WTN: Dump Bucket

[Jenise]

Not batting a thousand this week:

2021 Serge Dagueneau Pouilly-Fumé Les Pentes Sauvignon Blanc
Lacked the balance of previous bottles six months ago, acidity so high it was unpleasant for pre-dinner sipping. Choice was load up on Pepcid or dump the wine. We dumped it.

2010 La Celestiere Châteauneuf-du-Pape Tradition Red Rhone Blend
Opened and pecked at over two days. Porty, heavy fruit, low acid and bitter high alcohol (suspect stronger than the 15% admitted to on the label). Dumped it.

2016 Rôtie Cellars Northern Blend Walla Walla Valley Syrah Blend, Syrah
I don't mind a little green, but the pyrazines in this bottle were out of control. Undrinkable, so left for the next day when the green notes had significantly pulled back but been replaced with pruney, oxidative notes. Last bottle of a six pack with huge bottle variation over the four years we owned/drank them. Fed it to the rhododendrons.

Ouch. Hopefully something on the horizon will make up for that!

[Jenise]

Oh there will be, for sure. It's actually a relief to get wines I'm wary of out of the cellar.

I have tasted, but never liked nor bought the La Celestiere Châteauneuf-du-Papes.

The Dagueneau would be a major disappointment though - I'd have had high expectations for it.

What do you do when you own a wine you taste once or more and just don't like? Gift it and hope the recipients have different taste, or into the stew pot with it, or serve it to the guests that aren't wine fanatics?.....

We are down to only two bottles of California Cult Classics - overdone reds intended to awe and impress rather than pleasure people (championed by a mutual acquaintance of yours and mine). They may well end up as rather expensive marinating liquid as soon as the weather changes to stewing temperatures.

[Jenise]

Bill, I have no idea where or when I bought the Celestiere; I never knowingly buy 15% alcohol wines. Can't 'splain it. Not a big investment, I only had three, but yuck. I would never serve a wine I don't think of as 'good wine' even if not great wine to guests. So yeah, a marinade is all that's left.

Btw, I really do feed bad wine to acid-loving plants.