Do you destroy empty bottles of expensive wine?

[GregT]

This is kind of inspired by Jim’s thread on getting rid of his SQN bottles where he said he had like 30 empties, wondered if there was a market for them, and was cautioned against putting them in the marketplace and attracting counterfeiters.

It would never have occurred to me to worry about someone counterfeiting SQN. I don’t want to get into the argument about whether its a good wine or not, but it goes for a few hundred dollars a bottle except that someone got carried away and paid $40,000 for an SQN rosé.

There’s a lot of wine that goes for a few hundred a bottle. If you have empties, do you destroy the bottles some way or just toss them?

I don’t bother destroying them and I probably won’t, mostly because I find it highly unlikely that any counterfeiter is going to be able to go through enough garbage to find empties. I understand that SQN bottles are unique and Jim was asking about selling, rather than tossing. In my case, it all goes into the recycling container, including SQN, since I don’t save empties.

[Jay_Miller]

I just put them in recycling. I certainly hope the recycling companies aren’t selling empty wine bottles to counterfeiters.

[p_a_u_l_b_a_t_t_a_g_l_i_a]

have always thrown into the recycling bin without destroying the bottle. i don’t think anyone is rummaging through my garbage for empties.

[NED_VALOIS]

Recycling for us, NOT refilling !

[Joe_B]

Its a non issue really. Recycling them will net the refilling guys nothing. Selling them on ebay has a 1:10,000 chance of being refilled.

Criminals are lazy people. More likely that they counterfit a label.

Jmho

[Neal.Mollen]

They go into the recycling. The odds that someone at the dump is going to recognize the commercial value of an empty wine bottle approaches the vanishing point.

Plus, I don’t drink the kinds of wines as to which this would be an issue.

[mike_pobega]

@GregT

This is kind of inspired by Jim’s thread on getting rid of his SQN bottles where he said he had like 30 empties, wondered if there was a market for them, and was cautioned against putting them in the marketplace and attracting counterfeiters.

It would never have occurred to me to worry about someone counterfeiting SQN. I don’t want to get into the argument about whether its a good wine or not, but it goes for a few hundred dollars a bottle except that someone got carried away and paid $40,000 for an SQN rosé.

There’s a lot of wine that goes for a few hundred a bottle. If you have empties, do you destroy the bottles some way or just toss them?

I don’t bother destroying them and I probably won’t, mostly because I find it highly unlikely that any counterfeiter is going to be able to go through enough garbage to find empties. I understand that SQN bottles are unique and Jim was asking about selling, rather than tossing. In my case, it all goes into the recycling container, including SQN, since I don’t save empties.

Greg, I was not going to talk about this but now I fell compelled to share. I have a buddy in the DOJ and he told me that your name and address was on a blackboard in Rudy Ks house at the time of the seizure. There were annotations alongside it for days of your rubbish removal. Apparently there is a big overseas Asian market for high-end Malbecs, never-heard-of-Tokay and Hungarian Reds wines.
You were number 3 on the list. Jeff L was number 2.

[Markus_S]

I sell them to the highest bidder! But alas, nobody wants my bottles.

Of course, I remove the labels beforehand!

[M.Kaplan]

I always deface the labels. Even at restaurants. Maybe especially at restaurants.

[Alan_Rath]

Wait, you guys throw your bottles away? I refill them with Yellow Tail and take them to offlines.

[Craig_G]

Those guys never make it to my recycling bin because their truck is full after stopping at Paul’s house.

[Mike_Grammer]

@Jay Miller

I just put them in recycling. I certainly hope the recycling companies aren’t selling empty wine bottles to counterfeiters.

This, especially since the recycling is done by the municipality. LCBO also takes 'em back and gives you back .20 per bottle. Since they’re already clearing C$5.2 billion a year in revenue, I don’t think this is a part of their revenue portfolio.

The exceptions are the special bottles that go on the wall of fame. I have about 25 of those at present. I also have a label shelf of fame for bottles whose labels bear keeping.

Mike

[Ken_V]

I refill them and sell them in CC.

[Markus_S]

@Mike Grammer

LCBO also takes 'em back and gives you back .20 per bottle.

Didn’t know that…I feel a trip to Toronto coming due.

[Thomas_Keim]

We have an upper tier of a shelf in our garage were we have been putting empties from the best wines we pop on - gives the garage a little flavoring -

[andy_velebil]

Big black marker is applied in copious amounts to front and back label (and Selo or capsule if needed) then bottle is thrown out.

[Mike_Grammer]

@Markus S

@Mike Grammer

LCBO also takes 'em back and gives you back .20 per bottle.

Didn’t know that…I feel a trip to Toronto coming due.

Every man and/or woman needs his/her reason for coming

[Chris_Seiber]

@Neal.Mollen

They go into the recycling. The odds that someone at the dump is going to recognize the commercial value of an empty wine bottle approaches the vanishing point.

Exactly. I think there are two different issues here: (1) recycling from your curb or at a recycling bin or center, where the odds that someone is going to ID the one bottle of first growth or DRC or SQN out of millions of worthless empties is basically zero, and (2) leaving premium empty bottles at the end of dinner at a top restaurant.

In the latter case, it’s at least conceivable that someone in the back room of Per Se, French Laundry or wherever is setting aside the expensive empties and has a deal with a counterfeiter to take them. I’m sure that’s also extremely rare, but it’s not effectively zero odds the way scenario (1) is. I guess theoretically you could bring a sharpie with you and deface the labels at the end of dinner or something, though I imagine that barely ever happens in reality.

[Chuck_Miller]

@Chris Seiber

@Neal.Mollen

They go into the recycling. The odds that someone at the dump is going to recognize the commercial value of an empty wine bottle approaches the vanishing point.

Exactly. I think there are two different issues here: (1) recycling from your curb or at a recycling bin or center, where the odds that someone is going to ID the one bottle of first growth or DRC or SQN out of millions of worthless empties is basically zero, and (2) leaving premium empty bottles at the end of dinner at a top restaurant.

In the latter case, it’s at least conceivable that someone in the back room of Per Se, French Laundry or wherever is setting aside the expensive empties and has a deal with a counterfeiter to take them. I’m sure that’s also extremely rare, but it’s not effectively zero odds the way scenario (1) is. I guess theoretically you could bring a sharpie with you and deface the labels at the end of dinner or something, though I imagine that barely ever happens in reality.

+1. Exactly what I was going to say.

[Andrew_L]

Most stuff I just throw out, but memorable bottles are offered up to those who tasted them with me.