NY Resolutions for your cellar?

[Jenise]

I'm not ritualistic so have tended to forego something as organized and committed as making resolutions in favor of capricious changes in plan or even making no plans at all besides showing my wonderful husband every day how dearly I love him, but this year I've actually made something you might call a resolution with regard to my cellar. This (or these, as it's not one step) is as follows:

1) Continue to buy fewer just because wines in favor of hi-grading areas of weakness, like Italy, the Rhone and Spain.

2) But of what I do buy, concentrate on Rhones for everyday consumption.

3) Also, improve my selection of champagnes and half bottle white stickies. I never seem to have enough of either that I can remove a bottle and not miss it, and yet these are wines I love. The latter also make terrific gifts--it's an area of wine that few of my wine friends seem to have much of themselves if any, and yet they all go gaga over these wines when I bring them.

What cellar decisions have you made for the coming year?

1. Buy home computer and get home office set up sometime in 2009. Post wine inventory (or at least a majority of it) on CellarTracker.

2. Since I still fall victim to wine-buying impulses, set a quarterly budget rather than trying to budget by the month. Possibly drop out of two wine-mailing lists I'm currently on.

3. Weigh priorities/choices more carefully--let's see, if my budget won't stand both the Pinot Noir and the Syrah purchase, which will I forego? Do I want that Chablis more or the Riesling Auslese? Do I have enough Spanish wine on hand but a lack of Italian wine? What about southern Rhones?

1) Keep CellarTracker up to date. I've been really bad at this and am trying to find a way to make it fun and less of a hardship. Maybe inputting only wines above a certain value. Right now, my cellar in CellarTracker is almost worthless.

2) Buy more white wines. While I consider Liz and myself to be steadfast red wine drinkers, I'm always running out of white wines, so I need to do some sort of re-evaluation. What's the point of having a cellar if you're always running out of something?

3) Don't keep passing by the best bottles in favor of saving them for something special. If the time is right, drink up 'cuz life is short.

1. Get a larger home and/or a place with a basement.

2. Move our cellar (which as you all know is mostly Rhones) to our home.

3. Drink more wine from it.



Jenise, we are nearly on the same page with the Champagnes. We seem to always just buy them when we want one, and that just won't do. We love them, but don't seem to cellar them. What's up with that?

1. Fill in gaps in cellar ('80s wines, US Pinot Noirs, Riesling)
2. Secure more '04 Bdx as birthyear wines for Andrew
3. Win more auction bids

Mark Lipton

Definitely, drink more.

1. Fill in gaps in cellar...US Pinot Noirs

Is that a gap that really needs filling?

What US areas in particular are you focusing on?

1. Fill in gaps in cellar...US Pinot Noirs

Is that a gap that really needs filling?

What US areas in particular are you focusing on?

Less a matter of area than producer. I was just down in the cellar recently, pulling an '04 Williams-Selyem PN, and noted that we're down to 6 bottles from CA and perhaps a dozen from OR. There are a few producers from CA whose wines I like (Saintsbury, Merry Edwards, Navarro, Lazy Creek, Joe Swan, Williams-Selyem) and, with the spiraling prices of Burgundy, I foresee the need to restock the cellar.

Mark Lipton

with the spiraling prices of Burgundy

Spiraling downards you mean? Now is the time to buy!

Otherwise, I haven't tasted all the producers on your list but it sounds reasonable.

with the spiraling prices of Burgundy

Spiraling downards you mean? Now is the time to buy!

Maybe where you are, but not so far out here. Unlike Claude Kolm, I can't just breeze into a banruptcy selloff and come away with a few cases of firesale Maréchal Bourgogne.

Right now, here's the calculus for me:

'06 D'Angerville Champans for $70/bottle at a "sale" price at Crush

OR

'05 Joe Swan "Great Oak" Pinot Noir for $38/bottle at K&L

I am not equating the two wines by any stretch, but they are both quality examples of their type and pair with the same sorts of foods.

Mark Lipton

My wine cellar resolutions started last Sunday (4th) when I spent all day reorganizing my Vintage Keeper so that I could fit in the 7-8 cases we had purchased in the last couple of months of ’08. The cellar is now full and there are 3 dozen bottles of drink soon wines in boxes next to it. The only concession I made was to reserve space for an upcoming purchase of ’04 Penfolds St Henri. But there is that deal on the ’05 Dutschke Oscar Semmler that I just saw online plus with the increasing number of close-outs on Aussie wines here in the US there will be more temptation than I have space for either by consumption or cellar. My only saving grace is that with the fall of the Aussie dollar its now attractive to purchase wine in Australia and have my relatives store it for me.

Mike

1. Fill in gaps in cellar ('80s wines, US Pinot Noirs, Riesling)

Mark Lipton

Mark,

If you are interested in any perfectly cellared Williams Selyem Pinots from 2001, 2002 or 2003 please send me a PM.

Dave

[David M. Bueker]

1. Reduce inventory so I can fit in the cellar. Every time I try to pull (or store) a bottle it's like a yoga class getting in and out.

2. When I do get back to buying more wine (and I know I will..it's only a matter of time, probably minutes) focus on a wide range of Champagnes

3. For any remaining purchases, try to only buy half bottles (which I drink a lot of) and magnums

4. Stick to my guns about alternative closures only for the 2008 vintage when those wines come in this fall

Maybe where you are, but not so far out here.

