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RE: Firstime cellar user seeks help and direction - 2/26/2024 10:09:51 AM   
ChrisinCowiche

 

Posts: 7845
Joined: 12/16/2009
From: Cowiche, WA
Status: offline 		Thanks for the photos SOL! Yes, this forum software is NOT photo friendly, but I got to see your shots. What a fun project! I love these cellars and next time my wife goes to Alaska for 2 weeks I intend to dig a large hole in our living room.

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Post #: 31
RE: Firstime cellar user seeks help and direction - 2/26/2024 9:08:17 PM   
Hollowine

 

Posts: 7251
Joined: 7/25/2008
From: Hood River, OR
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: ChrisinCowiche

Thanks for the photos SOL! Yes, this forum software is NOT photo friendly, but I got to see your shots. What a fun project! I love these cellars and next time my wife goes to Alaska for 2 weeks I intend to dig a large hole in our living room.


Have explosives. Will work for wine.

(in reply to ChrisinCowiche)
Post #: 32
RE: Firstime cellar user seeks help and direction - 2/28/2024 7:56:57 AM   
mutwonmax

 

Posts: 27
Joined: 1/27/2024
Status: offline 		Hello SOL and welcome to the forum. Congrats on your spiral cellar. They do look really fancy. Btw, two of your pictures (building in process) worked for me…
So here's my two cents on stocking your cellar:
If you like Bordeaux Reds you could buy from 2015 and 2016. Both vintages are considered excellent years (as are also 2018 through 2020). They are still available at fairly „normal sales prices“ and they already have done some years of aging. 2009 and 2010 are also considered such excellent vintages but they are probably harder to come buy or more expensive already. From 2018 through 2020 you can also find wine which will be drinkable soon-ish. All this doesnt mean that the vintages in between aren’t worth a buy, but they tend to be more heterogenous, i.e. quality of individual appellations and the individual chateaux varies more, so i am less secure when choosing a wine from those vintages, which is why I hardly do it .
I can’t give you any advice on which chateaux would be more to your taste than others. My buys are mostly stabs in the dark. I buy and research online and rely a lot on critics' scores (i.e., at similar price range, I usually buy those with higher scores). Even though that kind of online research can be somewhat longwinding at times I kind of enjoy it. It also helps getting an overview. The obvious drawback is that I probably miss a lot of good wines at good value which dont get scored professionally. (But I find it difficult to find those – you probably need to do real traveling for that).
I don’t buy wines only from certain appellations within Bordeaux. I lack the insight for that and. Also, I haven‘t really come across a well made Bordeaux red which I didn't like. Most times for me it seems to be more about finding the right food and giving the wine some time in the cellar and/or letting it air.
As its already been suggested 3 is a good bottle number if you’re not too sure what you are buying. I second that, because it lets you taste and compare the wine’s evolution in your cellar. However, if I’m even less sure of what I buy I often only buy one bottle of each.
It‘s my personal opinion that even low-budget Bordeaux (starting perhaps around 15,- Euros) can profit from cellaring for some time, or even for a long time. And there are certainly Bordeaux which are meant to be cellared for at least a decade or much longer even. It’s definately worthwhile to assess which wines you should hold for at least a certain amount of time because it can be quite a shame to open an expensive bottle too early. On the other hand it’s probably not flawed to generalise that lower prized bordeaux will be sooner ready for drinking.
If you like Spanish wine I would definately recommend stocking some because you can get good value there. I buy Rioja and sometimes Ribeira. Some Rioja, however, also can need quite a bit of cellaring before they are really enjoyable...
Hope this helps a little, though i feel the need to point out that i am neither expert nor as experienced as many others here probably are. I ve only been doing trial and error for a decade or so,.. although enthusiatically so.


< Message edited by mutwonmax -- 2/28/2024 8:05:18 AM >

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Post #: 33
RE: Firstime cellar user seeks help and direction - 2/28/2024 10:38:50 AM   
recotte

 

Posts: 6873
Joined: 1/19/2011
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: Hollowine


quote:

ORIGINAL: ChrisinCowiche

Thanks for the photos SOL! Yes, this forum software is NOT photo friendly, but I got to see your shots. What a fun project! I love these cellars and next time my wife goes to Alaska for 2 weeks I intend to dig a large hole in our living room.


Have explosives. Will work for wine.


I'm pretty sure he wrote, "I intend to dig a large hole," not "I intend to turn our house into a smoking crater."

But I'll totally fly up to see that happen.


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(in reply to Hollowine)
Post #: 34
RE: Firstime cellar user seeks help and direction - 3/30/2024 9:04:27 AM   
SAF OAK LODGE

 

Posts: 9
Joined: 2/23/2024
Status: offline 		SAF Oak Lodge Cellar Update - New Wines and Upcoming Exploration!

Hi everyone,

It's the cellar master at SAF Oak Lodge, back again! I wanted to express my sincere gratitude to all the forum members who offered advice and patience during my initial wine selection process. Your insights have been invaluable!

Over the past month, I've had the pleasure of tasting five new wines, focusing on exploring different grape varieties rather than specific regions or vineyards. Here's what I sampled:

1) Greywacke Sauvignon Blanc 2023
2) Chateau du cèdre Cahors Malbec 2020
3) Domaine Les Sibu Côtes du Rhône Sablet 2021
4) Elna Walch Pinot Grigio 2021
5) Ballasalla Pinot Noir 2020 (whoops, it seems this snuck in there!)

My wife and I were particularly impressed by two of these selections, and we confidently purchased two cases each of the De Wetshoff Estate Bon Vallon Chardonnay 2022 and the Greywacke Sauvignon Blanc 2023. They're sure to be crowd-pleasers!

