I'm struggling with the scale you guys are talking about. I'm afraid I'm going to have to plan backwards and look first at how much $$$ and space I have to store a collection and then figure on what I can consider a reasonable annual yield from a cellar that size. I'm starting out with about 15 bottles:
Graham's 91
Fonseca 97, 00, 03 x2
Taylors 97, 00, 03 x3
Warres 07 x3, do Noval 07 x2
I'm hunting down do Noval 03 x3 and do Vale Meao 07 x5. My challenge is to find some older vintages from sources I trust to provide me with something I can drink in the near term while the young stuff matures. I figure I've got a reasonable capacity for about 100-200 bottles maximum. After that, the cost and space required would become excessive. If I can get a regular return of 5-10 bottles a year on a collection that size, I'd be thrilled.
Building a collection
Moderators: Glenn E., Roy Hersh, Andy Velebil
Re: Building a collection
There is a simple formula to work this out if you make a few basic assumptions about drinking windows and drinking age preferences.
Take "a" to be the number of bottles you would like to drink a year from your cellar
"y" to be the maximum age you like your port to be when you open it
"n" to be the number of bottles you would need in your cellar
n = ay
Thus, if you like to drink port 20-30 years after the vintage and want to drink 3 bottles a year from your cellar, you will need to keep 90 bottles in your cellar. You should replace each bottle when you open it with a bottle of the most recently released vintage. This you keep until it is at least 20 years old and then it becomes fair game for drinking.
So, if you manage to buy your target bottles, you will have 23 bottles with an age profile of:
1 @ 21 (1991)
2 @ 15 (1997)
2 @ 12 (2000)
11 @ 9 (2003)
10 @ 5 (2007)
To get to your perfect, self-sustaining 20-30 year drinking window cellar, you would be looking to buy 70 bottles over the next year or so (which includes replacing the three that you open in 2012). The ideal age profile of what you buy would be something like:
4 x 1980
5 x 1982
5 x 1983
5 x 1985
5 x 1986
5 x 1987
5 x 1991
5 x 1992
5 x 1994
4 x 1995
4 x 1996
2 x 1997
2 x 1998
2 x 1999
2 x 2000
2 x 2001
2 x 2004
2 x 2005
2 x 2006
2 x 2009
Of course, it wouldn't matter much if you bought 10 bottles of 1985 instead of 5 1985 and 5 1986, but what you are looking for is an even representation of vintages in your cellar that can mature steadily while you choose what to drink next year.
Take "a" to be the number of bottles you would like to drink a year from your cellar
"y" to be the maximum age you like your port to be when you open it
"n" to be the number of bottles you would need in your cellar
n = ay
Thus, if you like to drink port 20-30 years after the vintage and want to drink 3 bottles a year from your cellar, you will need to keep 90 bottles in your cellar. You should replace each bottle when you open it with a bottle of the most recently released vintage. This you keep until it is at least 20 years old and then it becomes fair game for drinking.
So, if you manage to buy your target bottles, you will have 23 bottles with an age profile of:
1 @ 21 (1991)
2 @ 15 (1997)
2 @ 12 (2000)
11 @ 9 (2003)
10 @ 5 (2007)
To get to your perfect, self-sustaining 20-30 year drinking window cellar, you would be looking to buy 70 bottles over the next year or so (which includes replacing the three that you open in 2012). The ideal age profile of what you buy would be something like:
4 x 1980
5 x 1982
5 x 1983
5 x 1985
5 x 1986
5 x 1987
5 x 1991
5 x 1992
5 x 1994
4 x 1995
4 x 1996
2 x 1997
2 x 1998
2 x 1999
2 x 2000
2 x 2001
2 x 2004
2 x 2005
2 x 2006
2 x 2009
Of course, it wouldn't matter much if you bought 10 bottles of 1985 instead of 5 1985 and 5 1986, but what you are looking for is an even representation of vintages in your cellar that can mature steadily while you choose what to drink next year.
Last edited by Al B. on Fri Nov 18, 2011 3:53 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Peter W. Meek
- Posts: 1087
- Joined: Sun Jun 14, 2009 12:00 pm
- Location: SE Michigan
Re: Building a collection
There are file-sharing services like Dropbox.com where you could upload a file and then post a link to the file.
For small amounts of storage, many such services offer free accounts if you are willing to put up with ads.
You could also offer to email the file to anyone who requests it in a PM. People here are very unlikely to abuse your email address.
For small amounts of storage, many such services offer free accounts if you are willing to put up with ads.
You could also offer to email the file to anyone who requests it in a PM. People here are very unlikely to abuse your email address.
--Pete
(Sesquipedalian Man)
(Sesquipedalian Man)
Re: Building a collection
Hi Mark,
I'm in a similar situation to yourself, but have taken a slightly different approach. The strategy described by TomA and AlexB is good but I think bears some modification for the smaller cellar and also for initial purchasing.
The main change I would suggest would be to initially focus a little more on purchase of the older 'drinking now' port and (in general) forget about the newer releases, for several reasons:
1. You get more choice for 'drinking now' sooner.
2. If you drink quicker, you don't run out; if you drink slower, you can slow down the purchase or extend stock, with current purchases giving you the chance to drink them at an older age.
3. using Alex's table, you would be purchasing odd bottles of the recent vintages each year, where buying cases more intermittently would be more efficient, especially since you won't be drinking them before having purchased more.
4. the difference in cost of purchase plus storage of new releases versus buying them later from a good merchant is not generally significant, at least for the first 10-12 years.
My initial plan (after obtaining suitable storage earlier this year) has been to purchase this year a good variety of port for the next two years, and then I intend to continue to supplement depending on how my drinking rate, taste and budget changes over time. Given the current costs and dependent on budget, I have a few 63-70, most are 77-85, a few 91; Hopefully I will both drink and add to these and then extend into 94,97 (especially the former before the prices rise) and then later, but with no hurry to purchase 2000+ as yet except for anything specific.
I'm in a similar situation to yourself, but have taken a slightly different approach. The strategy described by TomA and AlexB is good but I think bears some modification for the smaller cellar and also for initial purchasing.
The main change I would suggest would be to initially focus a little more on purchase of the older 'drinking now' port and (in general) forget about the newer releases, for several reasons:
1. You get more choice for 'drinking now' sooner.
2. If you drink quicker, you don't run out; if you drink slower, you can slow down the purchase or extend stock, with current purchases giving you the chance to drink them at an older age.
3. using Alex's table, you would be purchasing odd bottles of the recent vintages each year, where buying cases more intermittently would be more efficient, especially since you won't be drinking them before having purchased more.
4. the difference in cost of purchase plus storage of new releases versus buying them later from a good merchant is not generally significant, at least for the first 10-12 years.
My initial plan (after obtaining suitable storage earlier this year) has been to purchase this year a good variety of port for the next two years, and then I intend to continue to supplement depending on how my drinking rate, taste and budget changes over time. Given the current costs and dependent on budget, I have a few 63-70, most are 77-85, a few 91; Hopefully I will both drink and add to these and then extend into 94,97 (especially the former before the prices rise) and then later, but with no hurry to purchase 2000+ as yet except for anything specific.