A discussion arose in a thread about the usurping of proper regional names ( French in most instances stated) by US jug-wine producers, that mentioned bottle size, i.e. quantity. I'd like to open a discussion on bottle size AND shape.
I realize that many regions of the world have strong traditions as to the shape, volume and color of their bottles. These specifications are rooted in many decades, maybe centuries, and possibly millennia of the production of wine, and the packaging of it into these containers.
I'm too much of a "traditionalist" to want to change any of that - heck, I hate the thought of giving up cork in favor of selvin, or crown closures, even though I have an acute awareness of TCA, and the like, but that has been discussed and I've become convinced that I can drape a white cloth over my arm, make a big production and just twist off the cap! I'll get over it... well maybe someday.
What I have complaints about are the proliferation of all sorts of bottle- shapes by predominantly US producers. To me, the perfect shape for a wine bottle is the Bordeaux 0.75. With its straight sides, and constant (or nearly so) diameter, it fits nicely into a case, whether wooden, paste-board, or Styrofoam. Better yet, it stores in the cellar, regardless of whether one places it in a single-bottle niche, a diamond-bin, or even in a square or rectangular bin. It doesn't rock, and doesn't have to balance on a tiny point of contact. OK, I know that Burgundy, and the Rhône, have put their wine into the soft-shouldered bottle, whether red, or white. That is fine. That is tradition. So long as the outside diameter doesn't exceed that of the Bordeaux bottle, except by a small margin. A note: most of my Burgundies and all of my Rhône wines fit into my single-bottle niches. Bubblies are an eexception, that I just have to take into account, and had several storage areas built just for them, just like my magnums.
Lately, however, several wineries (predominantly in the US, CA) have begun pushing the envelope, or bottle, as it were. Some producers, like William Foley, have taken to using Burgundy bottles that are much wider at their largest diameter, than normal Burgundy bottles. These "cute" shapes might stand out in the wine shop, provided that they display them upright. Ravenswood's Icon is another wine, in a similar, though differently dimensioned bottle. There are many more miscreants along these lines, but I don't recall the other suspects off the top of my head. These bottles will NOT fit into a single-bottle rack - they're too damned big. They will not stack in a diamond, or rectangular bin, except on the top row, and then they teeter precariously. So far, I've not had any mishaps, but the time IS coming. I have bins, that only have one row of these monstrosities, balanced on a pin, and I can't use the rest of the space. They would fit into a magnum slot, but then the depth of the slot is a problem.
The only solution that I see is to just drink these up in a hurry, and to not buy any more! I can gain storage for about ten cases of "regular" bottles, just by eliminating these few oddballs. I just wish that the winemakers would think about their art, and not the "art" of their marketing directors.
Am I the only person, who has a problem with these mutants? Does anyone have a solution, other than giving up space designed specifically for my bubblies, and magnums? Maybe if I collected and drank a lot of wine from the Franken region of Germany, from a bocksbeutle, I'd feel differently.
Hunt