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An early focus for the collector was first-growth “Claret” from the
Bordeaux region. Later acquisitions include Napa superstars like Kistler,
Harlan Estates, Screaming Eagle, Bryant Family, and still later, the best
from other California appellations such as Paso Robles’ Isosceles from
Justin, and Santa Barbara County’s Melville and Brewer-Clifton Pinot Noirs.
A finish carpenter was hired to install the racks. “I used Rhone
bottle slots,” the collector notes, ensuring that all wines, irrespective of
shape, will fit.
Aesthetics was perhaps the easiest task. Challenges surfaced in the
form of exhaust pathways for the hot air. A separate exhaust system was
mounted in an adjacent utility room to solve the issue.
With optimal room temperatures on the chilly side, this collector
installed a fireplace, bar and comfortable seating just outside his cellar
for tastings.
A virtual cellar program once offered by Robert Parker provides
inventory tracking. Although tech support and updates are no longer
An ironwork chandelier
and diamond-pattern stacking
adds dramatic effect.
Photo: Jim Bartsch
available, the collector is able to download Parker’s tasting notes, and
blend in his own. “I can look at my cellar on my computer screen,
and see filled or available slots,” he says. “If I want a wine, I click
‘consume.’” The program sorts wines by producer, varietal or region, and
creates customized reports that include Parker’s rating, drink from and
drink by dates, among other details.
Once the design work is done, it may be time to fine-tune the
collection. Our last collector suggests a mathematical approach. “If
you believe, on average, great Bordeaux will be best in twenty years,
fine white Burgundy ten years, California Cabs fifteen years, and great
American Chardonnays five years, given a three-thousand-bottle
collection, I would be looking at a ten-year average maturity with optimal
storage. That’s three hundred bottles a year that must be consumed.” He
adds: “I am starting to drink down my collection.”
A nice problem to have.
Á votre santé!