Need Help With Some Gifted Wine

[IBQTEE1]

My friend is moving out of state and he gave me 12 bottles of wine. There were a couple that I knew about but there are the following 6 that I know nothing about. Can you tell me if they are any good or not? Thanks!!

Here are the 1st three

http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll103/kbureta/IMG_3053.jpg

Here are the 2nd three

http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll103/kbureta/IMG_3054.jpg

[Skywalker]

Only one way to find out!:al

Where is Bob or Greg when you need them???

[OnlyDryReds]

Ill bring the cheese :)

[Subvet642]

That Gewurztraminer looks nice! I love Gewurz! Serve it cool. :tu

[OLS]

I like the Z.S.Katz a lot, I tend towards the bright and fruity, which is why I like that kid on glee, the one that
probably has a clitoris. (I KID)....
The Meridian ought to be decent, might not taste too expensive, but it ought to be good enough, certainly.
The others I would be stabbing in the dark on, but NONE of them look bad, out of those that I don't know.
I would think the Beaujolais would be great, a bit dry and tannic, but again good enough. ALL OF IT, from the
vintages I can read, is ready to drink now....how convenient, lol. I'd start with that Mondavi, unless someone else
with experience thought it would roll on.

[markem]

I have had 4 of the six (weirdly enough, I have not had the rightmost one in each pic). I'd say that they are all nice wines with the Meridian and the Beaujolais being the ones that peak my interest. In the very end, it will depend a lot on how the previous owner stored them. My advice is to work them in to a mix of wines you like so that you can have both a backup and comparison readily at hand.

[T.G]

Wait, wait, whut?

Wine comes in bottles too? All these years, I've lugging boxes... :c

[CigarNut]

When's the party Kristin??

[The Poet]

My first thought was that all the white wines are all at least a decade old. Though red wines are generally considered to improve with age, the same is not necessarily true of whites. If the whites were stored in the proper environment, they could be better than they were "fresh", but if not they may have turned to vinegar.

As the nice Darrell said, there's one way to find out. ;)

[St. Lou Stu]

My friend is moving out of state and he gave me 12 bottles of wine. There were a couple that I knew about but there are the following 6 that I know nothing about. Can you tell me if they are any good or not? Thanks!!

Here are the 1st three


Here are the 2nd three


I'm willing to help. Pursuant to your bolded request, I will tell you if they are good or not after each glass.
What time and where?

[GWN]

mosesbotbol is the guy you're looking for.

[OLS]

Yeah, I forgot to say that.....storage, storage, storage. Them's some OLD bottles, relatively speaking.
Might have some free vinegar, might have some excellent little bottles, and again, most if not all need to be
drunk now. MIGHT be able to hold the Beaujolais longest. But if it was well kept, it could be GREAT now.

[IBQTEE1]

"Thanks for the help" :r I guess the party is at my house for either a bottle dumping party or a great wine tasting. I will let everyone know when the party is. :D

[OLS]

bottle dumping party I have often wondered, would it be a good use of bad wine to take the vinegar and herbs and
make something useful out of it, or is the term 'vinegar' just a way of saying that it is now so bad that
the turned wine can't be used, even as actual vinegar? Hmmmmmm. GUUUGLE!!!
------edit post guugle.
I still have no idea, but apprently making vinegar is more complicated than I thought, lol.

Out of 6 bottles I am predicting one bottle turned.

[IBQTEE1]

Out of 6 bottles I am predicting one bottle turned.

That would work for me.

[replicant_argent]

Like what you drink, drink what you like. ;)
No need for "expert" analysis.
Make sure they are the proper temps for each type, open them up.
If you like it, repeat as necessary until the bottle gets upside down.
If it sucks, dump it.

You really might want to think about unbiased third party analysis and verification of exactly which grapes were used, and if they have been tampered with, just to be safe. I would call in some guys that will flap their gums about the provenance. By that time, you should have a few glasses under your belt and can roll your eyes appropriately. ;)
Cigars are just rolled leaves that sometimes suck, wine is just fermented grapes that may suck/partially suck/ don't suck.
Perhaps I have said too much.
Get some "cheap wine," some madiera, and some "vintage port" to back yourself up.











