Noah_C
August 12, 2021, 12:32pm
61
I say it’s time to bite the bullet and start laying stuff down. If you can afford $150 for a white Burg, you can afford wine storage. I’m guessing a Vinotemp is probably too big, so look for offsite storage. Don’t worry if it isn’t close by. For years, I had an offsite 50 min from my house (without traffic); it kept my greedy hands off the juice.
Don’t stop buying old whites for the near term. Start buying young whites for the long term (like whomever made the 92 Gruner you loved). Will every young wine you buy turn out to be a winner? No. Will you buy wines today you don’t like tomorrow? Probably. Will you end up with a cellar full of pristine, aged whites, including many of your favorites?
Thanks for the thoughtful response, Ben. I’ve got storage for 140 bottles or so in my apartment, most of which is full. I’ve been hesitant to move offsite, bc then there really is nothing keeping me from going overboard. You make a lot of good points though- it shouldn’t be a huge surprise that leaving the storage/cellaring to someone else has me buying stuff of variable quality. Definitely something to think about. Thanks again.
First of all – Many of the best white wines will show well young, but only with significant air. Are you tracking the evolution of the wines over time? Try opening a bottle or two with lunch on Saturday, and have a 100 mL pour right when opened and leave the bottle uncorked. Have three more pours, spaced at three hour intervals. Cork the bottle overnight. That leaves just under half the bottle for Sunday, where you can start with another 100 mL pour with brunch, and go from there. Save the last pour for Monday. If you do this with different wines from different regions and styles, I think you’ll quickly get a good feel for how to the get most mileage out of the bottles you open. EDIT: The first wine you should do this with is Louis Michel Chablis “Montee de Tonnerre.” Preferably the 2017.
Second – What “US Chardonnays” are we talking about here? There’s a wide range, sure, so I’d totally understand if you found many of them overblown. Good candidates to start with include Twill Cellars, St Innocent, Goodfellow, Mt Eden, Evesham Wood, Vincent, Walter Scott, Crowley, Kelley Fox. I’d be surprised if you find any of these overblown, but you might. In PNW white field blends, I love what Loop de Loop and Championship Bottle are doing.
Third – Look around the world some more. As others have pointed out, there are enough great whites from Italy alone to keep a man happy for a lifetime, and most of these have the acid cranked up past 11. See Your Top 5 Italian White Wines - WINE TALK - WineBerserkers . There are also great whites from Austria, Spain, Australia, etc. My top picks would be Albarino from Do Ferriero and Nanclares. And for summer refreshment, Txakolina. If you can’t get excited about that on hot day, you must be able to kill a party by walking in the door.
Fourth – What kind of Rieslings have you been trying? The Austrian style of Riesling might be just the kick in the pants you need. Try the Nigl “Privat” and of course Alzinger.
Lots of good suggestions here. I will look out for the Louis Michel Chablis “Montee de Tonnerre” and some of your other suggestions. The Nigl Privat is not easy to find, but I did have the 1999 a few years ago and it was fantastic.
Just opened a bottle of this to match the perfect summer brunch of caprese and bacon. Fantastic match, and great QPR.