September Wine Tip

Wine Cellaring-Managing when to drink and what.

So, not everyone can afford a temperature-controlled wine cellar with the inventory management software to go with it.  Here are a few tips to help the modest collector.

1) Always buy at least 2 bottles of any wine you want to cellar.  This protects against bad corks and will allow you to check a wine’s progress.

2) Storing wine in their cases in a cool dark place is a fine way to cellar wine, as long as the bottles are upside down or on their sides.

3) Keep a simple notebook with the date and location (in your cellar) of your wines.  Sign a wine “In” when it arrives and “Out” when it is drunk.  Mark off 5 areas starting with the next 2 years up to 10 years time e.g. 2011-2012, 2013-2014, 2015-2016, 2017-2018, and 2019-2020+.  Put every new wine in the area corresponding to when it is suggested to be at its’ peak.  This way you can move wines around depending on how they are drinking, and it will allow you to drink wine at it’s best more often!