I keeed... I keeeeeed.....

[mosesbotbol]

All of these are drinkable if aged correct.

Bouchard is a good brand for Burgundy. The Beaujolais-Village is the most basic expression of Beaujolais. What vintage? Should be fun to open. Serve slightly chilled.

Buena Vista Gewrztramaminer will be be sweet, but slightly musty by now. Not that, musty is bad, but is what happens to this style of wine when it ages. Serve chilled.

Brocard Chablis is the one that caught my eye the most. This is a chard and could be real nice. Serve Chilled and then let warm a touch if it is drinkable.

Mondavi SC will be really interesting! Never had one that old, but I would be curious to hear your result. Nice with cold seafood platter. Serve Chilled and then let warm a touch if it is drinkable.

[IBQTEE1]

All of these are drinkable if aged correct.

Bouchard is a good brand for Burgundy. The Beaujolais-Village is the most basic expression of Beaujolais. What vintage? Should be fun to open. Serve slightly chilled.

Buena Vista Gewrztramaminer will be be sweet, but slightly musty by now. Not that, musty is bad, but is what happens to this style of wine when it ages. Serve chilled.

Brocard Chablis is the one that caught my eye the most. This is a chard and could be real nice. Serve Chilled and then let warm a touch if it is drinkable.

Mondavi SC will be really interesting! Never had one that old, but I would be curious to hear your result. Nice with cold seafood platter. Serve Chilled and then let warm a touch if it is drinkable.

Thank you for the help. This helps me out a ton. I am not that big of a wine drinker.

[CoreyD]

If it turns out not to be a good glass, it may be great for cooking.

[IBQTEE1]

If it turns out not to be a good glass, it may be great for cooking.

That is what I was thinking too!! I marinate my meat all the time in wine.

[icehog3]

That is what I was thinking too!! I marinate my meat all the time in wine.

Me too. ;)

[T.G]

That is what I was thinking too!! I marinate my meat all the time in wine.

It's not a good idea to cook with wines that have turned, it's no different than cooking with any other spoiled ingredient, it won't make a magical turnaround, it'll still have an off taste which it will impart into the rest of the dish. You'd be much better off picking up a fresh $2-3 bottle of something like Charles Shaw, Foxbrook or the one that wal-mart carries (owns?) Oak Leaf? Turning Leaf? something like that. :2

[IBQTEE1]

Me too. ;)

I would like to see your technique sometime!! :r

It's not a good idea to cook with wines that have turned, it's no different than cooking with any other spoiled ingredient, it won't make a magical turnaround, it'll still have an off taste which it will impart into the rest of the dish. You'd be much better off picking up a fresh $2-3 bottle of something like Charles Shaw, Foxbrook or the one that wal-mart carries (owns?) Oak Leaf? Turning Leaf? something like that. :2

I do usually use 2 Buck Chuck. But we will see about these wines. I would never use bad wine. :tu

[T.G]

I cook with two buck chuck all the time.

Sometimes I even add it to the food.

[AlohaStyle]

My first thought was that all the white wines are all at least a decade old. Though red wines are generally considered to improve with age, the same is not necessarily true of whites. If the whites were stored in the proper environment, they could be better than they were "fresh", but if not they may have turned to vinegar.

As the nice Darrell said, there's one way to find out. ;)

A BIG +1

The Robert Mondavi is 25 years old! A lot of whites can't handle that amount of aging. I'm curious, does the bottle say where the grapes came from? It just says "California" white, but does it say a vineyard or area/appellation? If it was stored correctly, it could be okay, but I wouldn't hold my breath.

I personally like Meridian as an every day wine, that should be a decent one if you like Reds.

[mosesbotbol]

A BIG +1

The Robert Mondavi is 25 years old! A lot of whites can't handle that amount of aging. I'm curious, does the bottle say where the grapes came from? It just says "California" white, but does it say a vineyard or area/appellation? If it was stored correctly, it could be okay, but I wouldn't hold my breath.

