottle cellar full of robbish.
AB
To al the twentysomethings, be patient, you really, really dont want to end up with a 5000 bottle cellar full of robbish.
agree. I have never had the need to send any wine to auction because 1. I never let the quantities get out of hand and 2. I buy reasonably widely. 3. I basically never buy away from my plan. 4. I can leave a bargain and i dont have to have every great wine in my cellar. 5. I never buy lesser vintages unless it is one of the few labels I trust through experience to rise above the vintage.
Wine can be an exciting interest or a destructive money sapping obsession. I like to keep it strictly on the boundary between the two
Follow me on Vivino for tasting notes Craig Thomson
Craig(NZ) wrote:
riesling is my future - still cheap at top quality levels
Amen to that and long may it continue ,I still find it hard to beilieve the QPR of this variety.
Ian I think I qualify for most of those reasons and the other one which always gets me is "vintage of the century" although this seems to be wearing a bit thin now.
My take on it is that the size, or number of bottles really doesn't matter. Unless you want to drop numbers into conversations or try to impress people. Cause there is always going to someone you meet with more/better.
What does matter is that it meets your drinking needs.
Me. My aim is to have, on average one well cellared ready to drink bottle a week -- or on the order of 5 cases per year. This is then filled out with non-cellared quaffers. The trick with keeping constant numbers is over the course of the year to buy a similar number to what you consume.
As noted above... that can be very hard to do. I know I am guilty of at least some of the above. But like Craig - I try to stick to my plan, I can leave (most) bargains.
What does matter is that it meets your drinking needs.
Me. My aim is to have, on average one well cellared ready to drink bottle a week -- or on the order of 5 cases per year. This is then filled out with non-cellared quaffers. The trick with keeping constant numbers is over the course of the year to buy a similar number to what you consume.
As noted above... that can be very hard to do. I know I am guilty of at least some of the above. But like Craig - I try to stick to my plan, I can leave (most) bargains.
David G
"I'm going to die with a twinkle in my eye cause I sung songs, spun stories, loved, laughed and drank wine"
"I'm going to die with a twinkle in my eye cause I sung songs, spun stories, loved, laughed and drank wine"
-
Ratcatcher
- Posts: 374
- Joined: Sat Jan 01, 2005 1:01 pm
- Location: Hobart
It was timely that this post appeared. I sorted a few boxes of wine yesterday and realised I have got an absurdly high number of bottles.
I was going to post a message asking how people manage to stop themselves.
I buy wines for nearly all the reasons that Ian listed. I started collecting before we had kids and had regular dinner parties and went out a lot. Now that those events have reduced I haven't slowed down my purchasing I have actually increased it which is insane.
How can I stop? If I see a wine I like and want and it's a bargain and I know I'll wish I'd bought a few in 5 years time how do I stop myself from buying?
Obviously once the kids get older I may have occasion to drink a few more but at present rates of consumption I have enough to last me 10-12 years if I ceased all buying right now.
I was going to post a message asking how people manage to stop themselves.
I buy wines for nearly all the reasons that Ian listed. I started collecting before we had kids and had regular dinner parties and went out a lot. Now that those events have reduced I haven't slowed down my purchasing I have actually increased it which is insane.
How can I stop? If I see a wine I like and want and it's a bargain and I know I'll wish I'd bought a few in 5 years time how do I stop myself from buying?
Obviously once the kids get older I may have occasion to drink a few more but at present rates of consumption I have enough to last me 10-12 years if I ceased all buying right now.
Hey,
I'm 26 and in a similar boat to a few of you, my cellar is up to around 170, but i just pulled 2 doz out to get me through the next couple of months.
Having started collecting back in 1999, my early cellar was built from the 97,98 and 99 vintages, which i am starting to now drink the profits so to speak. It is interesting to see how the wines that got me kooked early on have changed and also how my palate has changed as well.