I wish they were spiraling downwards but I don't see it yet. Although I don't seek the same wide net of Cross Country Retailers like some other folks.

Right now, here's the calculus for me:

'06 D'Angerville Champans for $70/bottle at a "sale" price at Crush

OR

'05 Joe Swan "Great Oak" Pinot Noir for $38/bottle at K&L

I am not equating the two wines by any stretch, but they are both quality examples of their type and pair with the same sorts of foods.

Mark Lipton

I understand. I might go to a different region, but same principle.

with the spiraling prices of Burgundy

Spiraling downards you mean? Now is the time to buy!

Otherwise, I haven't tasted all the producers on your list but it sounds reasonable.

Just keep your eyes open, eventually there are going to be some substantial post downs by wholesalers. Unless the economy has some kind of miraculous turn around.

4. Stick to my guns about alternative closures only for the 2008 vintage when those wines come in this fall

Do you actually have a choice? Do the wines you like to buy all come with the option of alternative closures? For example, will 2008 Donnhoff Grosses Gewachs come in both cork and alternative options?

Tom T.

try to only buy half bottles (which I drink a lot of)

Yeah, I usually drink two of them.....wait a minute.......

I intend to do a hunt and reorganize, finding some older wines at the bottom of stacks of cases, and putting them on top. It would really be nice to be able to move in the wine cellar. This task will take a few weeks.

I also resolve to slow down incoming wines to less than outgoing so have instituted a moratorium on almost all purchasing.

[David M. Bueker]

4. Stick to my guns about alternative closures only for the 2008 vintage when those wines come in this fall

Do you actually have a choice? Do the wines you like to buy all come with the option of alternative closures? For example, will 2008 Donnhoff Grosses Gewachs come in both cork and alternative options?

Nope, but a lot of the wines I do like come in caps, so it will restrict my choices a bit. That's ok, as I have w3ay too much wine in the cellar, and any kind of forced reduction in buying is a good idea.

[Jenise]

1. Reduce inventory so I can fit in the cellar. Every time I try to pull (or store) a bottle it's like a yoga class getting in and out.

2. When I do get back to buying more wine (and I know I will..it's only a matter of time, probably minutes) focus on a wide range of Champagnes

3. For any remaining purchases, try to only buy half bottles (which I drink a lot of) and magnums

4. Stick to my guns about alternative closures only for the 2008 vintage when those wines come in this fall

Reduction, half bottles, champagnes...have you noticed that though we don't neccessarily purchase the same wines, year in and year out we seem to have about the same number of bottles and the same issues?

[Jenise]

1) Keep CellarTracker up to date. I've been really bad at this and am trying to find a way to make it fun and less of a hardship. Maybe inputting only wines above a certain value. Right now, my cellar in CellarTracker is almost worthless.

2) Buy more white wines. While I consider Liz and myself to be steadfast red wine drinkers, I'm always running out of white wines, so I need to do some sort of re-evaluation. What's the point of having a cellar if you're always running out of something?

3) Don't keep passing by the best bottles in favor of saving them for something special. If the time is right, drink up 'cuz life is short.

I can certainly identify with your #1 and #3. You're probably onto something about the value, especially if that relates to how long you're apt to have that wine in your cellar.

[Jenise]

1. Get a larger home and/or a place with a basement.

2. Move our cellar (which as you all know is mostly Rhones) to our home.

3. Drink more wine from it.



Jenise, we are nearly on the same page with the Champagnes. We seem to always just buy them when we want one, and that just won't do. We love them, but don't seem to cellar them. What's up with that?

It's silly! Especially if you prefer your bubbles with a little age on them, as I do. Ideally, I would have at least one case of five year old NV sitting around for the current year's consumption, in addition to special occasion bottles. I've never quite managed the discipline to do that, though.

Progress is being made here, though! Three cases were delivered yesterday. They contain many half bottles of Doisy Daene, Rieussec, Lamothe-Guignard and Climens, plus a bunch of Gosset champers.

[Jenise]

I intend to do a hunt and reorganize, finding some older wines at the bottom of stacks of cases, and putting them on top. It would really be nice to be able to move in the wine cellar. This task will take a few weeks.

I also resolve to slow down incoming wines to less than outgoing so have instituted a moratorium on almost all purchasing.

Considering the volume of wines you own, probably a good idea. You certainly seem to have a broad choice of really well aged wines to drink. Any of them getting away from you, though?

I intend to do a hunt and reorganize, finding some older wines at the bottom of stacks of cases, and putting them on top. It would really be nice to be able to move in the wine cellar. This task will take a few weeks.

I also resolve to slow down incoming wines to less than outgoing so have instituted a moratorium on almost all purchasing.

Considering the volume of wines you own, probably a good idea. You certainly seem to have a broad choice of really well aged wines to drink. Any of them getting away from you, though?

Every time I think so I can always look at our mutual friend Ken, who has bunches of 70s American wine that he has no worries about....

I do occasionally find something that I think might have been better some years before, and put it all in the 'drink now' box which is outside the cellar and thus fair game for the (often inordinate) demands of SWMBO. I recently demoted a half case of Dom. Remizierres Crozes (1996) as I felt it wasn't what I had anticipated.

Generally, though, I don't have any going over the hill - although you'll get to judge for yourself next Monday.....