I have some Old Wine With Dust On The Bottles

[WoodRtist]

Hey all....I'm Glad I found this site, You all sound like a good bunch

First of all I have never made wine, But my wife makes hers at one of those bottle your own wine making stores...And shes real proud of her collection.

In our old wine cellar, we have some old bottles of wine from a gentleman who passed away, and they were given to us.
We have had them for 10 years...I just want to hear your opinion on this wine,
and how can I tell If Its any good?

I will get some names off the bottles for you all later on

Cheers

Dan

 

[roblloyd]

This is a great bunch of here. Made me feel welcome when I started.

How do you tell if they are still good? Have a party!

 

[Danml]

Pop a cork.........let us know what ya think.

 

[winemaker_3352]

Welcome aboard!!

If the bottle is dusty - clean it off. See if the wine is free from foreign contaminants.

If the wine is clear no mold or floaties in it - i would open it up and see how it smells.

Note any unusual or fowl smells if any.

If it has a natural cork in - smell to see if the wine is "corked" kind of a wet newspaper smell.

 

[jdeere5220]

how can I tell If Its any good?

You can box it up and send it to me and I'll let you know if it was good or not

Seriously, you might be able to tell if it's bad, but the only way I know to be sure it's good is to drink it.

First, check the level. If the level of the wine is low in the bottle, that indicates the storage conditions were too dry and their has been some air exchange. Bad sign.

Next, shine a light through the bottle. Does it look cloudy? Do you see any strings growing in the bottle? Both signs of bacterial or fungus invasions, which are bad.

If it looks good, then pop a cork and poor into a clear glass. Does it smell like wine or does it smell like vinegar? If it smells like wine, then drink up!

 

[ibglowin]

Don't be surprised if its vinegar!

 

[Flem]

It's going to have to be a very good wine to have any chance of it still being good. Only way to find out is to open it. Enjoy!!!

 

[WoodRtist]

Very Interesting....good tips, The wine cellar Is under the concrete steps
Plus I have all the bottles It red clay pipe
I haven't even opened the cellar door In over a year now...But I will take a look, I know there's labels on the bottles...I will have a look and fill you all In later

Dan

 

[robie]

Yep, if it doesn't smell like vinegar but still like wine; and it's not molded, give it a taste.

Red wines tend to turn brown when they get too old and oxidized.

 

[philogeek]

OP - checked out those labels yet?

 

[jtstar]

You will never know until you open a bottle what you might find out is that it could be some of the best wine that you ever tasted