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+--- Thread: Some help buying wine (/thread-15945.html)
- Britt - 02-24-2000
I want to buy some wine and put it away for some 5-10 years. How do I pick a wine that will be better in 5-10 years. I do not want to spend more than $12/bottle and all I want to do is enjoy it after this time in storage. I know very little about wine, but I seem to enjoy red wine more than white. Anything you can tell me would be helpfull.
Thanks
- mrdutton - 02-24-2000
Do you have a place to properly store the wine? You will need a cool, dark or dimly lighted area that is somewhat humid to store your wine. The temperature should be right around 50 to 55 degrees F. and should remain fairly constant throughout the storage period.
Wine that is stored in conditions warmer than these tend to age faster. A wine you would normally consider keeping for 6 to 10 years might only be kept for 3 to 5 years before it "goes over the top". Bright lighting can also have a deleterious affect on wine so you'll want your cellar to remain dark or dimly lighted at best.
As for the selection, there are many decent wines in the $10.00 to $30.00 dollar price range that can be cellared for that period of time.
I suggest you get together with your local wine merchant and talk to him/her. Your wine merchant will be able to discuss your tastes and desires with you directly and should be able to provide you with some very good advice on wines you might select for a cellar.
White wines are not generally cellared for long periods of time - although there are exceptions such as the very best Graves and Sauternes for instance.
Red wines can be and are cellared for longer periods of time. Some of the very finest reds can be cellared for several decades. A lot depends on the type of grape and the vintage.
There are a number of very good reference books you might want to read to learn more about wine. Check with your local book store or online with such places as Barnes & Noble or Amazon.Com.
I have not even begun to give you the "complete" answer. There are others present on this wine board who are much more knowledgable than I. Maybe one or more of them will "pick-up" where I left off.
I think that my best advice to you is to check with your local wine merchant and go from there.
- Innkeeper - 02-25-2000
Sure there are some wines out there for $12.00 that will cellar for 5 - 10 years. My question is why? Most wine, the overwhelming majority of wine, made or imported into the USA up to the $20.00 price point, is meant to be consumed within a year or two of release. Sure some of these will get better in another year of two, and if you happen let that happen; fine. Of the hundreds of questions we get here at the wine board a large number come from people who have hung onto wine too long. We get very few from those who popped it too soon. As the folks around here know, I am loathe to spend a lot of money on single bottles of wine. Do have a small rack in back of the "fast rack", where the "good stuff" is kept. Talking ten to twelve bottles, all onezies, or twozies. The intent is drink for special occassions within ten to twelve years. At this point it is very difficult to find replacements for less than $30.00.
- VRVixen - 02-28-2000
A great way to learn about wine, as anything in life, is by trial and error!
Buy the case at your local discount merchant (I've been finding great Chilean Cabs and Merlots for under $10).
Try one bottle when you get home from the store, another a few months from now. Spread them out over time but see how they change along the way.
In a year from now go back to your local merchant and buy a bottle of the same wine but the next vintage (the year on the bottle). Compare the younger wine you just bought with one of the older bottles from the case you're saving. The differences you sense in that comparison, in part, will be due to their age differences.
I hope this helps. Just remember, in the world of wine there are no right or wrong answers. That's what makes it so interesting.
Cheers!
- marcepan - 03-04-2000
Tried a wine that was reviewed in the NYTimes last year and liked it. It is the house wine at La Cote Basque--Chateau LaGrave Bechade 1996--Give it a try,it's under $10....Salut!!
- misterjive - 03-05-2000
As a general rule of thumb, the most ageworthy wines are based on one of three grapes: Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, or Nebbiolo. Perfect examples of these three are red Bordeaux, Hermitage, and Barolo, respectively. That being said, it is true that most of the world's wines (at least 90%) are meant to be consumed young. You will have a hard time finding bottles under $12 that are great cellar candidates. However, do not despair. The best advice would be to go to your favorite wine merchant and tell him your goal: wine under $12 that will improve over the next three to five years. Then, allow yourself to be steered to wines that people in the know refer to as "tannic." Tannin is the compound in wine, deriving principally from the skin of the grape, that allows wine to age well. Tannin makes the wine "dry" in your mouth, meaning that wines that possess a lot of it cause the roof of your mouth to lose its moisture, and may even cause a puckering as well. It is because of this quality that people sometimes say tannin in young wine canbe "searing." Wines that are tannic are often unapproachable when young, but over time, the tannins soften and give the wine a structure that allows it to age both gracefully and, it is hoped, elegantly. Now, as far as specific suggestions, given the price range you are shooting for, I would go for South American cab/merlot blends, California cabs, and Syrah-based French wines. Most all of these wines will still be good young, but with a little luck and patience, they might be even better in a couple of years. Good luck!