Hammer Time.

Being a fairly new wine collector, it is hard to gain an appreciation for the characteristics of properly aged wine. I have no great cellar to draw from, the oldest current release wine I’ve purchased is from 2004, and retail outlets that do offer museum wines and ‘cellar releases’ are typically well over-priced and the bottle sit on the shop shelves for an undetermined amount of time, giving you no guarantees with regards to cellaring quality, temperature and light conditions.

There are a number of tenants to effective cellaring, and every connoisseur has the method they swear by. The most commonly accepted are that the temperature should remain constant (anywhere between 12 and 15 degrees is optimal), the exposure to UV light should be negligible, humidity must be in the medium to high range to prevent corks drying out and bottles should always be laid flat to ensure the corks remain wet. If you get these things right, you shouldn’t go far wrong. Contrary to commonly held belief, bottles should not be rotated in the cellar (bottles don’t like vibrations and movement). Home collectors have had success with cellaring in commercial climate controlled cellars, just as some have had success with terracotta pipes in their wardrobes.

As each bottle is different, cellaring is an inexact science. All a collector can do is provide the closest approximation to ideal conditions as they can. While I have established this in my house, I have been exploring the ways I can cheat and build up a stock of museum wines without the expense of retail, and with at least some assurances of provenance.

The solution to this problem is a simple one – the world of online auctions and exchanges.

Auction and exchange sites cover the entire gamut of wine appreciation, servicing all budgets and tastes. Depending on the site, there may be thousands upon thousands of listings across decades of vintages. Above all, most auction sites will either guarantee provenance and provide cellaring certificates, describe any visible faults that may indicate poor cellaring (more about these later) or allow for inspection of the items on site.

My most recent experience is with a small local auction site that deals in a large range of goods. Scanning their current wine auctions, I noticed one particular bottle that interested me: a Tyrrell’s Vat 8 Hunter River Dry Red (Shiraz Cabernet) 1987. The current release of Tyrrell’s Vat 8 retails for around $65. The bottle was available for inspection, and showed vary little evidence of fault (see below), apart from a small amount of mould on the outside of the capsule (the plastic casing covering the cork) which is entirely normal. The only risk now is that the wine is past its peak, which for this particular wine form this particular vintage was a moderate risk. I decided to cap my bid at $30. Given the small market the website (www.allbids.com.au) caters for, I won the bottle at $20 with little competition. I consider myself quite lucky finding the bottle on such a website, as I believe it would have sold for a lot more had it been listed on a larger site. I intend to open the bottle in mid-September so I will report back on how it fared.

I suppose it is prudent at this point to give you a few tips on how to recognise a potential fault in wine based on its appearance. The first, and most obvious is the level of the wine in the bottle – it is expected that levels will drop over an extended period of time. Using the 1987 Vat 8 I purchased recently, the level was at the base of the neck. This is about as good as can be expected from a wine 25 years of age under cork. The second indicator to look out for is any evidence on the cork or capsule that the wine has been leaking. If the wine exhibits either of these traits, it is certain that it has been subject to variable temperatures, humidity and light. If the wine is too hot, the liquid will expand pressurising the cork. When the wine cools, the cork may become loose in the bottle, and allow small amounts of liquid to seep past. Avoid purchasing any bottles that show any evidence of these traits.

Larger auction websites like Gray’s (www.graysonline.com.au) are excellent for sourcing well cellared bottles, although will see some more competitive bidders. There is also a far greater range of products, and it is likely at any given time there is something for every taste. A recent auction lot featured at Gary’s was an insurance claim collection – no expected defects to the wine, but the bottles had been subjected to flood water for a short period of time. The collection was being sold at a significant discount to the current market rates from various vintages of Grange, Penfolds RWT and other assorted iconic Australian wines. Bargains like this are a great way for cash-limited and new wine lovers to enter the fine wine market and experience these wines.

Wine-Ark (www.wineark.com.au) is predominantly a wine storage service offering climate controlled private vaults and managed cellars, however they also provide a wine exchange service whereby clients can buy and sell bottles from each other’s collections. Non-clients can access the list of bottles for sale and also make purchases through their website. Provenance varies, but it is comforting to know that for at least the recent past the bottles have been stored in optimal conditions.

Finally, Langton’s (www.langtons.com.au). For those who want to take their wine auctions seriously. Langton’s offer both periodical auction services as well as an exchange where members can by bottles at a fixed price directly from their collection. The rates are very good for individual bottles, but lots are often supplied as multiple bottles, so you may need an extensive budget to take regular part in the auctions.