Low fill DRC - Drink or sell?

I have a dilemma regarding a bottle of 1978 DRC Richebourg which I acquired at auction. The fill is into the mid-shoulder, color (viewed through the glass) seems excellent, and the cork appears to be in good shape. I do not know the provenance other than that it came from a deceased estate with a below-ground cellar, and there were multiple DRCs and First Growths etc. in that cellar.

I took it out of my wine storage unit to move to my wine fridge at home ahead of plans to drink with a friend at a good restaurant next month (celebratory lunch), and when doing so I got chatting to someone who stores wines at the same facility as I do. He offered me $900 for the bottle given the condition, and I said I’d think about it.

So here is the dilemma: do I sell the bottle to him, buy something else for lunch and let him assume the risk (based on his collection, I don’t think he would cry into his soup if the bottle was flawed) or do I take the risk at the restaurant?

The question may seem fairly obvious given the ullage, although I have seen many DRCs with this fill similar to this which have been reported to be drinking well. Any insights from drinkers of older DRC’s greatly appreciated.
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Take the money and run.

lousy fill. While Burgs tolerate ullage better than most other wines, I’d pass on this bottle.

Drink it or spend two months in court with the victim you sell it to.

The color looks extremely dark. Hold it up to a light, and if dark or murky - sell it.

Wow that fill is really terrible!!! Not sure auction houses would even except this anymore. What auction house sold this to you and take the money and run :running_man: :running_man: :running_man:!!!

I would drink this…the wine shop I worked at in South West Harbor bought a lot of older DRCs and many had levels down where your bottle shows and the wines were glorious. I’d assume there is too much risk to sell the wine. 1978 DRC Richebourg…this is either going to be the best Burgundy you’ve had or one hell of a story. I’d also err on the side of opening this on a fruit day in the biodynamic calendar…just for the sake of it all.

Drink it.
You can make more money, but not more DRC.

Oh, wait,…

He offered me $900 for the bottle given the condition, and I said I’d think about it.

Sell it. Then buy some wine that’s cheaper and in better condition.

Nobody is going to sue you for $900 and a risk they knowingly took.

Coravin

Eric the Wine Director at Berns told me that the number one criteria he uses when choosing old burgs is colour. He said colour is much more reliable indicator of how well the bottle is going to perform rather than focusing on ullage. But follow what Ray said as well; if it is murky or cloudy then all bets are off. If the colour is clear then Eric’s experience applies.

You bought it to share with a friend: So go ahead and take a risk and share it with your friend. The opportunity to drink older DRC is very very rare. The money can be replaced but an old DRC not so much

Drink it!

Brodie

There is low fill and there is this. Like ray said it’s super dark too. Let it stand for a few days and shine a light in its back and then decide

Someone already did…hence fill and offer at auction. [pwn.gif]

To pile on, I’d trust Ray’s opinion, he drinks at this level and age of wine.

Sell that shit. PT Barnum principle in full effect.

I bought a cellar that has two 1929 Romanee Contis that have worse ullage than the bottle in this picture. I have not tried either, but the color in each is good. I was in France at the Hospices de Beaune at the same time that Aubert de Villaine was making a presentation, so after the presentation I asked him about the two bottles with low fill. He said that he had recently had a 1959 (I believe the vintage was) La Tache that was only half full, and that it showed wonderfully. But only for 30 minutes. After that it fell apart.

His advice was to open the much-less-ullaged 1929s with enough dining and drinking partners that it could be consumed relatively quickly.

My guess is that your 1978 will be in fine shape as long as the color is good.

My thought exactly. That is a super low fill.

It’s a simple question. The potential buyer has already heavily discounted the value to compensate for the risk they are taking, so if you sell it, no lost sleep. The question is, will $900 change your life? I’ll assume no. So drink it. Maybe it will blow your mind, but if not, who cares? If $900 would change your life, sell it.

Thank you very much for all of the thoughtful replies. To answer a few questions:

  1. The guy who offered $900 for the bottle did so on the basis of the condition - he knows what DRC is worth, and he owns a few bottles himself. I am not worried that he is not aware of the risk he would be taking on.
  2. $900 would not change my life, but equally can only BYOB one bottle to this restaurant, and don’t want to take a 1 in 50 shot of it being good in those circumstances.

To the extent it helps, I have attached two photos just taken - one to show the color through the neck when held up to a light, and a second to show the fill a bit better than the first picture.

I am still on the fence between passion and prudence; I am pretty tempted to just open the bottle for the reasons set out by a few people above, subject to the color not changing the views of the pro-open posters above.
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Color.jpg

This bottle needs standing still for 1-2 weeks. I think the colour is ok, looks not oxidized, only mature.
I´ve had DRC bottles and other Burgs with similar low fill - and most of the time they were ok.

So I´d take the odds … but in any case let it settle down, slow-ox it for several hours (3-4) and do not decant … or only the last quarter to get rid of the sediment - already in the restaurant.

Go for it, 78 is worth the gamble