Your Port collection ... what is the organization like?

[Roy Hersh]

Whether you own a small rack that you keep in a closet, have a Vinotheque type wine refrigerated cabinet, store your bottles in a passive crawl space or cabinet, maintain an off-premise rented space or own your own wine cellar ... the task remains the same.

So for those of you who would like to share, how do you go about keeping your Ports in whatever type of storage you use? By producer, by vintage, by type, arbitrary chaos? It matters not, except that I think it would be interesting to see how others here store their Ports, but far more so, how do they categorize & organize their bottles.

Thanks!

[Rich Greenberg]

Howdy, Roy!

I have a Vinotheque wine cabinet that will hold on the order of 20 cases if I pack it to the gills. I chose the universal racking option, so I can't fit as much as other configurations. However, this is unimportant, so, on to answer your question.

When I first got the cabinet, I had grand designs of segmenting things by varietal, keeping the bottom three rows (14 bottles in double deep racking) for long term aging. Well, this thought process lasted for a few months, when I found myself stuck with the tedious task of moving things around to accomodate consumption and purchases, and trying to maintain my varietal-based organization. I was also trying to keep an Excel spreadsheet up to date at the same time. It was at this time that I headed for Google to see what kind of cellar organization software I could find. I perused many, downloaded a few, and finally came upon CellarTracker (http://www.cellartracker.com). What a godsend that Eric Levine has created, and one that I know many of you use as well. As I transitioned to CellarTracker, I decided that if I was diligent about logging in new purchases, and tracking consumption, that it didn't matter a whit (sp?) which wines were next to each other, it merely mattered that I could find the particular wine I was looking for.

So, I lettered each column A-G, numbered each row 1-13, and noted B or F for back or front. When I log in a new wine, I give it the appropriate bin number (i.e.: 2,A,F for 2nd row, first column, front.) Using the download feature on Eric's site, and a macro created by another CellarTracker user, I also have a "graphical" representation of the cellar as well. Using this method, I can easily look up my wine using the many sorting features on CellarTracker, pick out the one(s) I wish to grab from the cellar, and I have the bin information handy.

I no longer care if the Zin doesn't like the Syrah as a neighbor, or if my Port is resting next to some Chardonnay, I just care that I can find my wine when I need it! :)

[Kris Henderson]

Arbitrary chaos. When bottles are constantly added and removed from the cellar, it is too difficult to stick to a specific organizational scheme. Cellartracker tells me exactly where each bottle is.

[Todd Pettinger]

With my meagre cellar (crawl space under the stairs for the time being until a proper wine storage cabinet or cellar-room with AC and humidity controls is created/installed/affordable) I subscribe to the chaos theory as well. The thing is, with less than 80 bottles, most very young as that is all I can seemingly afford in this lifetime/income bracket, the amusing thing is that the vast majority of my cellar really should not be touched for at least a decade, and likely upwards of two. So really, I can bury it all now and not worry about it for at least 15 years.

Of course, the unfiltered LBVs that are kept for short-term drinking are kept close at hand - really easy to enumerate/track.

I have an excel spreadsheet that I initially used to track stuff, but I found my consumption and purchase rates could not keep up to my computer time. So I abandoned that practise.

If I ever get that proper wine cellar built or a storage cabinet purchased, I will likely look into something like Cellar Tracker, but what is the use of organizing everything on the computer right now if I know that I will be moving it withing (hopefully) a couple of years when that aforementioned proper storage is in place? (Besides... I really do not have THAT MUCH Port... and since I keep very few bottles of anything other than Port in my meagre cellar, my tracking isn't that difficult.

Todd

[Erik Wiechers]

Interesting to read how people store their bottles. I have a wine cabinet in my living room for the bottles that can be drunk within the next 5 years. The fairly new bottles, like the Noval 2000, 2003 and 2004 and the Niepoort 2005 i have stored away under the floor where it is dark, the right temperature and the right humidity. I'll try to make some pics when i can.

I DO label all bottles with necktags with on it the year of the bottle, the brand and the timespan when it can be drunk.
And ofcourse i use CellarTracker aswell.

Roy, i'm missing your input. How do you keep track ? And i really would love to see a pic of your cellar/cabinet/warehouse someday.

[Todd Pettinger]

Roy, i'm missing your input. How do you keep track ? And i really would love to see a pic of your cellar/cabinet/warehouse someday.

Wouldn't we all Erik?!?!

I inquired once about a picture that accompanied an article in the FTLOP newsletter and Roy informed me that he has never posted a pic of his cellar online and likely never will. Leaving just a handful of fortunate individuals that have seen it in person while at his house.

I have the burning desire to see it simply because I have never really seen an extensive cellar in person (aside from online pics, which I take with a grain of salt because they are typically from companies that want to sell you storage racks, etc and not a reflection of what REAL people have in their basements.)

Todd

[Erik Wiechers]

I inquired once about a picture that accompanied an article in the FTLOP newsletter and Roy informed me that he has never posted a pic of his cellar online and likely never will. Leaving just a handful of fortunate individuals that have seen it in person while at his house.

