Age is not a matter of mind

I have recently discovered the problem of too much ageing and improper storage of wine. I bought a wine several years ago to mark the start of my first real job. At least I think that was it; it is so long ago I can't remember clearly. It was a 1996 Shiraz from Australia and quite a pricey one - around $65. Alas, I opened it last week, and much to my dismay, it tasted like a cheap Italian red, and not a very good one with slightly cooked fruit flavours and not much more. The colour was nice, and it would have been fine for about $12. I imagine it was quite nice a few years ago, but was way past its prime.

Another old age disappointment was a Summerhill Pinot Noir that was purchased probably in 2005, but the vintage was 2000 (which I had never noticed) and it was also cooked tasting and past its prime. They don't taste bad, or rotten, just dull, over cooked and not worth the bother.

Part of the problem is the less than ideal conditions of my 'cellar'. The cold storage room in the basement varies in temperature between just above freezing for most of the winter, to up to 16C in the summer. I believe wine storage is supposed to be consistent and in the 8-12C range with significant humidity.

Then there was the corked Burrowing Owl Meritage. I decided to deny it, because it actually did have quite nice flavours if you ignored the cork taint. So I drank a glass, by the end of which I could no longer ignore the corkiness, and then couldn't get the taste out of my mouth for quite a while. Yuck. Sadly, the rest went down the drain.

We did have some luck with the Dirty Laundry dry Gewürztraminer. We were drinking it while Mum was telling us of an ancestor named Suzanna, who had eight children, all out of wedlock (although Mum thinks that the man she eventually married was the father of the last four). Either she or her children were brought up in an inappropriately rich fashion, so it is likely that the fathers or her father were men of means. I don't remember the details, but for the 18th century, this is quite spicy, like a nice Gewürztraminer. Perfect.

I have opened a Ridgepoint barrel fermented Chardonnay. I don't think the food I had before it was complimentary so I will hold off judgement until I try it again.

I am also a bit of a beer hog right now. The mexican Negra Modello is currently a favourite, and I quite like the Chilkoot Brewing birch syrup creation (I don't know what it is called, but it is sort of an amber ale I think). I do like the medium to darker beers. I had a Chilkoot lager last night and it just didn't hit the spot. I don't think I have the desire to hit the liquor store today, so I will have to go beer free for a few days at least. I think I'll survive.

The good side of all this bad wine, is that I am no longer so pack ratty toward my wines. I like to hoard them because many of them are not easily replaced. However, if they are just going to go nasty on me, then I may as well have them any day of the week, right?