How many bottles are in your cellar?

[jumby]

I'm curious as to the number of bottle people keep on hand in their cellars? Personally I try to keep around a 1,000 bottles at all times. At any given time I usually have about 800 reds, 100 whites and 100 blushes.

 

[cmsben61]

around 400 for me

 

[NorCal]

Same, around 400.

 

[cimbaliw]

Between bulk and bottle I usually have ~500 bottle's worth. This allows for a minimum of 9-12 month aging with a max of about 2-2.5 years before batch extinction. I am planning on going up to a 750 bottle's worth rotation to push the minimum closer to two years. My thought is to augment bulk capacity to achieve the goal. We are a bottle a day household. Not all of my wines require age >6 month.

IIRC, an earlier thread on the subject had a couple of entries on 1500 and 2000 bottle cellars. Both ended up pairing back as the wines went too long in the tooth.

 

[AZMDTed]

I haven't bottled much in a while, so I think I'm down to about 250 in bottles, with another 120 ready to be bottled and 150 more in other carboys and barrels biding their time.

 

[Boatboy24]

I'd estimate 350 or so 750ml bottles.

Plus another dozen or so 'large bottles' (aka carboys/barrels).

 

[biscmc]

I have approximately 200 bottles in the cellar, half of which are homebrew; the rest are commercial offerings. I also have 60 gallons bulk aging in carboys.

As I continue to experiment with not using fining agents, I'm finding that it takes close to 2 years for all the lees to fall out of the wine naturally.

 

[JohnT]

I'll never tell!

This is one of those questions that has no benefit no matter what the answer.

If someone asks you that question and you have a lot, then people are going to expect you to supply wine more often.

If someone asks you that question and you only have a little, then they walk away wondering why you are dinking so much or why they were never gifted a bottle.

 

[montanaWineGuy]

If someone asks you that question and you only have a little, then they walk away wondering why you are dinking so much or why they were never gifted a bottle.

Gifting wine is the best thing about making wine. Little effort, little cost, and yet people think its the greatest thing ever. I now have folks offering to plow my drive, gave me an old 26cuft freezer, food, dinners, help with dropping trees, borrowing log splitters, etc. Its incredible.

 

[montanaWineGuy]

As I continue to experiment with not using fining agents, I'm finding that it takes close to 2 years for all the lees to fall out of the wine naturally.

That's a long time. Far far longer then what I experience.

 

[jumby]

Gifting wine is the best thing about making wine. Little effort, little cost, and yet people think its the greatest thing ever. I now have folks offering to plow my drive, gave me an old 26cuft freezer, food, dinners, help with dropping trees, borrowing log splitters, etc. Its incredible.

I would have to agree.

 

[Johnd]

As I continue to experiment with not using fining agents, I'm finding that it takes close to 2 years for all the lees to fall out of the wine naturally.

Mine are typically done dropping in less than half that time, I degas with a vacuum pump after AF is over, are you doing any kind of degassing before bulk aging?

 

[wineforfun]

Normally between 100 - 150.

 

[cmason1957]

I think my wife and I are very nearly at the 1000 bottle mark, not including what is bulk aging in carboys.

 

[Bodenski]

I have maybe 10 bottles right now

And I have 6 different 1 gallon country wines in progress, so with those I'll have a little more. But I'm seriously thinking about making one or two bigger batches. Seems to be the same work for one as it is for 5.

 

[biscmc]

Mine are typically done dropping in less than half that time, I degas with a vacuum pump after AF is over, are you doing any kind of degassing before bulk aging?

Yes I degas with a VacuVin Pump for about 30 days prior to bulk aging.

 

[montanaWineGuy]

I have maybe 10 bottles right now

OMG! Tell me these are like gigantic bottles...

 

[montanaWineGuy]

I don't know how many I have. Maybe 200. I don't have shelving. All my bottles are in homedepot bought storage buckets. The hold about 30 bottles and some are very full and some less then full.

 

[ceeaton]

I'll never tell!

This is one of those questions that has no benefit no matter what the answer.

If someone asks you that question and you have a lot, then people are going to expect you to supply wine more often.

If someone asks you that question and you only have a little, then they walk away wondering why you are dinking so much or why they were never gifted a bottle.

As I remember, much of your wine is meant for family members who help during the "crush" and at bottling time. So I could see people seeing that high number and make incorrect judgments, as I remember we're not supposed to judge each other unless we are perfect ourselves, and I have only heard of one person who ever dwelt on this planet who was deemed perfect, but he's too humble to ever admit it.

I surprisingly have 261 (750ml = 1) bottles in storage. I have 330 worth in carboys at various stages to eventually bottle. The reason I'm surprised is that as this hobby progresses, my wife and have started to give away way more wine than we consume, which is the way it should be (2:1, give : drink)!

 

[ceeaton]

OMG! Tell me these are like gigantic bottles...

Actually it is a really small person.