*sobs*

[Moses Botbol]

Right now, everything is in wooden cases, if they are not complete, I fill in the empty spaces of singles of different bottles of a similar vintage. Some day, I hope to take the bottles out of the cases and put them on a rack, but I do not have a room for that yet.

I stack the cases on top of each other with the newest vintage on the bottom. I like to have the cases touching each other the so the temp swings are slower on the total mass.

So far, so good. I have had delicate wines in storage about 10 years and they tasted fine, so I have high expectations on the port for the future.

[Al B.]

I use both onsite storage at home for ports likely to be drunk in the near(ish) future and offsite storage for ports that are likely to be left alone for a while.

Offsite storage is organised for me. All I have to do is to tell the offsite storage company what is in each case that I send them and they will then keep track of what is where and return a case to me when requested. There are a mixture of six and twelve bottles cases, some being single shipper single vintage cases and some being repacked cases with mixed contents - perfect for future drinking.

At home, the bottles are just shoved in at random with a bit of vague organisation (ie. both the Nacionals are together) but most of the locating work is done through the spreadsheet I use to keep track of my port.

I just have to make sure that when I move things around that I accurately update the spreadsheet! I also keep photographs of each bottle on the spreadsheet so that I have a record of what each bottle looks like.

Alex

[Andy Velebil]

All I can say is "thank god for CellarTracker" to help me. Almost all of my stuff is in an offsite storage. Which is great because I am less tempted to open things before they are mature...the old out-of-sight-out-of-mind thing. I then have a 52 bottle cooler at home for stuff that is "drink anytime" or Death Row stuff. Then there is a couple cases of less expensive stuff (LBV's, tawny's with age, dry wines, etc) that are in an inside closet that stays pretty constant year round. CellarTracker has been great for me to keep track of it all and especially the pending deliveries of stuff bought in the summer, which can't be shipped for several months due to hot weather.

As for the offsite, when I get enought to fill a 12 bottle wood case at home I write all the contents on the outside and then stack it in the offsite. If I need something from the offsite, this makes it rather quick work to find. much better than having to open each box and look inside for 1 bottle. I do try to keep all the dry wines next to each other and all the Ports next to each other. But this doesn't always happen. In short, organized chaos I like to say, LOL!

[Erik Wiechers]

Almost all of my stuff is in an offsite storage.

*sighs* I wish we had the possibility of off-storage here in the Netherlands, i can't find anything. Maybe one of the other dutchies reads this and knows a good place for offsite storage ?

[Andy Velebil]

Erik,

Thats a bummer as mine is temp/humidity controlled at 55 degrees and 70% humidity. Plus they are in the process of adding fingerprint recognition devices to the entry door to make it even harder for unwanted people from gaining access. Very nice of them I thought

[Todd Pettinger]

Erik,

Thats a bummer as mine is temp/humidity controlled at 55 degrees and 70% humidity. Plus they are in the process of adding fingerprint recognition devices to the entry door to make it even harder for unwanted people from gaining access. Very nice of them I thought

Perhaps on top of the biometrics, they should consider adding an alcohol breathalizer-detection device to ensure that you do not show up and try to take a case or two out of storage when in a state of mind where doing so may be of questionable practice? Be VERY sure you actually want to remove that case of 1963 Quinta do Noval!!!

[Edward J]

Ooo lookie here an old thread to dig up from long ago.

Once we started getting into Port, well things took off rather quickly and I had several cases of Port sitting on my living room floor. I then bought an old refrigerator and converted it for wine, but it only holds ~6 cases and I have to constantly add water to keep the humidity up. After a few changes around the household it appeared there was no room for a bespoke wine cellar. Even though try as I might to stop buying Port, I still had 5 cases of Port and wine in my living room. :) I had been looking for a decent cabinet system that was reliable and didn't cost and arm and a leg. I know some use off site storage, but for me it's not an option. I will always remember a bullion trader telling me "If you don't hold it, you don't own it."

My research brought me to Costco, not bad options and fair pricing, but the ~200 bottle capacity most had wasn't going to cut it long term. My research showed the Vinotheque cabinets are about as well built as you can find and I started looking for one used. They have many options and styles and they no longer make cabinets as it wasn't profitable for them to produce anymore. I can understand that with their 450 bottle Estate series "Château Montelena" cabinet costing at least $10K and taking 8 weeks to produce, it would be hard to have a business model that works.

The problem I was having is that even used, these cabinets were pricey. As always, using Craig's list, I scoured the ads everyday for several months waiting for the right unit to pop up. An older Model 500 popped up for a decent price. On the phone the lady explained her husband had died and she was moving. Downsizing her collection to 200 bottles, she had purchased a new Wine Enthusiast unit (yuk). She also explained that they had belonged to 27 different wine clubs and that she had 36 bottles of Port and dessert wines that she didn't drink and would I like them? I took them home without looking hoping to perhaps find ??? The wine club comment should have told me all I needed to know. Not one Port, all California ports. Perhaps for another thread, but a lot of wineries make these wines. The unit is now acclimating to it's new location and I'll fill it up soon, I wonder how long to get to 40 cases?

[Andy Velebil]

Ooo lookie here an old thread to dig up from long ago.

