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Stumbled upon some GOLD, advice needed.

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exile_ch
Posts: 715 - Karma: 609
Alright NS, what do you think:

Yesterday, I did an inventory of my wine cellar which I inherited from my dad who past away 2 years ago.
I am leaving to work in China and if everything goes well, I'll be living there for several years; and that pushed me to really know what I had down there. I knew we had good wine, my dad was extremely well educated about it and we drank some every day during dinner (as every good European family should) . I've tasted some pretty good bottle during my time but I wasn't ready for what I discovered.

Here is what I found among tenth of bottles:

- Château Lafite Rotschild 1965 / 1975 / 1978
- Château Mouton Rotschild 1978 / 1979 / 1989
- Romanée Conti 1965
- Château Lynche Bage 1947
- Petrus 1969 (holy shit)


And a fucking Château Latour 1916

Those are some pretty big names, and I can safely say I was super stoked about it. But here is my problem: I'm leaving to China for a long time and I'm not sure what to do with those bottles. One thing for sure, I can't import them with me, China is a pain in the ass with taxes)

Keep them? (some of them are already undrinkable, most will be when I get back)
Drink them? (I got 1 month left before I leave, and I'm not sure to enjoy them as I should)
Sell them? (It's worth a LOT of money, but it's my heritage =/ )

Let's hear what you think NS !
Jun 13 2011 5:54PM
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CAPITA-DEVOURS
Posts: 1968 - Karma: 4
sell the ones worth the most and keep the rest to drink. its money and your keeping some of your heritage..
Jun 13 2011 5:57PM
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StreetsOfRage
Posts: 1180 - Karma: 4
do you need the money? if not keep it and drink it but dont be a dumbass and just drink it all have a glass here and there. save some for when you get back
if you need the money sell A FEW not all of them also save some for when you get back.
Jun 13 2011 5:58PM
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katie.
Posts: 2833 - Karma: 874
Shit man, you can get $2000 for the Petrus 1969. The others are legit as well.

Unless you're planning a really romantic night, or are going to use them wisely, I have no idea. 2k is a lot of money. The other ones can get you lot's as well. Unless you're tight for cash, I say keep them for now. They're yours. They cost nothing, and their value will only go up.
Jun 13 2011 6:02PM
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Username_42069
Posts: 1591 - Karma: 15
$25 shipped on the Château Latour 1916
Jun 13 2011 6:06PM
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ForrestW
Posts: 451 - Karma: 56
quick google search tells me that you have a couple bottles there worth a couple thousand dollars individually. i personally would keep one or two of the really special ones to pass down in the family, and sell the rest after cracking at least one as a going away self present.
thats just me though
Jun 13 2011 6:06PM
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OlliePop
Posts: 160 - Karma: 10
You should get advice from someone that knows what there doing
Jun 13 2011 6:07PM
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AbeFroman
Posts: 1268 - Karma: -4
so you're looking at maybe $7,500 if you sold them all?
Jun 13 2011 6:07PM
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skithesprings
Posts: 9086 - Karma: 1,349
hang on to them. all of the wines you listed are either far beyond their best age or at the point where a few years will have absolutely no effect on the wine. the most important thing is that you keep them cellared at a constant cool temperature in the dark without agitating them (as i hope they have been stored). whatever you do, DO NOT ship them anywhere or travel with them. the stresses of shipping (heat, agitation) can be devastating to very old wines.

my suggestion, keep all of the wines. on special occasions, ie your marriage, births of children, christmas, anywhere you know your father would have been proud to share them with you, thats when you open a bottle and enjoy it. wine is meant to be enjoyed, i promise it will be worth more to you than selling the bottles. the oldest of your bottles which may be beyond their prime, i think you should hang on to those. theres no point in drinking them and if they mean anything to you, you probably shouldn't sell them.

my dad is the same with wine and i know that some day i'm going to be faced with going through our wine cellar that has 5k bottles and is growing to figure out what to do with all of it. so good luck, and i hope you enjoy some of the excellent wine you have.
Jun 13 2011 6:07PM
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katie.
Posts: 2833 - Karma: 874
Yeah man...that's a $1500 bottle of wine right there
Jun 13 2011 6:08PM
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exile_ch
Posts: 715 - Karma: 609
To be honest, I'm a bit short of cash for my first year in China and a bit of money wouldn't hurt.

