<div><em>Thoughtfully choosing what you buy will earn you connoisseur points, writes <strong>Magandeep Singh</strong></em></div><div> </div><div>Most people imagine a wine cellar to be a dark and damp place with history and cobwebs, where wine is laid down to sleep, only to be woken by the grandchildren or some native who will eventually come to live in the space above. Far from this necroromantic imagery, a cellar is the safest and most hygienic way of storing wine, allowing it to evolve and rest simultaneously. Unlike what many would like to believe, a cellar needn’t be big, neither store only old and expensive wines. In fact, 60 per cent of wines in any cellar should be ready to drink or for short-term cellaring, and the remaining should have high-end popular labels to impress the snooty oenophile, and wines intended for long-term cellaring.</div><div> </div><div>The most important quality of a cellar is to ensure that it isn’t too brightly lit, is free from vibrations and not susceptible to sharp temperature fluctuations. Together with these qualities, anything can double up as a wine cellar, from a prized silent-compressor cooler to a simple wooden cupboard under the stairwell.</div><div> </div><div>As to what one should stock inside, well, always keep a healthy mix of wines you like, and also those according to the taste of others, even if you don’t care too much for such styles, regions, or grapes. Your wine selection should reflect your taste and personality, but it should also accommodate others'preferences. It should be composed of memories and moments, rather than just expensive bottles with high scores and medals aplenty. And it should appeal to you as much as to your guests. So, you may prefer reds but definitely have whites, and always keep bubbly, even if you don’t care much for it. And finally, no cellar is complete without some port and sherry so don’t forget to have a few in there.</div><div> </div><div>Meanwhile, here are some wines which will earn you serious connoisseur points in any wine circle, wine references which are God’s new way of telling man that he is making too much money…</div><div> </div><div><strong>• Château Petrus:</strong> I am tired of the many discussions of expensive wine that start with this wine but it is true; it is a good wine and ages better than Brigitte Bardot. I may prefer some other, but then luxury isn’t always about what you prefer. The Left Bank is also equally price-driven (Latour, Lafite and the other usual suspects) but Merlot is regarded as a more docile wine ingredient and hence Petrus.</div><div> </div><div><strong>• Le Pin:</strong> When Jacques Thienpont acquired this tiny piece of property, he named the wine after the solitary pine tree on the estate. Technically, this was the first garage wine but the catch is that he merely happened to acquire a small property (which he initially planned to incorporate into his other bigger wine Vieux Château Certan) but then chose not to. It wasn’t intended to be a garage product, it turned out that way.</div><div> </div><div><strong>• Domaine de la Romanée-Conti: </strong>I have named only one but this is only one in the series of top end Burgundy reds (La Tâche, Vosne-Romanée, Echezeaux) which command absolutely sky-high prices. Great Pinot remains a hedonistic high, an unending pursuit of perfection for the rich and wise. Imagine a wine you have always heard about; stories and fables about every time someone was witness to it being uncorked. And imagine each narrative to be superseding the ones before both in rapture and glory. Tasting a Romanée-Conti will be the biggest build up of your life and will live up to expectations every time. It’s often lauded as one of the most expensive wines in the world.</div><div> </div><div><strong>• Château Valandraud:</strong> This dream-child of JeanLuc Thunevin and his wife sent the wine world into a tizzy when its smaller-than-boutique production stunned the biggest of wines in international markets. This (and not Le Pin) is regarded by many as the first true garage wine as Jean-Luc never intended to make more than a few thousand bottles to begin with. It set the trend for other microwineries and today it remains a cult wine from the Right Bank of Bordeaux.</div><div> </div><div><strong>• Harlan Estate:</strong> Bob Levy and Michel Rolland are responsible for this moreconcentrated-than-anyjam-you-can-think-of style wine. Not the most expensive wine but a definite winner with those who have a taste for the expensive. Too heavy for me to enjoy with or without food, I can barely last through a glassful of this thick elixir.</div><div> </div><div><strong>• Screaming Eagle:</strong> Only a few hundred people a year can buy this wine, so that already puts it right up there in the cult slot. That apart, the aged vintages of this wine are supposed to be absolutely divine expression of Cabernet. From the only time I had the opportunity to taste this precious beverage, I was rather stunned by its complexity and concentration with great length on the finish. However, I maintain that I must have been psychologically influenced as I already knew that I was sipping a Screaming Eagle. </div><div> </div><div><strong>• Penfolds Grange:</strong> This Aussie Shiraz (and some Cabernet) blend was conceived by Max Schubert, who was inspired by French reds. Since its inception in 1951, the wine has come to be recognised as Australian Heritage. This undisputedly is the most coveted wine from that part of the world.</div><div> </div><div>•<strong> Unico de Vega Sicilia:</strong> As Spanish as it gets, it is the efforts of Javier Ausás that are responsible for this Tempranillo-Cabernet-Malbec blend. Rare and cher, this is all the Spanish you will ever need to speak to establish yourself as a serious winehead! </div><div> </div><div>•<strong> Dominio de Pingus: </strong>Peter Sisseck is the man behind this Tempranillo wine, the best thing to happen to the Spanish wine industry. In fact, this wine has become a good reference point for the uninitiated to understand what a good Tempranillo should aspire to be.</div><div> </div><div>• <strong>Sassicaia:</strong> The original Italian Super-Tuscan, this wine fought the odds (of foreign Cabernet being planted on Italian soils) and emerged as the face of Italian winemaking prowess. Something to give Monica Belucci a run for their money.</div><div> </div><div>• <strong>Champagne Krug: </strong>A champagne par excellence. So revered is the wine that nobody would dare debate its quality or consistency. The most successful blend ever to be crafted, it remains my onepoint reference for all fine champagnes. </div><div> </div><div>• <strong>Chateau Haut Brion:</strong> In this collection of reds, if I had to throw in a white it could come from a handful of houses. While this house is immensely famous for its red, it is the secretive white that connoisseurs like to boast of in hushed circles. Among the rarest and most prestigious whites to be had, ever! </div><div> </div><div>• <strong>Château D’Yquem: </strong>What better way to conclude the list than with the most delicious sweet wine in the world. Again, in a blind tasting session that I attended, we ended up rating another neighbouring Sauternes property higher than this one but, as I said, logic is not the basis for defining luxury.</div><div> </div><div><em>The author is a well-known sommelier</em></div><div> </div><div>(This story was published in BW | Businessworld Issue Dated 16-11-2015)</div><div> </div>
