The wines you wish you did not own - post 'em!

Outright regret for me is a rare thing with wine purchases, as I can uses for most of them. Probably one that I'm still kicking myself about is the 2000 La Fleur de Boüard that I bought, ironically enough, the day after dining with Dale and Betsy the first time and before I had learned to carefully parse RMP's language when describing Bordeaux and other big red wines. More generally, I find myself with more Bordeaux, Chateauneuf and Cabernet Sauvignon than we have occasion to open given the type of foods we cook. Fortunately, we still have friends who cook beef on a regular basis, so all is not lost!

Mark Lipton

When I look'em over most of the clunkers I own are rhone varietals. One too big Aussie, especially at the price point I bought it for (Torbreck The Factor, 2005--last time, it was better than previously, so who knows, maybe 2025?), a bunch of different things by Chapoutier (including some whites--very disappointing), and some CHEZE ST.-JOSEPH ANGES CUVEE D'EXCEPTION, which has never drunk well. Then there is the stuff from Napa and Sonoma bought on special (WTSO, Wine Library, and so forth) that has proved almost undrinkable: Fleming Jenkins Choreography especially, some Sbragia products (vary a lot), Bjornstadt Pinot (which many of my guests love), and Sojourn Cellars (so far, despite the hype, all clunkers). Finally, closer to home, more painful to detail, some Burgundy ('05), which I bought when I began cellaring after a long hiatus (and previously, it had only been Bordeaux). Some Girardin (Corton-Resnardes, especially), Fredric Magnien (Vosne-Romanee), and some Rossignol--I fear they are now not my style (or simply not very good), but I have yet to taste. In fact, if anyone has recent experience with these wines, I would be quite curious.

Best to all,
Josh

Hi David,

I have a wine that I bought out mostly of courtesy during a tasting at the winery because I like to support local Michigan wineries. It was just OK then and is probably terrible now. Plus it is made from a hybrid grape - Chancellor. I may open it some day to smell it and pour it down the drain, unless Paul B comes to visit me again and I will give it to him.

[David M. Bueker]

Joshua,

I would lay off that Corton Renardes for a while. Girardin uses a fair bit of wood, but that particular wine has seemed big enough to shake it off in time.

Which Magnien Vosne? Villages or is it one of the 1er cru?

There's another wine that's causing me a big headache because I just don't know what to do with it: Meyer-Nakel, Dernauer Pfarrwingert, Spatburgender Grosses Gewaches, 2005. I just don't know what to expect of it and when to drink it, and worst of all, I just don't know in what setting to drink it. It's too expensive to drink alone, I'm guessing it's too different for my wife to enjoy, and I just don't see my usual crowd enjoying the notion of drinking it in one of our regular fests (not the wine per se, just the notion of matching a German Pinot against what they usually bring to the table; call them snobs if you will, but it's what I have to contend with). I'd slip it in as a joker in a Burgundy blind tasting if I only knew what the damn thing's drinking window might be.

Bill, do you have any experience with this?

What does your wife usually drink so that pinot noir (a core grape) is considered 'different'?

She likes the more approachable Bourgognes, but my limited experience with German Pinots has lead me to think it would be too challenging for her.

Challenges are for wine geeks.

(Although she does surprise me, she rather liked the few Loire reds we've drunk).

Well the German spatburgunders that I enjoy the most are the juicy easygoing and cheap ones. The GG you have is probably more ambitious/ripe/structured/oaked, but not sure I would call that a function of German spatburgunder.

Anyway, enjoy whatever you open!

None. Those I got several bottles of, after opening to try twice and not liking them, I give them away.

I've had the cheaper Meyer-Nakel and a Koehler-Ruprecht, and, while I liked them, they seemed to me to be the kind of wines that would polarize opinions. Sort of like coriander. Actually, the comparison to coriander was the importer's, but I think it nails it, so I've since adopted it.

Hi Chaim,

I haven't tasted the 2005 Pfarrwingert, but I've had the 2006 (which was a very good Ahr vintage, unlike the rest of Germany.) I would never in a million years put that wine in a Burgundy line-up. Meyer-Näkel wines tend to run very new-world and the Darnauer Pfarrwingert is the warmest piece of land in the Ahr Valley. I would treat it like one of the more concentrated Oregon Pinot Noirs (Bergström perhaps?) No hurry on drinking it.

