How do you select an 'obscure' wine from your cellar?

Seems like a random and broad question for this group, but I’ll be more specific…

Today, when putting away a Ridge shipment (yay!) I noticed a few bottles I had completely forgotten I had - domestic stuff, but less common varietals: Mouvedre, Petit Sirah, Cab Franc, Sangiovese (I wouldn’t even venture to the import wines, as I clearly have no clue what’s there). I would scarcely think of looking FOR those wines (obviously, since I forgot they were there), as I typically go for the ‘big four’ varietals in red wines - Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Syrah, and Zinfandel (Merlot would fit in there, also, but I have so little of it I scarcely go looking for it). I’ll go to the cellar looking for one of those wines, and skip over the random bottles of other stuff, not even looking at or near them.

How do you pick your wines from the cellar, particularly wines that aren’t in ‘the big four’, most popular varietals? I use Cellar Tracker all the time, but typically will look at the Drinkability Report or just pick my varietal and sort by rating or vintage. I never think to look for the random stuff, and I know folks like Glenn Levine drink the random stuff all the time - how do you pick it?

Well, you start by thinking what is on your menu that day and reverse-engineer to it. Got something that needs fruity lushness without being too modern? Grab a mencia. Grilling and it’s summer? Get a carignane. Want something intriguing with that lobster? Snatch the viognier.
It’s really very simple. Start whenever you want to. You just need to leave your preconceptions at the door.

we pick a color then varietal and then look at cellartracker to see where it is

This will be a LONG thread.

Depends on whether I want to reorganize or not. Most of the time I pick something from the case on top

Loosely based on the menu, guests and the number of bottles remaining. I call it the “Willy-nilly” methodology.

I start with a specific ambition. Then get tired of digging for it and simply give up and grab something in front of me that catches my attention.

Usually:

Step 1. Go to cellar.

Step 2. Pick out numerous wines that are wrong. Too young, too old, too good, not good enough. Put them back.

Steps 3-100. Repeat.

Step 101. Just grab something and say WTF.

I treat bottles of wine like they are peyote buttons.

I stumble around in the cellar until the right wine presents itself to me.

Then, I behold it and say, “Holy crap! Free wine!” and get to it.

1. Ask the Mrs. “red or white?”
2. Ask “is there anything you are NOT in the mood for?”
3. Stare at cellar tracker for way too long struggling to pick something, like Neal Mollen. Too young, too good, not good enough, etc.
4. The Mrs. says “dinner is ready, just pick something!!!”
5. Run to the cellar and grab something.

I’ve done this thousands of times.

My favorite way is to send a guest and tell them to pick something they want. Amazing what a better job others do with my cellar.

Regards,
A Kei!!or

Over the weekend, I pull 4-5 bottles for the upcoming week based on what I think we’ll be having for dinner during that stretch. I do the grocery shopping and the cooking, so I tend to have a good idea what the menus for the week will be. Sometimes, if there’s a particular bottle I’m itching to have, the order is reversed and the grocery shopping comes second.

Haphazardly.

I understand the concept of ‘pick the varietal for the food’ but how many of you look beyond the first 6-7 varietals listed on CT?

Once u decide - bubbly. White. Red. Dessert

6-7 vairetal in each of those category is not too bad.

It’s not a problem if you don’t drink by variety. And at least in my own case, when I do, my definition of the “big four” is quite different from yours. In fact, the only one that would make it is Syrah, which I like because of the diverse personalities it shows.

I might drink Pinot Noir once or twice a year unless someone pours it for me. I drink Cab once in a while, but no more frequently than Merlot, and while I’ve had a few Zins lately, they’re not one of my most likely candidates either. A lot of what I have is Spanish, so just by numbers, I’m more likely to open something from Rioja, Ribera del Duero, Toro, or Bierzo than something else. And since I like Garnacha, I’m happy to drink that from France, Spain, Australia or the US. The so-called “Rhone” varieties tend to make happy wines, so I like having them when possible.

And for a random night mid week, it’s hard not to pick up a Barbera, Chianti, Beaujolais, or unclassified Nebbiolo or whatever Greek thing I bought recently. Sometimes I pick something up to pair specifically, but I think most wines go with most of what I eat and if I’m eating red snapper and I really feel like drinking Cab Franc I don’t worry about a perfect pairing and just go for what I feel like.

Basically I pick up what I happen to have in the house and since I’m trying to cut down on possessions, I’m going to end up drinking a lot of CdP and Barolo since that’s what’s’ on hand at the moment. I try not to over think what I’m going to open.

Dammit, beat me to it… and who would think that would be a joke made by anybody but me?

Anyway, sometimes I really enjoy going in the cellar with a completely open mind and letting a bottle ask me to drink it. Other times I want a specific bottle for a certain food. On rare occasions, I realize I haven’t had a certain type of wine for a few weeks and then I get a craving for it so I just go get one and satiate the desire.

In conclusion, there is no set method for choosing. It depends on the occasion and my mood.

I start with what’s for dinner, and go from there. I try to drink a wide variety, so various options are always on my mind, including the relatively esoteric ones.