Once we started getting into Port, well things took off rather quickly and I had several cases of Port sitting on my living room floor. I then bought an old refrigerator and converted it for wine, but it only holds ~6 cases and I have to constantly add water to keep the humidity up. After a few changes around the household it appeared there was no room for a bespoke wine cellar. Even though try as I might to stop buying Port, I still had 5 cases of Port and wine in my living room. :) I had been looking for a decent cabinet system that was reliable and didn't cost and arm and a leg. I know some use off site storage, but for me it's not an option. I will always remember a bullion trader telling me "If you don't hold it, you don't own it."

My research brought me to Costco, not bad options and fair pricing, but the ~200 bottle capacity most had wasn't going to cut it long term. My research showed the Vinotheque cabinets are about as well built as you can find and I started looking for one used. They have many options and styles and they no longer make cabinets as it wasn't profitable for them to produce anymore. I can understand that with their 450 bottle Estate series "Château Montelena" cabinet costing at least $10K and taking 8 weeks to produce, it would be hard to have a business model that works.

The problem I was having is that even used, these cabinets were pricey. As always, using Craig's list, I scoured the ads everyday for several months waiting for the right unit to pop up. An older Model 500 popped up for a decent price. On the phone the lady explained her husband had died and she was moving. Downsizing her collection to 200 bottles, she had purchased a new Wine Enthusiast unit (yuk). She also explained that they had belonged to 27 different wine clubs and that she had 36 bottles of Port and dessert wines that she didn't drink and would I like them? I took them home without looking hoping to perhaps find ??? The wine club comment should have told me all I needed to know. Not one Port, all California ports. Perhaps for another thread, but a lot of wineries make these wines. The unit is now acclimating to it's new location and I'll fill it up soon, I wonder how long to get to 40 cases?

There are some nice Cali "ports" that are made. Which ones did you get?

[Eric Menchen]

Hmm, I never replied to this thread previously, but since it came up ...

I have a walk-in dual-zone cooler in my basement. Contractors framed it out and insulated it, and I developed a controller for the cooling unit and fan, and installed all the racking. The racking and cooling unit were bought on craigslist from someone that had a wine cellar and moved out. The racks are primarily Bordex, which I had to trim and reassemble to fit the space. I also put in some wire rack shelving for boxes and crates.

One wall is Port, organized with up oldest vintages on the bottom, working up to younger. Within vintages, bottles are alphabetical. A couple new bottles are out of place. When a bunch of holes appear, I rearrange. I track inventory with CellarTracker. But I track location in an Excel spreadsheet.

As for California "Port," I've had a number of very enjoyable wines, and a few that were just o.k. Just taste them as dessert wines and try not to compare them to Port and you will be better off.

[Edward J]

That sounds like a sweet set up Eric. I've started to load it up with all pre-cellared bottles as not to raise temperatures. I am using a spread sheet for location and info, but am starting to port over the info to Cellar Tracker. Since I have two deep standard racking, putting things in the right places is a good idea, some of those Port bottles are fat. I also have bottle tags for many bottles as well. I've grouped the Port by shipper with the younger in the back older in front. Tawnies and others ready to drink reside in the middle at eye level. Some room for magnums/champagnes and splits but not enough. Mostly need more room for splits, now that I just added another two dozen or so. Overall so far I'm very happy, the temperature probe is in bottle and we are already at 58 with another 5 cases to load in tomorrow.

As for California Port, a lot of wineries make a dessert wine of some type. I'm not sure the reasoning behind this production, love of the wine or sales opportunity? Some producers have a historical link hearkening back to when California Port was the wine California was known for. I have had quite a few versions, most are decent and a few actually remind me of Port. I think Zinfandel lends itself to the late harvest style very well and make a unique wine. Most of what I got are new to me, the best I can figure this was a bonus worth quite a few bones, even if i would have never bought most of these, if you could find them.

Villa Toscano Port 2004
Whidbeys Washington Port 1989
Sonora Barristers Port
Brice Station Port 2006&7
Tobin James Reserve Port &
Late Harvest Zin & Dessert Zin (12 bottles total 375ml)
ParaVi Dessert wine (4)
Niner Dolce Nove (2)
Mondo Bacio
Ode to Joy Paradise Ranch (2)
Whidbey LH Barbera
Vin Moda LH Syrah
King Family LH Cabernet Franc 2003

[Michael T]

DELETED

[Eric Menchen]

I use an app called Wine+ without it I would never know where to find a particular bottle. I do tend to keep my port wines on the lower racks from the other wines but no particular reason why other than it might be a little cooler down there.

The temperatures in my cooler are very stable at each location, generally varying by less than 1/2 of a F degree. But there is a distinct variation by location, with temperatures near the ceiling at 55 F, and temperatures closer to the floor around 52. So the oldest port goes to the bottom.

[John M.]

90% of my cellar is port. I tend to keep the older stuff at the bottom. I know what I have, but not being very large, it is not formally organized and can find what I want usually within 3-4 minutes. I do keep some in an off-site storage place--these are some nice ones mainly for my kids or to keep me out of them. Inaccessibility is a great way to defend your cellar.