The Auswine Forum

We all buy wine for drinking, however individual tastes change, or you have a bad bottle that prejudices your thoughts on keeping the rest of your six pack. So off to auction they go. Only to try another from a friend or whatever that changes your mind again.

So, are there any particular wines that you now regret letting go?
Some of mine are
1996 Pol Winston Churchill
1990 Wynns BL -had too many, or so I thought. Silly decision.
2002 Turkey Flat Shiraz -I think I had the first one maybe during a closed down phase.
I'll probably think of more....

I have sold a lot of wine over the years due to too much wine and changing tastes. Most I have been happy to part with.

But this sadly, is very easy to answer; four bottles of 1991 Hill of Grace, bought for $75 in 1995 or 1996 and sold for $220 in 2004. Now I really want to drink them! I thought they had become too expensive when they hit $200!

Brodie

I have yet to sell a bottle of my wines. I was once offered $200 for a bottle of 1982 Sassicaia that I had paid $23 for but I refused outright. I did however trade three bottles of 1980 Chateau Lynch Bages (Paulliac) for a single bottle of 1981 Chateau Ducru-Beaucaillou (St Julien). I kind of regret this because the final bottle of the Lynch Bages had developed into a lovely old bottle of elegant claret. The Ducru-Beaucaillou is still slumbering so it still has a chance to validate my trade decision.

Mahmoud.

5 years ago, i sold my entire collection to help fund a business purchase. Still hurts to this day, even though it was the best decision I have ever made.

Still in the process of building it back up to its former levels.

Brodie, you reminded me I bought some 1990 Bin 707 and Hill of Grace for $25pb. We were building our our house around then and Mrs Hacker wanted granite bench tops in the kitchen, so those wines helped pay for them, together with a few Granges from the '80s.
My sadness of losing the wines was made up by marital peace.

Hacker wrote:Brodie, you reminded me I bought some 1990 Bin 707 and Hill of Grace for $25pb. We were building our our house around then and Mrs Hacker wanted granite bench tops in the kitchen, so those wines helped pay for them, together with a few Granges from the '80s.
My sadness of losing the wines was made up by marital peace.

You totally made the right decision. Wines can always be replaced but your relationship with your spouse cannot be. Relationships are more important in the long run.

Brodie

unless you want to replace the spouse ofcourse

01 d'yquem
Was blinded by $$$ signs, had 4, sold 3, shoulda kept em

VINH NGUYEN wrote:01 d'yquem
Was blinded by $$$ signs, had 4, sold 3, shoulda kept em

Stick to the offline circuit, I'm sure a taste will pop up sometime.

Mahmoud Ali wrote:I have yet to sell a bottle of my wines. I was once offered $200 for a bottle of 1982 Sassicaia that I had paid $23 for but I refused outright. I did however trade three bottles of 1980 Chateau Lynch Bages (Paulliac) for a single bottle of 1981 Chateau Ducru-Beaucaillou (St Julien). I kind of regret this because the final bottle of the Lynch Bages had developed into a lovely old bottle of elegant claret. The Ducru-Beaucaillou is still slumbering so it still has a chance to validate my trade decision.

Mahmoud.

Hi Mahmoud
Ditto, yet to sell a bottle. A forumite on another wine forum wanted to buy a bottle of 1954 Vallana Campi Raudii off me, but it just didn't seem right to take any money for it, so I gave him the bottle. We ended up visiting them in Sweden not long after and it was a memorable visit including a day trip to a forest that was absolutely covered in mushrooms (the brains of the operation is an amateur mycologist). The equivalent of giving one of us the keys to a high end wine shop and saying "help yourself".

As for the 1980 Lynch Bages, I tasted the 1980 and 1982 side by side (maybe 5-6 years ago) and the 1980 was easily the more enjoyable on the night. Yes the 1982 still had more to give, but the 1980 was a delight.

regards
Ian

2000 Chateau Lafite.... tried it in the so called dumb phase and sold most. Stupid. Will be an awesome wine in time..... and I can't afford to buy it now!

I sold about six dozen Australian Riesling about five years ago. Most were grossest and Petaluma.
Now every time I have an aged Riesling I say what an idiot I was.

Cheers Con.

Ian S wrote:A forumite on another wine forum wanted to buy a bottle of 1954 Vallana Campi Raudii off me, but it just didn't seem right to take any money for it, so I gave him the bottle.

