Dating your wine bottles...Suggestions anyone?

[tanyalc]

So I was looking at my wine rack the other day when I was adding my most recently bottled wine to it and realized that I need to create / use a dating system. So far, I haven't been making my own labels and I am not sure if I will start, but I do need a way to date my bottles so I drink the oldest first.

Suggestions?

I was thinking of some type of sticker I could stick to the top of the shrink but I am not sure.

 

[Rocky]

Would something like this work? You could color code by year or write the year on the dot. http://stickemart.com/stickemartdots.aspx

 

[robie]

One thing that helps is - in small print, print the date you made the wine on each bottle label.

 

[tanyalc]

Would something like this work? You could color code by year or write the year on the dot. http://stickemart.com/stickemartdots.aspx

I would like something I could put month/ year on ... those stickers might work (along with a Sharpie)

 

[tanyalc]

One thing that helps is - in small print, print the date you made the wine on each bottle label.

I would but then I would still have to pull the wine off the rack to see the label. I have a rack that I can stack 4 high / shelf, that is the reason I was thinking about on the shrink.

 

[Arne]

Well, if you don't shrink wrap em right away, devise a code and use the sharpie to write on the cork. Like, S for strawberry then month and year. jun 01. I have put down when I bottled on the label, but for the last several batches I have been bulk aging so long that I have been using the born on date when I pitch the yeast. Arne.

 

[Sammyk]

I have mine wine in a spread sheet. When I bottle I add the date bottled to the sheet. I mark off in pen on the printed sheet every time we remove the bottle so I know how many of what I have left. When I add to the sheet, I change the numbers and add any additions or subtractions.
I have 2 sections - one made but not bottled and one bottled. When I bottle I make another row under the heading bottled.

I can see at a glance all the wines I have made and how many left.

To take it a step further I don't put labels on bottles because they are for our own use and some a shipped to family and I don't want a label on a shipped bottle. I use masking tape and add the variety and the date started.

I have 2 Sam's Club wine racks that hold 168 bottles each. I make a tag out of masking tape and put it on the shelf under the bottles by variety. I did not take me long to remember exactly where each variety and on which shelf it is placed. I also mark the last 4 bottles -which may have sediment on by a sharpie marker do on the cork.

Not sure if this will work for you but it works great for me.

 

[GrandpasFootsteps]

I have shrink capsules on the tops of my bottles. Although I label the bottles, I also use a permanent market to write a code (like BlB11 Blackberry 2011) for the type of wine and the year on the gold on top of the capsule. There are so many wine bottles on their sides in my wine rack, I started doing this so I'd be able to find what I want to drink faster without pulling a bunch of bottles.

 

[WVMountaineerJack]

Avery makes a mailing label #8160, enough room to type in kind of wine, basic ingredients, dates, easy to remove later. Also buy some of those ring tags that go over the neck and hang down, put one of your avery tags on that and keep it with the same group of bottles, funny to see how many ---- retentive compulsive members we have WVMJ

So I was looking at my wine rack the other day when I was adding my most recently bottled wine to it and realized that I need to create / use a dating system. So far, I haven't been making my own labels and I am not sure if I will start, but I do need a way to date my bottles so I drink the oldest first.

Suggestions?

I was thinking of some type of sticker I could stick to the top of the shrink but I am not sure.

 

[tanyalc]

I have shrink capsules on the tops of my bottles. Although I label the bottles, I also use a permanent market to write a code (like BlB11 Blackberry 2011) for the type of wine and the year on the gold on top of the capsule. There are so many wine bottles on their sides in my wine rack, I started doing this so I'd be able to find what I want to drink faster without pulling a bunch of bottles.

A friend just suggested this as well. I think this might be the way to go!

Thanks for all the suggestions

 

[bakervinyard]

Hi Tanyalc, I use a round sticker And put the first letter of the type of wine on it along with the month and year bottled. ie; R 3-12, Reilsling, March 2012. I stick it on the neck of the bottle and I can see it in my wine rack. It works for me. Bakervinyard

 

[NoSnob]

I want every bottle I make to have an identifying label (not the large decorative label) that identifies it by my batch code and the month and year the yeast was pitched. So my Columbia Valley Riesling begun July 2012 would look like this:
[ CVR
7-2012 ]

I place this very small white label on each bottle before placement of the decorative label. I complete the sticker with a ball point pen (non-smudging) and place the label on the bottom of the bottle. It removes easily when I wash it for the next use. My wine log has the bottle code for each batch I make.

Use of this small label helps me when I look in my wine cabinet to know exactly how many years and months old the wine is. My decorative labels do not always include the month and I don't always place decorative labels on wine I plan to keep for myself. Thus EVERY bottle always has a label.

NS

 

[Winegirl]

I only use the little 3/4" circle labels by avery, I use avery's site to design the label, I usually just put a clipart of the type of wine (ex: Raspberry), the font goes over the clipart, there's room for the name and the date. I use the date format just in numbers 2/11 is February 2011. I place the circle on the end of the shrink cap or bottle cap and it's easy to see what kind it is right away. We make mostly quick drinkers, cooler type wines and bottle quite a bit in clear beer bottles as well as wine bottles.