Now, we're gearing up for another round of exploration over the next month. Once again, the focus will be on individual grape varietals whenever possible. Here's what's on the tasting list:

1) Puech-Haut Argali 2022 Rosé (Grenache blend)
2) Valle del Cachapoal D.O. Peumo Reserva Especial Cordillera de las Andes (Carmenere) 2018
3) Bodega Rezabal Getariako Txakoli 2022
4) Bodega Sottano Cabernet Sauvignon 2019
5) Cousino-Macaul Antigua Reservas 2018 Merlot

And for a bit of a fun surprise, we've also thrown in a bottle of "The Liberator 'Midnight Bakkie Rides Again' Chenin Blanc 2022." This one sounds like it might be a wild ride!

Thank you all again for your continued interest and feel free to share any thoughts or recommendations you might have on these upcoming selections. Cheers!

(in reply to Paul852)
Post #: 35
RE: Firstime cellar user seeks help and direction - 4/5/2024 6:51:46 AM   
River Rat

 

Posts: 1336
Joined: 4/29/2010
From: Forestville, CA
Status: offline 		When entering your images to ibb.com you need to choose the correct format.



See the dropdown under the photo?



Select “Direct Link”

Then when you load the link in the forum between the image tags be sure there are no spaces before or after the link.


(in reply to Paul852)
Post #: 36
RE: Firstime cellar user seeks help and direction - 4/7/2024 2:32:51 AM   
penguinoid

 

Posts: 1058
Joined: 1/10/2013
From: Australia via the UK, now in Bozen-Bolzano, Italy
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: Paul852
quote:

ORIGINAL: Eduardo787
Paul please give us an idea about pricing in HK. For example how much is a regular Caymus, Silver Oak, Cakebread, the typical steakhouse wine in the US ?

Over here it is about double the price give or take. If bought in the USA at HEB or any supermarket it might be even 2.5 X over here since at the supermarket I would not be paying shipping. Caymus at Costco Mex would be $125 and in the USA maybe mid $70s, but in the expensive spectrum it can easily double. My friends from Mexico City and Guadalajara envy us from Monterrey since we have the same wines as they do but we get it at half price because we just drive to the border and bring them back. If you have a 1,100 bottle inventory the savings can be more of what a brand new luxury car is worth. I am lucky indeed

I'm struggling to give you specific numbers here, because it seems that "Caymus" can mean many things. Do you mean the Napa Valley Cab, or the California Cab, or what?

And Wine-Searcher Pro gives me 8 different Silver Oak Cab Sauvs to choose from (Napa, Alexander Valley, Bonnie's Vineyard, etc), and at least 3 different Cakebread Napa Cab Sauvs.

It seems that you need to be very specific.


I've been lucky enough to try some very good US wines, but I'd have to agree with Paul852 the prices are often not great in export markets. For example, one wine that I tried once at a tasting and really enjoyed was Mayacamas Cabernet Sauvignon. The cheapest bottle on wine-searcher that I can actually order (ie will post to Italy) is €143 (for a 2013, not including postage from Geneva). I'd love to retaste this wine, but that's well above my budget -- and I could get some pretty decent Bordeaux for less. That's still an expensive wine in the US, though -- the cheapest I found was €115 for a 2014.

There are sometimes exceptions, though again I'd have to order from another country in Europe and pay for delivery -- which I try to avoid doing too often to keep somewhat close to my budget . I also get nervous about buying from unknown shops via wine-searcher, though I guess most of them are probably ok. I notice a few bottles from Tablas Creek, another place whose wines I've got to taste and enjoyed, from about €25 up, which is more affordable.

In contrast, in Australia they mostly aren't available regardless of price. Oddly, Apothic Red and Kendall Jackson Vintners Reserve were exceptions, for some reason, though I gather neither are really all that great.

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Post #: 37
RE: Firstime cellar user seeks help and direction - 4/7/2024 8:22:46 AM   
DoubleD1969

 

Posts: 3599
Joined: 8/19/2008
From: New Jersey
Status: offline 		Very good Napa cabs are generally more expensive than Bordeaux counterparts because of production which is usually a fraction of what the French bottle.

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Post #: 38
RE: Firstime cellar user seeks help and direction - 4/15/2024 8:49:54 PM   
mclancy10006

 

Posts: 4509
Joined: 3/19/2007
From: Cape Cod, MA & Bellevue, WA
Status: offline 		I did not see Spain on your list of likes. I would suggest Rioja and a classic producer like R. Lopez Heredia. They do all the insanity of holding the wines until they are ready to drink and will stay happy in the cellar for a long time.

-Mark

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Post #: 39
RE: Firstime cellar user seeks help and direction - 4/16/2024 2:33:00 AM   
penguinoid

 

Posts: 1058
Joined: 1/10/2013
From: Australia via the UK, now in Bozen-Bolzano, Italy
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: mclancy10006

I did not see Spain on your list of likes. I would suggest Rioja and a classic producer like R. Lopez Heredia. They do all the insanity of holding the wines until they are ready to drink and will stay happy in the cellar for a long time.



I've got to try a couple of their wines recently, and they are worth checking out -- if just for the fact that they hold wines till they're ready. I wish more wineries could do this, but realise it's pretty expensive for them. (I think it's not as bad in most of Europe, but in Australia if wineries want to do this they need to pay tax annually on wines they're holding and not selling, which makes it very expensive!)

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Post #: 40
RE: Firstime cellar user seeks help and direction - 4/16/2024 3:07:31 PM   
wadcorp

 

Posts: 9332
Joined: 10/29/2008
From: Kansas City, MO
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: mclancy10006

I would suggest Rioja and a classic producer like R. Lopez Heredia. They do all the insanity of holding the wines until they are ready to drink and will stay happy in the cellar for a long time.



This.

.


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(in reply to mclancy10006)
Post #: 41
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