As for the 1980 Lynch Bages, I tasted the 1980 and 1982 side by side (maybe 5-6 years ago) and the 1980 was easily the more enjoyable on the night. Yes the 1982 still had more to give, but the 1980 was a delight.

Very generous of you Ian, especially as the Vallana wines are very good and age well though I must admit I haven't seen or tasted one in a very, very long time.

I think it was about 5-6 years ago that I drank my last bottle of '80 Lynch Bage, the single bottle remaining from my trade back in the summer of 1990 when I attended a Bordeaux 10 year retrospective. I now have high hopes for my other four bottles of 1980 Bordeaux. It continues to amaze me how wines from weak vintages can blossom into such lovely old drinks.

Cheers ......................... Mahmoud.

Divorce has been the killer of many a wine collect and my divorce in 03 accounted for me loosing a number of wines I wish I had now. Interestingly I probably have forgotten about most of the wines. I know there were a few cases of top end NAPA and Bordeaux, but from them it was the single bottle of 1990 Harlan, the first commercial vintage, that I would love to have now. I remember selling 7 bottles of 96 Block 42 Cabernet as well - was gutted - but I actually managed to buy a couple of the bottles back a few years later.

A bottle of Penfolds 1962 Bin 60A bought as a present to myself for my 40th birthday 19 years ago. In perfect condition with level into neck. Bought for $320 and sold a year later for $1,000 to fund my habit. A few months later I was reading an article on the top 100 wines in the history of the world and it was ranked 7th. Felt like slitting my wrists.

Carl

Ouch, that must have hurt. My sympathies Carl.

Mahmoud.

Mahmoud Ali wrote:

Ian S wrote:Very generous of you Ian, especially as the Vallana wines are very good and age well though I must admit I haven't seen or tasted one in a very, very long time.

Ah, but so was Anders and his wife in hosting us - and indeed his friend who we met in London when we met up, who took us for a meal at the RAC club (they happened to have Seb Vettel's F1 winning car in the lobby - cool). One of those situations where what it cost us, wasn't comparable to what it was selling for at the time, nor the pleasure of getting someone a birth year wine when there aren't many options for that vintage. I reckon they were more generous than us.

Checking back on CT, it seems we got to drink 4 bottles of the 1954 ourselves, with the final one also being given away as a thank you. I doubt we'll get to taste another from that era, but I'm really happy we got to try them.

Chuck wrote:A bottle of Penfolds 1962 Bin 60A bought as a present to myself for my 40th birthday 19 years ago. In perfect condition with level into neck. Bought for $320 and sold a year later for $1,000 to fund my habit. A few months later I was reading an article on the top 100 wines in the history of the world and it was ranked 7th. Felt like slitting my wrists.

Carl

Madness

Chuck wrote:A bottle of Penfolds 1962 Bin 60A bought as a present to myself for my 40th birthday 19 years ago. In perfect condition with level into neck. Bought for $320 and sold a year later for $1,000 to fund my habit. A few months later I was reading an article on the top 100 wines in the history of the world and it was ranked 7th.

Carl

Purchased 5 x 1962 bin 60a over the years and put 4 into auction and kept the best looking bottle, perfect label and levels, to try. On opening low level TCA.
GUTTED.

crusty2 wrote:

Chuck wrote:A bottle of Penfolds 1962 Bin 60A bought as a present to myself for my 40th birthday 19 years ago. In perfect condition with level into neck. Bought for $320 and sold a year later for $1,000 to fund my habit. A few months later I was reading an article on the top 100 wines in the history of the world and it was ranked 7th.

Carl

Purchased 5 x 1962 bin 60a over the years and put 4 into auction and kept the best looking bottle, perfect label and levels, to try. On opening low level TCA.
GUTTED.

My sympathies. Last I heard it was selling for around $4,000 per bottle. The Penfolds 1990 Bin 90A is made in the some style. Best cab from Coonawarra with best Barossa shiraz from a great vintage. Best wine I've ever had. Still have 2 bottles tucked away and one passed at a recent Penfolds Clinic. The other was badly TCA affected and was replaced by Penfolds. They were willing to replace it with a Grange but I dug in and Sparky can up with a bottle from Penfolds cellar. Thanks again Sparky.

Carl