I was reflecting on my own buying strategies today, and wondering why I buy as I do.
I have a wine that okay, but not something I can’t keep my hands off. Many times, I am met with a wine that does that - one that I enjoy in every way and could polish off the bottle in minutes out of pure bacchanalia. Seems to me that when I find a wine that I KNOW I like, I should just buy a bunch, and have a case or so of wine I know will please me, even in the $20-25 range - there are wines out there.
However, the slippery slope is that I need to buy random wines in order to discover what I like. However, the ratio of ‘eh’ wines is so far exceeding the enjoyable ones, only because I buy so many varieties in order to find the good ones, so I don’t have the funds to spend on the ones I DO like…
Well I wouldn’t buy a case of any QPR’s, you’ll get bored drinking the same stuff all the time. If I like a wine I’ll buy 3 bottles and try one every couple of years. There’s an ocean of wine out there and you should have no problem finding ones you like.
I don’t worry about the wine all the time, and always have good Bourbon and Tequila handy. I also drink what I know, and don’t spend too much time looking for newbies.
And…it’s Rose season!!! That will be fun and not too expensive.
You can’t do it randomly - you need to have someone who can raise your batting average when you’re trying new regions etc. What I did and still do sometimes is to go to a shop I can trust and who knows me and tell them I need some new everyday drinkers. I’ll get 6-12 bottles. Sometimes I’ll tell them to avoid the areas I collect which means I’ll end up with Loire reds, SW France stuff, etc. Do this, course correct by telling them what you liked and why and what you didn’t like and why… for wines that seem to grab you at the $20 level, talk to them about collectable wines in that region.
However, I collect more deeply - when I was learning Burgundy I tasted pretty widely, found producers I loved, and bought more deeply in their wines. Same with Piedmont.
Good post. I buy a lot less because A) don’t have the space B) don’t buy because I don’t want to be left behind C) it will always be something else.
However, if I find something that is very good and cheap I will try to get it in quantity. I wish I did this with the NV De Venoge Rose @ $20. I should have purchased 3-4 cases.
I have no real strategy but when I find a wine I really like and know it will age well and know that I will not lose money if I were to sell it then I buy cases of it like 4 cases of 2000 Pegau at $35 or 3 cases of 2001 Beaucastel at $51. I’ll also buy a case at a time of a value wine (under $20) that I like because it is so much harder to find good ones.
Mostly buy three packs, sometimes, if I know I LOVE a wine buy six packs. Never waste time with the QPR thing. Quality price ratio starts with QUALITY. Wines like Maybach are great qpr for me. Everytime I buy a wine because its cheap as a primary reason it ends up in sangria or as a gift. Lifes too short to drink shitty wine.
If I taste something and really like it, I would get at least 3.
3 is the magic number these days. I have gotten cases of things in the past and very rarely got bored by the 12th bottle, but when it happens, I give them away/sell off.
QPRs carry the least chance of getting burned, but I also find that unless its a super deal, (like that Dain Syrah), I will get borded of it real quick.
Right now there is only about a dozen wines in my cellar that I have more than 6 of. Lucky for me they are all on my ‘LOVE’ list: Jones Sisters, Scholium Synthia, Maybach, Charles Smith RC, and Congruence Cabernet come to mind.
My initial strategy was to have a little bit of everything… broad depth of regions, vintages, styles, etc… that worked while I was learning about wine and my preferences…
Now, I try to buy large quantities of those wines I know I like and will like. The only time I don’t is when they are expensive… I would love to buy cases of Rousseau Chambertin in every vintage, ain’t going to happen… but I would buy middle range burgs by the case (that i know I like) as opposed to threes and fours of every thing…
I also now only buy certain regions for cellaring, the rest I buy “at market” if that is what I want to drink…
I buy few cases. I don’t want to overload on a narrow range of wines, because I like the exploration of trying new wines/vintages. I let Joe D. talk me into cases of 05 Pax wines and I have regretted buying that much of one thing ever since, mostly because I am somewhat restricting trying other Cali syrahs because I know that I need to work through these wines.
Most years I buy several cases of Huet Chenins. One to drink and one or two to sit longer term. I usually buy a case of Mike’s less expensive zin for summer BBQs. On rare occasions I buy a case of something like the 05 Cap de Faugeres and Reignac, which are nice QPR drinkers that I can dip into over time (which provides both a already-tasted experience and a new experience all at the same time). I also will buy quantities of wine that I like if I find them at reasonable prices in half bottles. On very rare occasions I have bought cases of expensive stuff to put away.
I have a ton of wines that are too young to drink, While I have plenty of wines to drink, when I do my buying these days, I do as Scott and Joe do. I buy specific regions for future consumption, and I focus on wines I want to drink now and buy them for what I can get them for at the market price (right now I am focused on old Burg’s and old Bordeaux).
My goal for 2010 is to buy MORE to drink and less to cellar. If I love a wine. I buy between 6 - 12 and in some instances,I buy a couple of cases. But I never buy more than two cases of any wine and have only done that in very few instances. There is just too many wines (producers, not necessarily varietals) I enjoy and I see no need to drink 4 cases of any one wine.
At times, I bought 3 of a particular wine and after consumption, wish I had bought more, only to find I cannot get it, or the price has gone up considerably. I am glad I bought a couple of cases of Caymus SS 97 for instance. I am now just down to my last bottle. Same with Leoville Las Cases 1990 , only one left
I think we need to differentiate between everyday, drink now or very soon wines and cellaring wines. I rarely have more than 6-12 bottles of everyday stuff around because, well, that’s why shops exist. Why should I stock a ton of wine when they do and I can go there and buy things? This also saves me from buying two cases of an everyday wine only to find that I get tired of it after 6 bottles and I find that I usually buy a wider variety than if I have one or two wines in case quantities.
Inexpensive (sub $20) wines are also a way for me to explore new areas - Kerner from the alto Adige, Loire reds and whites, Albarino, etc.
Cellaring wines… If I feel I like the wines in an area I buy widely and try to get a feel for the various styles, producers, subregions/vineyards etc. At some point I figure out what I like and go deeper. An example… I like Sandrone Barole and Giacomo Conterno Barolo… but when push comes to shove, the Sandrone is nice wine, but not what I’m looking for in aging Barolo, the Conterno is. I can’t know that without trying both, but once I know that I don’t need to keep trying Sandrone, nor do I need to try other wines who are described to me as “very much like Sandrone…” etc.
A tasting group really helps here - either a formal one where you meet the first Friday of every month etc, or a bunch of friends with whom you can say “Hey, Store X has a bunch of Wine Y in, wanna grab a few bottles and see what it’s about?”
PS: One thing I really wish I’d done is to buy wines that are more approachable and less special for mid-term cellaring. My cellar really divides into ‘drink now or within a year’ and ‘needs to be 15 or more years old’ wines. The problem, if you buy a lot of current release wines that all need 15 years to hit their peak over a short time, is that you have a bunch of wines, all special, all of which need to age for about 15 years… and nothing that is both ready sooner and probably less expsneive/special and so is a wine you will reach for for a weeknight dinner. Examples would be some Barbera vs Barolo or Rasteau vs Hermitage. I might hesitate to open a Giacosa Barolo but be very willing to open up a Giacosa or Conterno Nebbiolo or Barbera.
