The Auswine Forum

I recently updated my spreadsheet and discovered i will have to drink a bottle a day over the next "x" number of years to finally drink the last one.
maybe a survey of forumites could help me determine if i am a compulsive buyer and reticent drinker.
My current "x" value is 5+
I realise I have some "dead" wines in the cellar but some have significance. I still have the first 2 bottles I ever bought as new releases to put down, 1976 Grange. (nice way to start on a hedonistic hobby)

I look at it as an approximate average of 4 bottles a week and in that case I think I have about 5 years up my sleeve. It does take some management though as I am beginning to realise!

I'm a compulsive buyer. There are so many bargains around at the moment. I can't say no.

I've got 6 years worth at current drinking rates and that's if I don't buy any more in that 6 years. Not likely.

I'm with you Ratcatcher. Prices are ridiculous for some great ageing wines and I wonder whether this will be sustained over the medium to long term. In any event, it's good for now. I'm just getting over a burst of acquisitions which has dented my credit card somewhat but boosted the racks considerably. I easily buy more than I drink right now but for my wallet's sake hope that changes for a while!!!

If you're posting here, then it's a racing certainty that you're a compulsive buyer

We've got just short of 250 bottles, but only drink a bottle a week (but up to 3 bottles a week when we're both at home). This makes for that magical 5 year figure at worst, with c. 2 years at best.

But the fact is that we're still buying - so maybe the best advice is to ensure your cellar space can't cope with more than a certain number of bottles. That way you're forced to be selective in your buying.

For me the way to keep numbers down is to aim to buy mostly mixed cases or single bottles. At least this allows for variety both in style and when it needs to be drunk. This of course goes against the traditional view of buying a dozen and charting their development. I really don't drink enough to justify this, so apart from 1 (possibly soon to be 2) exceptions, six bottle cases are as high as I go, with 1's 2's and 3's pretty common.

It will always be a fight to keep the cellar low.

regards

Ian

At current rates of consumption, I'm good to go for the next 9.5 years

crusty2 wrote:I recently updated my spreadsheet and discovered i will have to drink a bottle a day over the next "x" number of years to finally drink the last one.
maybe a survey of forumites could help me determine if i am a compulsive buyer and reticent drinker.
My current "x" value is 5+
I realise I have some "dead" wines in the cellar but some have significance. I still have the first 2 bottles I ever bought as new releases to put down, 1976 Grange. (nice way to start on a hedonistic hobby)

30 years on should be the time to taste one of those 76 Granges

The same here. At 3 per week I should last 7 years.
But with replacements I intend to be pickled in nice aged shiraz when I croak in hopefully 40 years.

I've got 20 years worth of drinking at current rates of consumption.

Bout 3 years but may just buy a couple more bottles in that time

Glen

between 3 and 5 years depending on how many parties i throw and how many friends i scare off

Around 10 years at current rate.

Around two years of stuff I'd be happy drinking within the next two years... four years if we were drinking everything.

When my parents are home, though... just over a year

Around 7 years based on two bottles a week, with current rate of purchasing will probably go up to around 10 years in the next couple of years.

I am just starting out (80 or so btl) and have come into the market where there are great deals due to competition. Where do you end??????

Well I buy alot of my great vintage wine from auction at bargin prices. As I am going along, I will look at my collection and sell off the possible duds to buy new better wine from time to time. Along with drinking ready to go gems as they develop into greatness, this should solve all issues that I would have.

After reading more replies, wow you guys have some stock.
7 years
8 years
Damn, baby chickpea, 20 years?????

I aspire to your greatness

I have about 350 bottles tucked away in foam boxes. I keep records in my customised Access database. My drinking rate is about 5 bottles per week (not alone of course), so I have 1.36 years worth of drinking if I don't buy any more. However, I probably buy an average of about a case of wine a fortnight.

