The Auswine Forum

Hi all,

This is probably asking a bit much, but I know that at least Ric had similar cellaring conditions in his 'remote' past (I have met you now Ric, perhaps I can get away with this??? Perhaps not?).

I am storing my wines in styrofoam containers (fully enclosed, with lids) under our bed in a relative cool (for Sydney) bedroom in an old federation semi. The room gets no direct sun, double brick walls, wood floor - not really subject to wide temperature ranges (maybe 14-26 min overnight/max during the day for whole year). I have no other options available, there is not even space for one of those fridge like containers.

Most of the recommendations around for aging wine suggest timeframes that are dependent on optimal, or reasonably optimal condictions. My conditions are not optimal, but probably not catastrophic.

I understand that temperature fluctuations and higher than optimal temperatures will age the wine faster. But how much faster?

If the label on the back of the wine, the critics in the press and the guys and gals on Auswine forums consistently suggest that wine A will age nicely for 12 to 15 years, by what factor should I reduce this time. As my collection will probably not be huge, and I may only have half a dozen bottles of some wines (reducing my opportunities to test over a period), I don't want to start on a wine only to find that I have waited too long and have to ditch the lot.

Not looking for anything definitive but a rough guide will help. Any ideas?

I've got some Bin 389, Paul Osicka, Redesdale, Stanley Bros all of which specify, or are recommended for cellaring between 12-15 years. I have some Willow Vineyards and getting some Warrabilla wines for which it is suggested 5 years might be more appropriate.

How much should I reduce the times to accommodate less than perfect, but not catastrophic cellaring conditions? Appreciate your advice and won't hold you to it. A rough guide will assist.

Regards,

Allan

All u need to know:

http://www.cellaringwine.com/

Tyson Stelzer was a regular here till his new found fame

With ur cellaring, I would recommend to drink up within 5 yrs. In 12-15years, the wine wouldn't be at it's optimal condition.

Chow Chow is right, I think, with the wines you mention anyhow. There are exceptions; Grange for example, is likely to survive pretty well unscatched in your conditions for a long time, but it's a pretty ambiguous game here. Drink up and then buy from auctions, or find yourself a more sensible place to store your gone-off grape juice?

Hi,

As you might see by some of my previous posts i've been struggling with the same dilema. I've given it some thought and have come up with the best compromise i can think of right now.

Basically my collection (small but growing ) will be split into 2 locations.

1. Cheaper stuff that i am intending on drinking over a 2-3 year period will be kept in the house in the best place i can find ( ie: out of direct sunlight etc.. Reckon i can stash about 6-8 cases like this

2. The better more expensive stuff that i want to age properly is going offsite. If you look around you can get some decent storage for a reasonable price. Prices seem to start at about $20 a month for 8-12 cases up to about $40 for 24 cases. You can go bigger but then it starts getting expensive


That way i figure as long as i don't go over approx 30 cases i should be set. Only problem is keeping below the 30 case mark now !!

Thanks Chow Chow, Jakob and Action,

I'll have a look at the suggested website and explore the options a little further.

Regards,

Allan

BUY the BOOK from Tyson Stelzer!

Chow Chow,

Yep, tried to get it today at Ultimo Wines which is listed as a retailer - no go. Will try Winestar next.

Regards

Allan

Apologies all, I got the low temerature way wrong, probably doesn't get below 14 degrees. So the bedroom termperature range is 14-26'ish. I have since edited the first post in the thread.

Regards,

Allan

My cellaring conditions have gone from average to near perfect but I still have many of the wines from the average cellaring period. I'm starting to drink many of them now and just had a 93 bin 389 the other night that after having spent the first year of it's life in a dining room with not too bad daily fluctuation but certainly not the nest either and then pretty good conditions and then into perfect conditions and now to near perfect conditions, ti was drinking perfectly the other night after ten years or so.

What you've got really isn't that bad. Certainly not bad enough to justify halving the recommended cellaring periods. The main thing is daily fluctuations so providing you don't put the heater on in your bedroom or the heat from an electric blanket gets through under the bed (and through the styrofoam) in winter, it will probably do pretty well. For a wine recommended for 10 - 12 years cellaring, I'd be inclined to open the first bottle at 5 - 7 years and see how it's going. I certainly wouldn't drink the lot. You'll need to take notes at this tasting and if it's still a bit young (and you like your wines older) try it again at 8 or 9. If it feels like it's mature, then drink them over the next two years. I think you'll find this situation is better than you expect.

Your other main issue may be vibration as I assume these bottle are lying on the floor. Depends on your floorboards how stable they would be.

As action2896 suggests, it's not a bad idea to keep your better bottles in professional storage. If you can pack them so they have similar maturity dates and you can get out a case at a time when they are nearing their peak. $20 a month is not a lot to pay to ensure perfect wine (assuming they're in screwcap!). If you buy in Ultimo, wineark can help you with storage. They're in Camperdown / Annandale.

Thanks Kris for taking the time with the detailed advice, it's helpful to know that I am probably not doing any serious damage to my fledgling collection for the time being. Gives me a bit of breathing space. I'll check out wine ark. In the meantime I have also ordered Stelzer's book, perhaps there is a more suitable passive solution for me there. In any case, there is no need for me to get into a flap just yet about the 'cellar under the bed'.

That's helpful. Thanks.

Allan

PS: the floor is pretty stable and is not a high traffic area, we don't use heating or an electic blanket.