This month I wanted to pass along to you some simple wisdom about how to build your own wine cellar. Since I was “bitten by the wine bug” almost ten years ago I have been struggling to build up my own personal wine cellar. Mistakes have been made along the way and I learned a few simple tricks that I wish someone had told me ten years ago. In no particular order have a read of these great tips and please remember to pair up some great wines with your Thanksgiving Turkey!
I also have included five of my favorite wines from the Marquee portfolio to have with your Thanksgiving meal:
Marquee Classic Riesling – A lovely pairing white with great acidity!
Clemen Vinho Verde – A hint of sweetness and slight spritz are great palate cleansers!
Pianissimo Malbec Rose – Yes, rose with turkey is a great pair!
Quattro Leoni – Barbera D’Asti – For the red lover and perfect with rich stuffing!
Marquee Signature Pinot Noir – Fall flavors, cherries and cranberries abound!
Tip #1 – Try new things – The world of wine just keeps getting bigger and bigger and there are thousands of great bottles of wine out there (there are a few duds as well), but if you keep trying new wines you are going to find great wines to go back to.
Tip #2 – Take a few notes – We are not talking about a Science lecture, but jotting down when you like something and when you don’t in a small notebook can really help point you in the right direction. If you can find a small wine journal to keep all of the notes in, it just makes it that much easier (and for all of you shoppers out there, Christmas is right around the corner and Wine Journals could be within a down economic budget).
Tip #3 – Give yourself a budget – There are great bargains galore and some things that never go on sale. If you start by giving yourself a simple budget of a few dollars it makes a great game to go to your local wine retailer and come back with a case for the cellar.
Tip #4 – Buy more reds – Ok, I am not just saying this because I might happen to really like red wines; the reality is that white wines don’t tend to age quite as well and should be only cellared for a few years. My rule of thumb is to try and keep whites in my cellar to have for less than five years from when purchased. If you end up buying a few more reds this helps you balance out your cellar and keep the whites nice and fresh.
Tip #5 – Buy at least two bottles – Once you have found a wine that you are interested in adding to the cellar, perhaps it would be the Silver Wings Mourvedre / Shiraz from Australia, if you buy at least two bottles, you are setting yourself up to enjoy one earlier and then to be able to enjoy a second with additional aging for comparison. With buying the two bottles you are also giving yourself an instant backup if there was anything wrong with the first bottle.
Tip #6 – Talk to your retailers – If you go to a local wine shop frequently, you will find that there is a plethora of information available from a likely source, the staff. If you start to talk with them about what you liked and disliked, take a few recommendations and even find out what is on sale you can be in for a real treat. Use this fountain of knowledge and will be thankful!Tip #7 – Figure out a way to stay organized – In an electronic world, spreadsheets, pictures from your iPhone, or great sites like http://www.cellartracker.com/ are wonderful resources for you to list what you have in your cellar + to connect with great tasting notes from others. In my case I started with a simple Microsoft Excel spreadsheet and that is working fine for me. My advice, find a nice way to keep organized and then when you are looking for additions, that special bottle, etc… you will be in a better place.
Tip #8 – Sign up for a wine magazine – Grab a nice issue of Wine Spectator, Wine Enthusiast, Robert Parker, etc… as something to help you find out the best vintages, new information about upcoming wine regions, food and wine pairings, etc… They are all great in one way or another, but just a bit of reading before your trip to the store will help you in the long run.
Tip #9 – Travel and Ship – One of the most rewarding parts I find to wine collecting is actually visiting a vineyard, talking with the winemakers, sampling wines in their tasting rooms and more. If you take advantage of the fact to buy wines during these travels these will be some of your most prized possessions in a great wine cellar. Most wineries, importers and even many retail shops will ship wine directly to your door to ease the travel burdens. It is a welcome present on the front door when you return.
Tip #10 – There are no rights or wrongs – Buy and collect what you enjoy, yes, wines have a value and if you buy the right wines at the right times they might go up in value, but truly the idea behind a good cellar should be to enhance your wine experience. There is no right or wrong wines to buy, just have fun along the way and after a few short years opening that bottle that you have been savoring will be a delicious treat!
Thanks!
~CJC
Today’s Cribb Note – Check out what the Premier Guide to Miami had to say about the Miami Wine Fair and Marquee...
Christopher J. Cribb, CSW
GM - General Manager
Marquee Artisan Wines - http://www.marquee.com/
Cell - 816.223.9201 - Office - 913.663.9416
Fax – 913.663.9416 – Blog – marqueewines.blogspot.com
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