I am building a house at the moment that will have a proper climate controled cellar, so bye-bye foam boxes. I have cats and they love to use the boxes as scratching posts, so they are currently not the best insulators

There are 2 wine principles:

There is no such thing as too much wine. You can always sell some if there is a crisis. Crisis What Crisis!!

Critical Mass Theory. Get enough wine and add a bottle to the stash for each withdrawn. like an overdraft in reverse.

Simple!! But try convincing SWMBO.

Chuck

About 3.5 to 4 years.
I need to increase turnover in the "ready to drink" section, but still have some which should be left alone for 10+ years.
I also still have a couple of my earliest premium purchases, including a Wynn's Centenary which is apparently finally approaching it's plateau...

Well I suppose one could grow roses or hydranges or collect matchboxes to satisfy their collecting fetishes, but little else will give you the pleasure of plucking that next great wine that you have carefully aged in your cellar.

At current consumption rates I have about a 10 year stash.

But as everyone knows, you never stop buying wine...

Cellar ready by spring, house bursting at seams, I desperately need an audit!!

No I don't trust you lot to do the auditing, I will find empties later!

At my buying rate, the kids will have a good wake!!!!

Cheers

Finney (Craig)

I seem to be buying more than ever at present. On average at least 1 case a fortnight but usually closer to 16 bottles a fortnight. Have approx 400 bottles and consume approx 3.5 per week.

However, I can't stop buying them. The more wines I "discover" the rapidly growing cellar adjusts to make more room.. Unfortunately, I live in an apartment and its at a stage where I shouldn't (but still do..).

As an example, my wife purchased a trip away to Barossa and McLaren Vale for the June long weekend. I seem to have purchased more wine than ever since being told we're going!! God knows what I will buy over the long weekend.

Ahh.. what a problem to have

Ian S wrote:If you're posting here, then it's a racing certainty that you're a compulsive buyer

We've got just short of 250 bottles, but only drink a bottle a week (but up to 3 bottles a week when we're both at home). This makes for that magical 5 year figure at worst, with c. 2 years at best.

But the fact is that we're still buying - so maybe the best advice is to ensure your cellar space can't cope with more than a certain number of bottles. That way you're forced to be selective in your buying.

For me the way to keep numbers down is to aim to buy mostly mixed cases or single bottles. At least this allows for variety both in style and when it needs to be drunk. This of course goes against the traditional view of buying a dozen and charting their development. I really don't drink enough to justify this, so apart from 1 (possibly soon to be 2) exceptions, six bottle cases are as high as I go, with 1's 2's and 3's pretty common.

It will always be a fight to keep the cellar low.

regards

Ian

I wish I were still down at that level. I swore I'd never go over 400

Partagas wrote:After reading more replies, wow you guys have some stock.
7 years
8 years
Damn, baby chickpea, 20 years?????

I aspire to your greatness

Don't, half of the cellar is filled with out of style shirts. Love your work Danny

Dear Friends,

At the dawn of human civilisation all wealth and power was equated with tangible things. In ancient the monetary system was based on stockpiles of grains (..now wines?)
Happiness is contentment which has been defined as what is conducive to both the enjoyment of legitimate material pleasures and the "realization" of the highest order. A man can enjoy life with fullfillment not by detachment or monastic life but by living in moderation and sharing his excess with those who are less fortunate. Ultimately all worldly possession is non-tangible.

It looks like another one has escaped from the funny farm.

Dear Maharishi

At the dawn of time, they had not yet learned how to make top notch red, let alone sparkling shiraz. The reason the stockpiles of grain were so prized was because you can make beer out of it.

Michael.

PS I actually agree somewhat with your sentiments about material possessions. However, 'realisation' can include wondering at the magic of the vine transforming water, earth, sun and air into grapes, which the artisan somehow crafts into the wine in my glass. A person (not just a man) can enjoy wine in moderation and share their excess with less fortunate friends. This can lead to contentment and pleasurable experiences that are in every sense of the word 'intangible'.