My first thought was to sell 1 Chateau Lafite and 1 Mouton Rotschild and keep the rest. Maybe drink one of the others with all my real' close friends at my farewell party.

I'm still thinking of asking a professionnal to come take a look and estimate those bottles, my cellar as a whole and ask him to give me an idea which ones will age the best. I'll need someone to help me take care of this cellar aswell, turn the bottles and stuff.
Jun 13 2011 6:09PM
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katie.
Posts: 2833 - Karma: 874
And this is probably the best idea.
Jun 13 2011 6:09PM
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amo
Posts: 6709 - Karma: 1,248
damn i was expecting real gold
Jun 13 2011 6:09PM
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exile_ch
Posts: 715 - Karma: 609
Thanks for the advice man, all of them have been kept in a adequate cellar, 14°celcius, dry, air flowing, natural cave. Bottles have been well taken care of.
Jun 13 2011 6:14PM
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AbeFroman
Posts: 1268 - Karma: -4
ONE MORE POSRT
Jun 13 2011 6:15PM
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skithesprings
Posts: 9086 - Karma: 1,349
woah... i hope you don't mean turning any bottles but champagne. reds are best kept on one side such that any sediment settles. to turn the bottle agitates the sediment. you don't want to do that.
Jun 13 2011 6:17PM
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ESAND
Posts: 1607 - Karma: 744
Hahahaha Drink a glass here and there? Pass it down to your kids? Do you guys know anything about wine?

 Personally, I'd sell the mouton except for the 89 (had one in december at a vertical mouton tasting, fucking exceptional) drink the lafite and conti. Sell the petrus the bage and the latour. Unless you're wealthy that is, in which case I'd keep them all. If you're not though, there is way too much fantastic 200 dollar wines to be sitting on $2000 ones.

This is of course my opinon as a wine drinker, if I were a collector it may be a different story. 
Jun 13 2011 6:17PM
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katie.
Posts: 2833 - Karma: 874
HO SHIZZ . make it a good one
Jun 13 2011 6:17PM
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soulskier
Posts: 17806 - Karma: 3,841
i say keep 'em, if there were enough i'd drink one every year on his birthday/anniversary of his passing and look back at the memories. then again, i'm no wine afficianado just a sentimental bastard
Jun 13 2011 6:17PM
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AWALLRUS.
Posts: 5762 - Karma: 223
haha smart fucking ads, at the bottom of the thread there was an ad for wine i've never seen before.

but you should sell the really expensive ones and get wasted off of a couple of the other good ones.
Jun 13 2011 6:26PM
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H8CH
Posts: 2709 - Karma: 218
I know wine - PM me if you want some advice..... I know about vintage wines too - you dont have to sell it either if you want to leave it as an investment.
Jun 13 2011 6:29PM
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JakeAssBeatClap
Posts: 6673 - Karma: 2,537
My mom is also very educated on wines and has worked in the wine industry for years.basically keep those wines. DO NOT DRINK THEM IN A MONTH!!!! Chances are they aren't good this month wine will go through periods of the year since it has been bottled where they are good or not so say that bottle from 1916 opened now tastes amazing and elegant and just beautiful six months from now it may taste like cherry juice poop. However another six months after that its back to the beautiful flavor it is meant to have. My advice is keep the bottles maybe drink one or two but keep the rest and have a wine guide tell you when the best time to drink these would be and when. ORRRR sell them for a good chunk of change and use that money as spending cash in chine. You are very lucky my friend. Good luck with your decision.
Jun 13 2011 6:32PM
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exile_ch
Posts: 715 - Karma: 609
I was talking about the Champagnes I have (some Veuve Clicquot, Taittinger and Moët et Chandon) but you're right I wasn't clear. But those need care and I won't be there to do that.
Jun 13 2011 6:34PM
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Elmo.
Posts: 4317 - Karma: 663
yea i thought u were gunna be like "i was digging in my backyard to put in a pool (or some shit) and i found like 4 ounces of gold" that would of been dope. but this might be sicker. id sell most of em. to be honest. if u need money for china then get money for china. keep a few that remind u most of your heritage then the rest should be drank at your going away partaaayy
Jun 13 2011 6:40PM
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tripnip
Posts: 1882 - Karma: 482
well its kinda funny myfriend is a wine seller and collecter. and this kinda thing came up in conversation and really most bottles that are 100 years old the wine is not going to be good if you want to open the bottle and try it any ways you have defaced the value. but there is the chance that it is still good. get intouch with some wine apraisers. it might help
Jun 13 2011 6:45PM
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technique.
Posts: 1538 - Karma: 308
pretty much this. especially the part about moments your dad would have cherished(not a going way party where you just slam them back with friends)