Sauvignon Blanc is the grape. My guess is it'll go down the drain, but I would like to read the results soon in this thread!

[OLS]

Aw come one, we have been going on with this for three weeks already. She's not going to open them.

[TheRiddick]

Poet,

Actually, whites age WAAAAAY better than reds, as a RULE. As in Champagne, Vouvray, Riesling, sweet whites (Sauterne anyone?), Quarts de Chaume and others.

That said, I'd be curious to see how any of these whites turn out. Most cheaper CA whites are not made to age and with age turn to vinegar. Have to see which glass was actually used on that Buena Vista, but the color of the wine tells me it has oxidized a while ago. 25 year old Sauvignon? Best of them don't age well and are not meant to age at all, actually.

Meridian comes from a overripe year in CA, in general, and high yield Central Valley specifically, with very low acidity and no balance to carry it through.

Beajoulais is worth a shot, although it is not Morgon and isn't meant to be aged.
.
.
.
.
Moses, you seem to contradict your hero, Parker :-) Not that I disagree with you... I had my last bottle of 1998 Napa Viognier last year, from Pride. It tasted GREAT in every respect, but Pride is considered Top 3 Viognier vineyard around, IMO, and aged in neutral wood (so no oak at all). I am not sure I'd place a bet on the bottles above, doubt good storage conditions on any of these, actually would bet against good storage since no one buys CA cheap whites to age them. Nor reds. They are made to drink short term, as is 95% of the world wine.

Its akin to buying Garcia & Vega to age them, but hey, always worth 10 minutes' time to go through them before you open a good bottle of beer.

[TheRiddick]

Forgot to add that beer better be $14 a six pack or more...

[mosesbotbol]

Moses, you seem to contradict your hero, Parker :-) Not that I disagree with you...

He's not my wine hero, that would be Michael Broadbent :sl

Speaking of old CA oddballs, I picked up a 1962 Inglenook Gamay in excellent color/condition... Should be interesting.

[OLS]

Holy carp, my birth year.

[mosesbotbol]

Holy carp, my birth year.

Also picked up a 1966 Charles Krug Pinot Noir. I have been searching for older CA Pinot's (before the over ripe high alcohol era). They are undervalued in my opinion and can fool many a Burgundy fan.

[TheRiddick]

Also picked up a 1966 Charles Krug Pinot Noir. I have been searching for older CA Pinot's (before the over ripe high alcohol era). They are undervalued in my opinion and can fool many a Burgundy fan.

You mean lack of fruit at mid-palate and mushroomy finish? :-) I've had a couple of older CA Pinots that were incredible, but in general, they are far and few in-between, almost non-existant. Back in the day Pinot was harvested at 5+ tons per acre and clonal selection was lacking. That said, I would love to find some old BV Pinot made by Chelischev, he's the one who started the revolution in 1947.

Can you remind me who invented the use of RO in wine business and why? :sl LLC proudly touts it these days and the rest of them are not shy about it, either.

Got to go, have a meeting in a minute...

[shilala]

No one has mentioned, but the merlot is likely to be decent.
I don't drink wine at all, but we go through a lot around here between my wife and family. I do all the buying and pay close attention to how it all presents itself and how it tastes on my wife (we play suckface a lot). I've gotten really good at picking stuff they like and stuff that I like to taste second hand. :)

[mosesbotbol]

You mean lack of fruit at mid-palate and mushroomy finish? :-)

That said, I would love to find some old BV Pinot made by Chelischev, he's the one who started the revolution in 1947.

Just the way I like them! Browning on the edge. ;)

As for the BV's, I have:

1968 and 1974 B.V. Pinot Noir, Beaumont

[OLS]

It's funny this never went anywhere. How strange is that.

[IBQTEE1]

It's funny this never went anywhere. How strange is that.

OK, Hootie is coming over this weekend. I will open a bottle or two. Been so busy haven't been home any weekend.

[ChicagoWhiteSox]

Careful, if you end up drinkng a great bottle, the wine slope is VERY bad:)