Yes, buying things that you look forward to enjoying is fun for everyone, it’s like foreplay for the consumption. (Plus of course the experience, in a special store environment, etc)
But buying things you have no intention of enjoying beyond the act of purchasing is a much smaller subset of the population, and a very different mentality.
Who said anything about “have no intention of enjoying” when it comes to buying wine? We all intend to enjoy what we buy, I think, we just sometimes forget in the moment that we already have plenty.
Back in December I felt I “needed” to free up some cellar space and so I gifted three assorted six-packs of wine to some of my friends. While I’ve been gifting Champagne and Goodfellow sparklers to my daughter the past couple of years, this was the first time I gifted any qualities of nice wine to my friends. The other day I met up with the two of them for a nice dinner in Fort Collins and was told they had been to dinner at the other couples’ home where an iOTA Chardonnay was opened and they all just loved it. I suspect I will continue the practice. 
I hate buying everything except for wine and food.
love this!
A few months ago I hosted a Beaucastel vertical party and invited a few Berserkers plus some friends newer to wine. I had been wanting to do something like that for a long time and it made for a very fun evening! I opened 7 vintages of Beaucastel going back to 1988.
I’m hoping to do another event like that soon as I have some old Napa that probably should be opened.
One other observation I’ve had - and nothing wrong with this: Seattle/Bellevue people tend to stick to their own wine groups. It’s been a good 2 years since we’ve had a bigger Berserkers get-together and I hope that’s something we can do again someday soon. Definitely gonna keep trying to share wine if people are down!
Yes. This is the Collector Problem. Thankfully, I am aware I have this disease.
Throughout my life, this has gone from baseball cards to music to wine. That’s pretty much it. I participated in purchasing high-end shaving gear for a few years, but those purchases have slowed to a drip as I’m now at the point where any additional purchases are pretty much guaranteed to be of lesser quality and interest than what I already own. If I had a lot more money, I could very easily get into high-end shoes, watches, and cars. If I had Eff You money, it would be real estate.
For me, wine is first and foremost a culinary thing (approximately 5% of the wine we consume is not enjoyed with food), so I view it as a component to our meal. We like to eat a varied diet, which – if we’re being fun about it – calls for a varied wine collection to pull from. Despite having varied levels of success accomplishing the goal, I find it fun to build a varied wine collection. And then I find it satisfying to have a varied collection to pull from, just as I find it fun to have an extensive pantry and seasoning/spice collection to use when cooking. Similar idea with music collection and book collection.
Wine, music, and books — I find it fascinating to look through others’ collections of these things, as I feel it can tell you a lot about that person.
As always, YMMV. 
I posted this in another thread about a year ago. I have kept to this type of plan and have successfully kept myself “on budget” as far as number of bottles go.
I have not found a local shop that I like, so most of my buying is online. That means I essentially end up with a delivery each spring and fall. I set my wine budget not in terms of dollars but a specific set of wines I am going to buy and have shipped in the future window. I create my list based on what is widely available, gaps in my cellar, consumption patterns, and vintage quality. I’m still working on my spring 2025 list but it will be something like this:
12 bottles 2020 Bordeaux (2 @ >$150/btl, 4 @ 75-150/btl, 6 @ <75/btl)
12 bottles California red, 2019 or 2021 vintage. (2 @ >$150/btl, 4 @ 75-150/btl, 6 @ <75/btl)
4 sweet wines/ports
8 champagne (2 prestige, 2 vintage between 2012-2016, 4 NV)
12 for backfilling: pre-2014. I have a long list of vintages and regions I’m on the lookout for.
This has made me more discerning about flash sales (do I really want to use up a slot I have marked?!) but has kept me interested in browsing, which I have found helpful in learning about producers. As the shipping period nears I also end up with a shopping spree to finish up the list.
It really helps me filter out offers when they are for items. It on my list. I have allowed myself a few substitutions, but it always means crossing something else off.
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Makes sense. Clearly a good portion of wine folks fall into this category.
Yep. I am always interested in buying wine, but I’m not always interested in drinking wine.
The instant dopamine hits harder at checkout than popping the cork for me. Maybe because my brain knows how bad alcohol is for your body and preemptively tuned down the enjoyment.
I hear you, BUT baseball cards and recorded music are not consumable. Wine really is one of the few consumable luxury goods. That puts it into a different class.
The baseball card thing is beyond me for adults. Presumably the consumption there is looking at the card and getting joy from that. For music it would be listening to it.
As opposed to the ‘joy’ of knowing that you have the cards and the music in storage.
I’ve never considered myself a collector, so I’m somewhat different on these fronts. I do enjoy buying wine to age, for reasons we all know. But the collection/physical aspect of it is more of a necessary inconvenience and logistical hassle for me.
Yes, I derive some pleasure from looking at the bottles and thinking about the good times ahead, but I think I’m way behind many of the “true” collectors on that front!
My son is pretty good at karting - the focus of his last year has been studying for his gymnasium exam here in Switzerland which he took a couple of weeks ago, but for the next few months he’s going to take a run in the OKJ category to see whether he can get competitive at a good level.
So my discretionary budget, much of which goes on wine is now being redirected towards that!
My point is that books, music and most other collectibles are not usually bought with the intent to consume them. They canbe enjoyed over and over again. Wine is usually bought with the intention of being consumed, or sold to someone else for their consumption. It really is a different model, if you will. Cellars filled with wine to drink (at some point) will shrink over time, by definition. Libraries needn’t.
All valid, and I agree with you on this, Al. It was me who brought-up baseball cards and music and books, not Rahsaan.
Make the wine the occasion. Life is too short to wait for “special occasions.” Each day is a special occasion.
We are hunters and gatherers, folks. Accept it.
I also have the collector gene and am trying to manage it. I still have my stamp album even though I bought my last stamp to put into it in probably 1980, give or take.
On the karting thing mentioned a few posts above, this obviously doesn’t apply to a youth who may someday make a living at it, but for adults with amateur car racing as a hobby I once read someone say (paraphrasing) “I invested all of my retirement savings in fuel, tires, and trophy futures, so now I’m old and I have a bunch of trophies and nothing in the bank.” Sort of like the old saying “A boat is a hole in the water into which its owner dumps money.”
If it’s not one thing, it’s another…
Define “for a time” 
We’ve been successful for a month or so at a time but always find reasons to order more!