The 'early collection' is largely cab and shiraz based and dominated by the fruity, ballsy and generally big wines of the barossa and mclaren vale. Seeing a lot of these wines 7-8 years on has proved interesting, particularly i'm finding that a lot of the 99's seem classier than the 98's. Given that we're talking about wines in the $20-$30 bracket, there are no 'icons' in the current batch from the 'early collection'. Producers like Turky Flat, Melton, Langmeil, Mamre Brook, Metala etc figure prominently here.
Looking at my cellar list, if i look through the vintages 2000-01 were pinot and chardonnay years, 2002 was shiraz and cab again and a fair bit of riesling and 2003-04 are very mixed. Overall my list is fairly evenly spread between cab, shiraz, pinot, riesling and semillon.
The next challenge for me is to start building a collection of international wines, which given the cost of these will be difficult but fun damn interesting nonetheless.
Cheers
Cheyne
I'm 26 and in a similar boat to a few of you, my cellar is up to around 170, but i just pulled 2 doz out to get me through the next couple of months.
Having started collecting back in 1999, my early cellar was built from the 97,98 and 99 vintages, which i am starting to now drink the profits so to speak. It is interesting to see how the wines that got me kooked early on have changed and also how my palate has changed as well.
The 'early collection' is largely cab and shiraz based and dominated by the fruity, ballsy and generally big wines of the barossa and mclaren vale. Seeing a lot of these wines 7-8 years on has proved interesting, particularly i'm finding that a lot of the 99's seem classier than the 98's. Given that we're talking about wines in the $20-$30 bracket, there are no 'icons' in the current batch from the 'early collection'. Producers like Turky Flat, Melton, Langmeil, Mamre Brook, Metala etc figure prominently here.
Looking at my cellar list, if i look through the vintages 2000-01 were pinot and chardonnay years, 2002 was shiraz and cab again and a fair bit of riesling and 2003-04 are very mixed. Overall my list is fairly evenly spread between cab, shiraz, pinot, riesling and semillon.
The next challenge for me is to start building a collection of international wines, which given the cost of these will be difficult but fun damn interesting nonetheless.
Cheers
Cheyne
Ratcatcher wrote:
I was going to post a message asking how people manage to stop themselves.
When the wife threatens you with divorce
- with summer comming along I will start to focus on fishing out of my kayak with soft plastics - SP's alot cheaper than buying vino but I can understand how you feel Ratcatcher - too much good wine not enough bucks 
regards
How can I stop? If I see a wine I like and want and it's a bargain and I know I'll wish I'd bought a few in 5 years time how do I stop myself from buying?
1. Visit Less Wine Shops
2. Delete the wine emails
3. Get a life doing other things
I think basically it comes down to a realisation that you dont have to have every 'must have' wine. ive settled on a few labels I really enjoy and really dont bother with too many others
It also helps to have a really fussy palate.
There really isnt too many wines I wish id bought more of, because it comes down to the fact that there are heaps of great wines about - you dont exactly run out. There is always another top vintage around the corner.
Im not interested in being addicted to buying wine. And it can just become that. I can shout my family and friends a good bottle of wine but I can also spend my money taking them to a restaurant or some other treat, I can buy my kids some books etc etc.....sometimes wine just gets too much share of wallet
I tried a few wines in Marlborough I really liked in the weekend eg the 05 Nautalis Pinot Noir and the 02 Newton Cornerstone Cabernet Merlot, but I didnt buy and it feeles good to say no as often as yes.....
All this preaching from a guy going to a $270 tasting this weekend
Follow me on Vivino for tasting notes Craig Thomson
Ratcatcher wrote:How can I stop? If I see a wine I like and want and it's a bargain and I know I'll wish I'd bought a few in 5 years time how do I stop myself from buying?
As a community and family service I will close down my site...
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from 13 October for a bit over 2 weeks as I go off on holidays.
Cheers
Brian
Life's too short to drink white wine and red wine is better for you too! :-)
Brian
Life's too short to drink white wine and red wine is better for you too! :-)