Sommelier Notes

Wine Collecting

Whist's Sommelier shares his personal notes on wine collecting.

How to stock a cellar?
Stock what you like to drink. It's yours after all. Do keep in mind the tastes of your spouse/mate (chances are you will have compatible palates) as well as your close friends and family if they have as discerning a taste as you. Patience is key when stocking your cellar so keep up with vintage charts and ratings. Know what to drink young as well as what to hold for maximum enjoyment years down the road. The most important thing to keep in mind is how is your wine being stored. The temperature should never exceed 55 degrees Fahrenheit for reds and 50 degrees Fahrenheit for whites. (All wine should be served at a temperature suited for the varietal.) Make sure the storage area is not too dry, and not humid. Both will have a devastating affect on the wine. Lastly, light kills wine! Make sure to store bottles in an area free of all un-necessary light. Keep in mind that although most red wine bottles are tinted to block light, this is not always the case.

Should you buy "hot" wines?
Absolutely! For two reasons.

They're "hot". If you can get them then you are in the enological elite. Labels like Screaming Eagle, Bryant Family, Aurajo or any other highly allocated and tightly distributed wines are nearly impossible to obtain and have extremely long lists. Parents are more likely to will the wait list to their progeny than to drink the wine themselves, should they get their hands on it. Bottom line is that in these cases, it's low supply and high demand.

What the reviewers are touting now as "the wine of the century" is no doubt excellent, but buyer beware! As history has proven, some wines will stand the test of time whereas others will fade quickly and pale to the latest releases. Keep an eye, tongue and nose on your "hot" releases to make sure you are enjoying them at their apex of quality.

How do you discover up-and-coming regions?
Read, read, read! and travel when you can. Every article will have it's own angle on the growers, terrain, methods and such. The most important thing is to keep trying new wines. Some regions that have been producing wine for hundreds of years have a tendency to re-invent the wheel so-to-speak. Their styles are copied lending phrase to "new world wines". The vinification takes on an entirely modern approach and before you know it, everyone is attempting to turn back the clock and make wine the way it was made decades if not centuries ago. Many will jump on the band wagon to get a head start on what the rest of the world does not know yet in terms of what are the newest/latest regions. These areas will always get the hot press, but the tried and true will deliver the quality that has made and kept them famous.

Who collects wine, and why?
Anyone who has purchased a bottle of wine in a shop, received a bottle of wine as a gift or simply enjoys wine is a collector. Now, this is a very simplistic approach as some private collections fetch millions of dollars at auction (they would be the serious collectors). The middle ground is vast and if you look around you, many people that you know may have a private stash of wines that were presents, heirlooms, sentimental remembrances or deliberate investments. Some of the most interesting collections are by accident. Keep tasting and buy what you like. Keep trying new wines and put a little away here and there. If there is anything worth saving for a rainy day why not wine?