Cheers,
Bill

Hi Chaim,

I haven't tasted the 2005 Pfarrwingert, but I've had the 2006 (which was a very good Ahr vintage, unlike the rest of Germany.) I would never in a million years put that wine in a Burgundy line-up. Meyer-Näkel wines tend to run very new-world and the Darnauer Pfarrwingert is the warmest piece of land in the Ahr Valley. I would treat it like one of the more concentrated Oregon Pinot Noirs (Bergström perhaps?) No hurry on drinking it.

Cheers,
Bill

Well, it's not like Burgundy doesn't come up with concentrated wines, in the hands of some producers. I'm sure it would still be recognizable as Pinot. The reason I'd put it in such a tasting is social. Like I said, I just can't think of a good context for opening it.

Joshua,

I would lay off that Corton Renardes for a while. Girardin uses a fair bit of wood, but that particular wine has seemed big enough to shake it off in time.

Which Magnien Vosne? Villages or is it one of the 1er cru?

Thanks, David,

I have the Villages. Further thoughts?

Best,
Josh

The one wine that I wish I did not buy is a 2001 Delesvaux Coteaux du Layon SGN, which I bought a few years ago because it got a high score somewhere. Yes, I know that top CdLs can age for decades. Yet I had a chance to try this wine a year or so after I bought it, and it just felt like something was missing in terms of character and acidity. Additionally, I have had a couple of other Delesvaux CdLs since then, and am not a fan of the style. If I hadn't accidentally gotten a bit of water on the label during a move, I would probably give this away as a gift. All things considered, though - not that big of a deal. It could always be part of a Chenin tasting down the line.

Josh - I also have found the Girardin's wines too oaky for my palate, including the 2005 Corton-Renardes.

Australian.

I have 94 different Aussie wines and I would probably be happy to part with 40-60% of them, particularly the more recent vintages that more often suffer from fruit bloat and over sweetness.

I have lots of stuff that needs drinking - American wines from the 80s, Germans from the 70s etc., but I don't regret having them, just that I don't seem to be drinking them as soon as I'd planned.

[Jenise]

Moncayo grenaches from Spain. Heavy, super-oaked, alcoholic, porty-sweet. What was I thinking?

[David M. Bueker]

Moncayo grenaches from Spain. Heavy, super-oaked, alcoholic, porty-sweet. What was I thinking?

Sangria!

2010 Peter Lauer Riesling 'Senior' - one bottle, recently purchased.

2010 Peter Lauer Riesling 'Senior' - one bottle, recently purchased.

happy to take off your hands- we can figure out a trade when Heritage stuff arrives.
Disparate opinions made me want to try for myself

Like Dale, most of my regrets are for 2003, especially Bordeaux as I went fairly long there: so many duds, unfortunately.

The other category are the QPR types that I bought too much of. I either get sick of drinking it or hold it too long and it fades. I've learned that lesson, and my loading up on everyday wines is past (at least until my current inventory goes way down).

Finally, I went long on 2005 Bordeaux which I don't regret yet, but the shear quantities I own make me suspect I might some day (but then I'll sell it!).

I bought too much Marquis Philips (Australia) wines at one point. At least with one exception, I didn't pay much for them. Also bought California Chardonnays in which I lost interest and some inexpensive Spanish reds that are probably past their prime.

Too much Rhys??

I dunno. At first, when I was getting into nebbiolo in the early 90's, I bought an assorted case of (mostly) DeGrazia Barolo's of which I was never a happier person when I drank the last bottle of them.

Some Girardin (Corton-Resnardes, especially), Fredric Magnien (Vosne-Romanee), and some Rossignol--I fear they are now not my style (or simply not very good), but I have yet to taste.

Those are all makers whose wines need years and years to come around. Do not touch for 10 years then try again.

I have 4 wines that I bought a bunch of and now regret: Far Niente 1994 Cab Sauv, Scavino 1993 Barolo "Bric del Fiasc", Clerico 1997 Barolo "Pajana", and Chapoutier 1989 Hermitage "Sizeranne".

It's not really so bad... I filled case #13 with them and I know that, if I ever really need space, I can just hurl case #13 out of a moving taxi. There are a few additional bottles floating around in other boxes because the four wines comprise 20 bottles in total (about 5% of my holdings).