What's That "Gunk" in my Wine?

[mrdutton]

I turn my bottles 45 degrees every year, that way the sediment and the dust coat the inside and the outside of the bottle evenly. (GRIN)

A week ago I opened a 1996 Pahlmeyer Merlot after letting it sit upright for 24 hours. I'd gently wiped the dust off the bottle before I set it upright. The sediment settled to the bottom of the bottle and I did not bother to decant it. But each glass was poured gently and carefully. No gunk until the last glass.

My storage is not ideal. As I was removing the cork it broke in half along the horizontal. So I just gently reinserted the screw and pulled the remainder out in one piece.

The wine was bright dark ruby red, no sign of brown edges at all. Nice clarity in my first pour, I could read a newspaper through the glass. Didn't check the other three pours, didn't care.

I don't have detailed tasting notes, but I know I enjoyed drinking it. All the way down until the gunk and then I stopped and rinsed out the glass.

Still have a couple left and then on to the 1994 Carfaro Merlot ........ and then the 1990 Burgess CS.....



[This message has been edited by mrdutton (edited 01-09-2008).]