How do you feel when you reach that last bottle that you either purchased as 1 of 12 or 1 of 6? Do you even ponder the situation or just go for it? Do you sit there and think “I can’t drink this wine because I do not have any more of it”?
Depends on maturity of the wine in question. I only buy half or full cases of wine that i want to follow over a period of time. So if the 5 first bottles have all given me the feeling that there is still some development in the future i will leave it a little longer. If my last bottle was at full maturity i will grap it with no regrets - i have no wish to let good bottles go over the hill
Some I cherish, hating to see it be the last. Others I can’t wait to be done with.
No. In my case, it’s usually: “All out already? WTF?”
I’ve never bought 6 bottles of the same wine, so I wouldn’t know. 
Since most of my cellar is singles, I have the opposite problem. When I have more than one of anything, it is not sacred in the least and tends to get popped early.
I used to have issues with opening the last bottle of a really great wine. I got over that after a couple of experiences where I let the wine go past prime. Now it’s only a rare bottle with a special emotional attachments that gives me pause.
No emotion. I bought it to drink and if I’m on the last of a case, that must mean that I liked the wine and I hope the last is as good as the first.
Yes, absolutely. Especially if the wine is drinking well now but has the potential to be better with more age. My lack of discipline is shameful in this case.
Oddly I feel kinda sad and stressed about it, but I’m really trying to change my mindset (cellar needs to shrink by 75%).
I’ve invested all of that time in that last bottle. I’ve delayed gratification so long that the wine has become more than it actually is. I feel invested in a completely irrational way. ![[scratch.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/4/42a16863a8714da3c1604419e3eb9206bb87aa50.gif "scratch"){kind=small}
I admit to waxing nostalgic.
When I have several of a wine, I enjoy tracking its lifespan, so I don’t refuse to open a last bottle, but will often save it for a proper farewell.
The only time it brings regret is when I recognize that the wine, as I have experienced it, is no longer available to me, so this will be the last time I get to have it “as it was”. That can be because I have been priced out of newer releases, because the vineyard is no longer under the same management/ownership/cultivation, because winemaking practices have changed, or because the wine was a one-off from a winery.
Otherwise, I expect the last to be at least “at peak” if not a bit past if I’ve been tracking it to my tastes. That gives me a little satisfaction - I’m going to have something that is loaded toward meeting or exceeding my expectations.
Cheers,
fred
No remorse. It was bought to be consumed. I might hold it for a bit in order to share it with someone in particular but that would be the only reason to delay. Backfill!
I have three quantities of wine in my cellar: one bottle (some my best wines, some interesting for the price), three bottles (very good at a good price) and more than three bottles (relatively inexpensive and easy to replace). Three bottles in a lifetime is enough for me to feel I’ve “experienced” the wine. So for your question it would be my third bottle out of three. The answer for me depends on whether I can replace the bottle on Winebid for a reasonable price (similar to what I paid for it), so if I later regret drinking it, I can replace it; those bottles I will drink much earlier than the third out of three that I cannot replace, in which case I would let it age enough so that there is some risk invovled.
When I first got nuts about wine I’d get a case from a winery and drink it all within two years. Different budget now and different palate for when a wine is ready.
About the only thing that crosses my mind is that if I’m down to one bottle do I think it has the possibility of improving? If definitely yes then I’ll let it rest. If definitely not then its going to get opened. I’d rather drink it too early than too late. So I try not to dwell on the fact that its my last bottle.
JD
I might briefly think about it, but my wife never wants us to drink the “last” bottle - especially if it is a wine that we like.
I have learned that I have to always tell her that it is not the last bottle - no matter the truth.
+1 Especially if the wine is drinking really well, no reason to wait until it isn’t.
I really like the depth of the posts so far. Really nice.
The only wines in which I have purchased 6 or more, excluding case purchases for a party or company event, is Ridge Monte Bello and, occasionally, Pisoni Estate.
When I have opened the last bottle of any particular vintage, I usually think “Oops, there goes that vertical. Oh well.”
I am optimistic that there will always be more good wine to try in the future.
