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- pjhermann - 07-28-2005
I am throwing a party and have about ten bottles of wine I have collected over the years. How do I know which ones are good and which are bad? Is there a website I can check with?
P :-)
- Innkeeper - 07-28-2005
Hi Pjhermann, and welcome to the Wine Board. Here are two of many options: 1. Post all ten of them here with their vintages, and we will give educated guesses. 2. If ten is what you need, get about five more and start popping the old ones first.
- pjhermann - 07-28-2005
Okay- here we go
1.Beaulien Vineyard, 1998, Coastal Cabernet Sauvignon
2. Columbia- Crest 2000, Semillon Chardonay
3. Windsor Vineyards, Na Zdrowie. 1998, Carignane
4. Mendoza Cabernet Sauvignon, 1989 Nicolas E. Fazio
5. Grand Ardeche, 1999, Chardonay
Are any good?
P:-)
- dananne - 07-28-2005
IMHO, all are either on their way out or have left the building. Sorry. If others disagree with that assessment, they'll chime in accordingly. All, from my experience, are best consumed young, or at least not as old as some are. For example, the Columbia Crest should still be alive, assuming it's been stored well, though it's probably on the downhill slope. Let's hope for better luck with the other 5 [img]http://www.wines.com/ubb2/smile.gif[/img]
- pjhermann - 07-28-2005
IMHO? What does that stand for?
- pjhermann - 07-28-2005
When you hear of people aging wines- what type are they? Are there any that are better the older they get?
- dananne - 07-28-2005
IMHO = "in my humble opinion"
As far as aging is concerned, it really is a variable thing, dependent on things like producer, varietal, vintage, etc. Most wines today are made to be ready upon release, and I've heard most wines are consumed within 24 hours of purchase. As a general rule of thumb, most whites are best within 3-4 years of vintage, though some can age for quite a while (some white Burgundy, some Riesling, some Chenin Blanc, etc.) Reds in the $15 and below range, for the most part (and there are exceptions to all of this), are made to be consumed early, like within 5 years of vintage. Every once and awhile you'll find one that can go longer, but those are probably exceptions as opposed to expectations. I'm not saying pricier wine is always better, mind you, but that that price range is generally ready upon release.
There are many wines that do typically age well, such as Bordeaux, Cali Cabernet, Rioja, etc. Some are best at 5 years, some 10, some can last decades. Again, however, it always will be dependent on those variables I mentioned above. It makes for a bit of trial and error for the drinker, but that's the fun part for us [img]http://www.wines.com/ubb2/smile.gif[/img]
In short, there's only one way to know if a wine has gone over the hill, and that's to pop the cork. My suggestion, however, would be for you to have some back-ups ready in case the wines listed above are no longer good.
- Kcwhippet - 07-28-2005
As mentioned in a post under Cabernet Sauvignon, I have some 95 Modavi Napa Valley Cab. So, that's ten years old and the Weener says it's doing very well, thank you. We're going to have it tonight with some grilled ribeyes (topped with Gorgonzola), baked potatoes, Bibb lettuce salad (from Thomas Keller's Bouchon cookbook - marvelous!), grill wokked marinated snow peas and sourdough baguette. I'll let you know tomorrow how it was.