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newbie Q: valuable (?) old wine

I posted this to ne.food and was politely pointed to this group of experts. Please accept my intrusion with these newbie questions:

At some point or points over the last, um, decades, friends gave my parents a bottle of wine here and there that would be kinda pricey if you were to try to buy it. Talking in the three hundred dollar range, give or take, nothing to get all excited about, because I'm really only talking about a total of three bottles and one of the three is probably worth much less.

In any case, my mom couldn't have any alcohol in her last years, and neither of my parents knew enough about wine to store them properly; but now I've got these three bottles in questionable condition.

So the questions on the table are:

  1. Is my understanding correct that it would be illegal for me to sell these bottles in any case? That is, I either have to give them to someone who would appreciate them or I have to consume them, right? Or is there some legal way to sell them to a collector?

  1. Is there any way to determine, short of opening them, whether they are still drinkable? Frankly, a couple of them look pretty rough, but I don't know if this even matters to a collector (to whom I'm not allowed to sell them anyway). My thought is to have something from the wine shop on hand as backup if it turns out I've got expensive vinegar when that special occasion arises.

  2. Any wine experts here who would be willing to get into the specifics of brand and vintage and tell me what I've actually got?

Thanks,

Dick

Reply to
Dick Margulis
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Dick Margulis wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@news.supernews.com:

properly; but

No, you could probably sell them it all depends on where you live.

What do you mean by rough???? as in low levbels in the neck? visible leakage? for anyoneto help you must give specifics.

but I

The answer to this is, tell us what you have. If storage has been spotty then the bottles will have aged sooner not later and this will affect the value of the wine.

Reply to
jcoulter

Thanks for replying. I live in Connecticut.

Yes, low levels in the neck, visible leakage. Good guess.

Well, I've learned from responses in ne.food that two of the bottles are essentially worthless table wines. That leaves only a 1964 Chateau Mouton Rothschild Pauillac, which I understand would be worth something under $100 in good condition (which it is not).

Hence, my questions turned out to be moot. Sorry for bothering you folks over here.

Reply to
Dick Margulis

If I were you, I'd grill a nice rack of lamb and drink that Mouton with it. Might still be good. Buy a backup bottle, just in case.

Tom S

Reply to
Tom S

"Dick Margulis" wrote.... in

Dick, 1964 was quite a good year in Bordeaux, without being exceptional.

In good condition, your bottle would retail for more than $US200/250.

However, as previously advised, optimum storage is everything (particularly for a 40 year old wine)

Thus, *if* you were selling, then really, the buyer will set the price - you simply choose whether to accept or reject.

If the storage was really poor, then, in all probability, the wine will be in a very poor state.

That said, I recently tried a very old shiraz (labeled "1967 Australian Burgundy") which had been forgotten in the back cupboard of a garage under anything but suitable storage conditions.

It was drinkable and *very* different, quite insipid in it's old age, but not unpleasant - an interesting experience without being memorable.

If you really need the $50 or $80 or $100 - then sell it for what someone will give you.

But, if you know anyone at all with more than a passing interest in wine, then open it - but have something else available as a backstop.

Tell us what you decide.

Nope - I am in New Zealand, and cannot join you, but there may be someone else on this group who can and will!!!!!

Reply to
st.helier

No, I don't need the money. The original question about values had to do with not wanting to open, in ignorance, some rarity worth thousands of dollars to a collector. I can find ways to enjoy a hundred-dollar bottle of wine for a special occasion--especially since it didn't cost me anything--but much past that and I'd rather it were enjoyed by someone who could appreciate it with a more sophisticated palate than mine. In any case, lamb (Tom S's suggestion) is out. While I love lamb, my SO has unpleasant childhood associations with it (nothing emotional, just that her mother always overcooked it), and I haven't quite gotten her to come around yet. So I suspect there will be a nice piece of beef involved. In any case, yes, I'll have a backup wine on hand.

I do appreciate the friendly advice.

>
Reply to
Dick Margulis

Dick Margulis wrote: While I love lamb, my SO has unpleasant childhood

Dick is your SO named "Clarice"?

Hannible:)

Reply to
Lew/+Silat

I'll have to remain silent on that.

Reply to
Dick Margulis

Dick

I would try it with a roast chicken (or something lighter than beef or wild game), as it is an older Claret. Also, the 64s were notorious for being spotty in the Medoc (where the Mouton is from), due to rain during the harvest. Serve with a lighter meat and a Pinot Noir wine as a backup.

Tom Schellberg

Reply to
Xyzsch

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