maybe sell a bottle if cash is that tight. i would probably get an expert involved though if you do that
Jun 13 2011 8:24PM
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--ski--
Posts: 1670 - Karma: 817
I don't know much about wine, but I bought one of these for old mans birthdays a month or so ago.

It could give you a nice wee pay check if sold.
Jun 13 2011 8:32PM
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hablablaha
Posts: 201 - Karma: 15
Here is how i have started to view my belongings lately. I'm not sure how to explain it without sounding stupidly obvious. But if i have something thats worth, lets say, 500 bucks if i sell it. Then i think to my self, -would i buy this thing for 500 dollars with my current interest in this particular object? if not, then i (in theory) would sell it. Because in the end. Its the exact same thing. it's keeping 500 dollars out of my wallet. If i change my mind, i can probably buy something like it for the same price or cheaper later when i regain my interest in it.

And when it comes to super expensive vintage wines. I'm sure you could have an equally pleasant experience with a slightly cheaper whine, just that it wont have the same exclusive feel to it. just because you are in possession of the wines right now doesn't make them more valuable. You should think to your self, do i want to drink wine for 2k, or is there something id rather spend that kind of cash on right now. don't let the simple fact that you already have the wines affect you choice. because in reality, it shouldn't affect the decision at all.

If it has something to do with the memory of your dad though, only you can decide.



Jun 13 2011 8:56PM
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TonyTheTiger
Posts: 863 - Karma: 68
I could not imagine myself drinking 2000$... Wow... Get the money for them, I'm sure your cellar is full of very tasty but less expensive bottles.
Jun 13 2011 9:07PM
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exile_ch
Posts: 715 - Karma: 609
I'm leaving for an extended period of time, most likely 10 years or so with the occasional going back for holiday. I think drinking a bottle with my 4 best friends (who btw enjoy wine and would apreciate it) before commencing my new life is a pretty good reason to open one of them.

But don't worry, It won't be one of the most extremely rare bottle, but still something to mark this evenement. Something I know will be undrinkable in 10 years for exemple.  I'm leaving everything I know, and everyone I know since I'm a kid for a completely new country and culture. I feel like it would be an adequate time for a special bottle.

Thanks to all of you for the advice, helpfull as it should be.

A professionnal will come see and evaluate my cellar, as well as giving me adviceabout what to do with those special bottles. I will most likely keep them with the exception of one or two that I might sell.
Jun 13 2011 9:49PM
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jblaski
Posts: 5566 - Karma: 1,078
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He's got a friend that could help you out.
Jun 13 2011 10:01PM
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PopsicleStand
Posts: 6890 - Karma: 147
wow obnoxious much?

