Wines for cellar

[Howard_Cooper]

A few Higher end wines to think about:

Bordeaux - Ducru Beaucaillou, Montrose and Pichon Lalande
Burgundy - Grand crus from Rossignol-Trapet, Pierre Amiot, Hudelot-Noellat (Clos Vougeot is his best priced Grand Cru) and Henri Jouan; premier crus from d’Angerville, Hudelot-Noellat and Clerget.
California Cabernets from Ridge (Montebello), Chateau Montelena and Mt Eden
Barolo - Vajra (Single vineyard wines)
Champagne - Taittinger Comte de Champagne, Dom Ruinart, vintage wines from Delamotte

Note - ALL of these wines need substantial aging

[Yao_C]

Lastly, take a look at the availability of back vintage wines and think about that when stockpiling. If you really fancy super second Bordeaux, back vintages of those can be found relatively easily - albeit with a price premium. However, if your thing is buying low production burgundy - it may not be so easy to obtain in the future and would therefore justify some cellar space.

There’s definitely a chicken-and-egg thing here. Some young wines may not make any sense to you, but will become amazing with age. However because they’re not easily available with age, you never get over the initial hump of skepticism. This is where having friends with deep cellars comes in

[Howard_Cooper]

You may want to exercise caution buying in quantity and stockpiling so called everyday wines. You can acquire these on a per need basis, enjoy greater variety, and won’t find yourself down the road with a lot of wines that you are not really crazy about drinking any longer. If you don’t have a prejudice against sweet wines, lay away some German Riesling. Most are very affordable and very long lived.

Definitely love good German Riesling. In fact, I will be in Germany in a couple weeks and I am looking to a few Spatlese to add to my collection. Any sugegstion for minerality?

Saar and Ruwer, e.g., Zilliken, Von Schubert, etc.

[Chris_Seiber]

I am also interested in attending more tasting events. I attended James Suckling’s Wines of Italy in February when he was in Dallas and I thought that was a great way to try many new wines to understand what I like and what not.

I’m not sure what is near where you live, but good wine stores (if/when we return to normal life at some point) often have tastings in the early evenings, where you can taste 6-12 wines in some kind of theme in small pours. That’s the fastest way to learn about what you like and don’t like – much faster and more cost-effective than a 750ml bottle at time.

Or these days, some shops like that might have a bunch of quality wines available for pours out of a machine – less personal but also a good way to learn, and plus, some of those might still be open these days.

And then if you can cultivate a group of wine-loving friends, where you gather and taste a bunch of wines, maybe even blind, that’s another great way to learn and to grow.

One last piece of advice – don’t overreact to discoveries and bargains. You’ll find something you like, and fear that the availability is about to disappear and/or the prices won’t be the same, and you’ll be tempted to stock up a bunch of it. That’s not always wrong, but for the most part, you’ll keep discovering good wines and good values, and it’s better to resist the impulse to think that you need to stockpile them all now or you’re going to miss out.

[AAgrawal]

One last piece of advice – don’t overreact to discoveries and bargains. You’ll find something you like, and fear that the availability is about to disappear and/or the prices won’t be the same, and you’ll be tempted to stock up a bunch of it. That’s not always wrong, but for the most part, you’ll keep discovering good wines and good values, and it’s better to resist the impulse to think that you need to stockpile them all now or you’re going to miss out.

There’s a lot of good advice here, especially this piece from Chris. It’s one that I’m trying to learn, and not always succeeding at. I’m currently buying way too much 2016 Barolo, and despite that still think I need more. Even for wines I already have. But there will be other vintages, and other wines, and I’ll want room in my cellar for those too…

There are different theories for a cellar: one is to buy a cross-section of what you drink and age it so that you get most/all your aged wine from your cellar. This requires a lot of space, and a lot of money to hold inventory. The 2nd theory is to only buy things you can’t buy later at a good price: maybe high end burgundy and champagne. Older bordeaux or “everyday” wines you can always buy at auction or retail, and a good chunk of what you drink isn’t stuff that you cellared. Each group has their advocates, and neither approach is better than the other.

For me, I love German riesling, but I like them relatively young and don’t find they improve with more than a decade in the cellar. I own way too much sauternes, but I also drink more sauternes than probably most people here, so maybe it’s an appropriate part of my cellar. I wish I cellared more higher end stuff, and though I love my everyday drinkers, they do take up a lot of cellar space…

[Pau1_M3nk3s]

German Riesling, French classics, Northern Italy.
Everything Howard said +1.

[Otto_Forsberg]

Also, what is your opinion of Chianti? I like young ones, but I have never had a 10+ year Chianti. Is that worth the wait and cellaring?

I’ve had a handful of Chiantis aged 40-60 yo that were just wonderful, quite tertiary yet not going downhill. So yes, the best ones can definitely take on some cellaring.

[Markus_S]

Also, what is your opinion of Chianti? I like young ones, but I have never had a 10+ year Chianti. Is that worth the wait and cellaring?

I’m thinking most Chianti I drink (and also Brunello, other sangio wines) isn’t even ready in 10 years! Of course I’m not talking about the more youthful ones, like basic Chianti or Rossos.

[Markus_S]

… You’ll find something you like, and fear that the availability is about to disappear and/or the prices won’t be the same, and you’ll be tempted to stock up a bunch of it. That’s not always wrong, but for the most part, you’ll keep discovering good wines and good values, and it’s better to resist the impulse to think that you need to stockpile them all now or you’re going to miss out.

Glad I ignored this advice on Allemand, Gonon, Rougeard…

[Mark_Golodetz]

Always, always, always, my advice is the same. Find a wine group. Share the cost of your education, and benefit from the advice of more experienced palates. Check with local retailers, or see if any Berserkers are nearby who would be interested. Most places have established groups, if not, there are always people looking. Obviously this needs to happen post Covid.