Drink or Keep?

[Anneke]

I love wine, I've been drinking it since I was 3. It's a cultural thing: as kids, we always had a tiny amount with our meal, like in many European families. (Never had the urge to get smashed later in life either!!) Despite my early exposure I feel that I know virtually nothing about this vast and wonderful world of wine.

Specifically, I would like to know, how does one know if one should open a bottle or keep it for a few years?

I received a bottle of Trapiche Cab, 1997(Argentinian wine). Anyone heard of it? I'm kind of eager to try it; should I save it?

A Jug of Wine and thou canst have the bread.

I say, "Drink that Sucker!"

[cape chef]

Anneke,

No real need to bottle age that wine. Argentina is and has been producing a huge amount of wines...Actually they are the fifth largest producer in the world. most of the wines come from the mendoza province. As to your question on aging, So many wines are produced today to be enjoyed in there youth.
With that said still many of the "big" wines from europe and America will benifit from some bottle aging. The most importent aspect of understanding what to do with a particular wine is to know the vintage. Great wines produced in great years generaly will need some aging. IE Wines from Bordeaux,Cabs from The USA,Vintage ports etc..some what off years we call in the trade a "restaurant" vintage. They can be from the best Vintners in the world,But if it was not a decent year you do not want to sit on these wines you want to drink them. Albeit said...Most wines that are in the 10 to 20 doller range are to be enjoyed young. with a few exceptions.
cc

[Anneke]

Thanks for being so thorough, that help me a lot. You are right, this one is from the Mendoza too, 1997. I stopped by the store today to see how they classified it. It was inexpensive and displayed in the 'vintages' section. I think I'll crack it open tomorrow and drink to cupid's health.

When I was in France in 1996 I lugged home some Nuit St-George and have been aging it in my closet (sadly the closest to ideal conditions in my appartment). Does that qualify as a 'grand vin'? I think they are 1989. Probably time to drink those too. You should join me!

[cape chef]

Anneke, after Beaune, Nuits-st george is the second most important commercial center in the "cote D Or" in the middle of Nuit-st-george is in between the village of vosne romanne and Premeaux prissy. there are no Grand crus in niut,but there are a number of premier crus. Nuits -st -George has had it's ups and downs,and are not as sought after as some other Burgundys. Anneke, i would pop one open and see what you think. 89 was a very,very good year in france in general. so you might be very happy with your wines.
heres hopeing you have a wonderful burgundian experence. And thank you for the invite
cc

[ 02-13-2001: Message edited by: cape chef ]

[Pete]

Anneke, I would drink that wine now. Unless you are planning on really getting into wine, your best bet is to buy bottles that are drinking now. Long term storage is a problem at home for most people. Wine is very sensitive to temp. flucations and long-term storage, under proper conditions, is impossible without some form of wine cellar where temp and humidity are controled. There are some options for those of us who want to "cellar" a few bottles, but can't afford to build a "cellar" under our house. First, there are small cellars that are more like coolers that you can buy. They range from $700 up to several $1000 and can hold from any number of bottles from 30-1000. The other option is to seek out a good wine merchant. Often times, larger, higher-end merchants will rent out space in their temp. controlled warehouses. They often charge a fee based on how many cases you cellar there, and I find the price to be quite reasonable. The only problem with this is you must plan ahead. You can't just grab that 1967 Petrus on a whim when the buddies come over for the big game. LOL!

[Anneke]

You are right. I often worry about that. Some of my bottles have been put through ****: not only do I not have cellar conditions but I have moved around a lot too. Someone told me once that as long as I give my bottles a bit of a resting period after commotion of any kind, they should be ok. (Unless they were really traumatized!)