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Jun 13 2011 10:09PM
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BrewskiJr
Posts: 5738 - Karma: 1,478
http://www.wine-searcher.com/find/grand+vin+chateau+latour/1916

:-0
Jun 13 2011 10:12PM
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Steve-Brown
Posts: 1894 - Karma: 810
i bet they're a bunch from the 80's keep those
but the old ones
ur pa kept for a reason, for something special, keep like 4 of the oldest ones and pass them down to ur kids dude.
that probably was his goal, so in all honesty drink the ones you think he didn't care for...(cheap ones) keep the old expensive ones foreverish
Jun 13 2011 10:13PM
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pomme-de-terre
Posts: 3915 - Karma: 703
yeah what the fuck newschoolers? the average age is what? 14? you should all be far more well versed on the appreciating values and tastes of vintage wines. you guys are gonna be ssoo fucked when you show up to your first college party with a bottle of great western like "sup guys!"
Jun 13 2011 11:11PM
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hockeyplayer
Posts: 291 - Karma: 6
all i could think of... LOL

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Jun 13 2011 11:35PM
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TaranItUp
Posts: 1313 - Karma: 802
Sell Wine
obtain money
buy 2 buck chuck
go party
=Profit
Jun 13 2011 11:56PM
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Emma_Watson
Posts: 4491 - Karma: 6,796
Do you need money?
I would sell a few, and keep the rest to sell sometime later..
Jun 14 2011 12:01AM
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T.R.
Posts: 147 - Karma: 10
sell sell sell
Jun 14 2011 12:14AM
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wasatch_rat
Posts: 1772 - Karma: 2,951
your dad didn't expect you to be drinking them if their already undrinkable, i see no shame in selling some of them.
Jun 14 2011 12:23AM
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ESAND
Posts: 1607 - Karma: 744
I suppose I should know who that is? I see nothing wrong with my post, wine is not cognac, you can't open it and have a glass now and one in a week. A vintage like the ones posted has 2 days tops and that's in the fridge overnight.
Jun 14 2011 12:37AM
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hablablaha
Posts: 201 - Karma: 15
I guess it had something to do with you being condescending instead of just say straight out that you can't keep an open bottle of wine. And that attitude made the rest of your post seem really stereotypical and pretentious. And i have to ad, it doesn't say he should keep any open bottles. if you split a bottle with some friends, it will only be a glass every now and then,
Jun 14 2011 2:24AM
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.nasty
Posts: 10581 - Karma: 11,150
keep 'em, they'll be worth double within years. too bad there's no pre 1900's in that collection.
Jun 14 2011 2:30AM
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canterbury
Posts: 2382 - Karma: 55
wat
Jun 14 2011 2:36AM
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nneth_time
Posts: 386 - Karma: 32
I like how you said some were un drinkable, then went to drinking them as the next option.

Anyways.
You could keep them and pass them on to your son. That would be cool, but I guess that doesn't really help your dilemma.
This post doesn't do much. I'm to young to give you good advice.
Jun 14 2011 2:41AM
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hablablaha
Posts: 201 - Karma: 15
sorry. If you split a bottle with some friends. you will only get one or two glasses of wine (for your self). So when that other guy said "have a glass here and there". he wasn't necessarily meaning that he should keep the bottle in his fridge and have one glass from that particular bottle every now and then.
Jun 14 2011 2:45AM
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Steezy_IN_KC
Posts: 2033 - Karma: 1,607
Very well educated response. This is when i am most proud to be a ns member.
I couldn't agree more with this.
Best of luck to you. I would love to buy a bottle from you if the founds were more plentiful.
Jun 14 2011 3:04AM
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PopsicleStand
Posts: 6890 - Karma: 147
um ok, wine is not like cognac...? you are not making yourself sound any better. there is not a bunch of cognac drinkers on this board, so that comparison is stupid too. you could have been satisfied that no one said "pour that shit on yo bitches tits!!!!11!1!!"

wine elitism is about as pretentious as it gets.
Jun 14 2011 5:04AM
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springz
Posts: 327 - Karma: 397
Petrus 1969 is worth $1000+ I'd sell it.......
Jun 14 2011 12:40PM
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.nasty
Posts: 10581 - Karma: 11,150
so which one of these is your petrus 1969?
http://www.wine-searcher.com/find/petrus/1969
Jun 14 2011 2:37PM
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exile_ch
Posts: 715 - Karma: 609
Those are some 69 Petrus aviable for sale from professionnal sellers.. Mine is in my private cellar, which isn't for sale, at least for now :) .
Jun 14 2011 2:55PM
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