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Any WINE experts out there?15737

Collector Rafel private msg quote post Address this user
Hi All,
Almost 5 years ago I lost my dad. I'm still going through his things. One item I did find is (12) bottles of wine. One of them is from 1974. UVITA (Burgundy red table wine) from Argentina. Last month one bottle was opened, poured into a decanter to breath. After a few minutes it was poured, sniffed and tried. It was still good!! I'm not a winer drinker and those that tried it said it tasted like cognac at first then as it sat it tasted sweet and very good. I'm trying to fine out any information on this wine (and the bottle which I was told they don't make that color glass any more) to see what it's worth. I've tried looking it up and even checked with TOTAL WINE with no success. So I thought I'd reach out to the forum. Here are two pictures of the (empty) bottle. Any help would be greatfull.

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" . " Davethebrave private msg quote post Address this user
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rafel
Hi All,
Almost 5 years ago I lost my dad. I'm still going through his things. One item I did find is (12) bottles of wine. One of them is from 1974. UVITA (Burgundy red table wine) from Argentina. Last month one bottle was opened, poured into a decanter to breath. After a few minutes it was poured, sniffed and tried. It was still good!! I'm not a winer drinker and those that tried it said it tasted like cognac at first then as it sat it tasted sweet and very good. I'm trying to fine out any information on this wine (and the bottle which I was told they don't make that color glass any more) to see what it's worth. I've tried looking it up and even checked with TOTAL WINE with no success. So I thought I'd reach out to the forum. Here are two pictures of the (empty) bottle. Any help would be greatfull.



Hi - first, sorry for the loss of your dad.

As for the wine, I will say that storage matters. Your description of the taste suggests it may not have been kept in an ideal setting.

It sounds like it was stored horizontally (good!) or the cork would have dried out and the wine would have been completely spoiled (vinegar).

It also sounds like perhaps it was not stored at a lower temp because of your description of sweetness and “other” liqueur-type flavors.

You need someone with more expertise to confirm but I will guess that there isn’t much value. As for the use of the word Burgundy for a wine that is from Argentina. This is likely before usage of region names were so strictly protected as today. Burgundy is the translated form of a region. In France.

So, based on my guesses re: storage, the actual flavor experienced and the basics around the label/region, I doubt it has any monetary value.

But I am far from an expert in this area. Somehow any wine/alcohol collecting I do gets setback by bottles mysteriously disappearing. :-/
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Suck it up, buttercup!! KatKomics private msg quote post Address this user
While not an expert I am an accountant in the wine business and have taken a few courses [WSET lvl2 - lvl4 to become a sommelier] (so we could talk to our business partners and kind of know the processes etc.)

Not sure about that particular wine but I would guess that since Burgundy reds are mostly Pinot Noir and table wines tend to be blends that your wine was some sort of Pinot Noir blend.

Back in the day they probably named it Burgundy to indicate the style and type(s) of wine - today they wouldn't be allowed to call it Burgundy just like now we have "Sparking Wine" instead of Champagne - but I think what 10/15 yrs ago you could still make and call something Champagne even if it wasn't from the Champagne region of France.

Usually I wouldn't expect a Pinot Noir to age much past 5-8 yrs - the wine just doesn't have the tannins to let it age too much more - never mind 47 yrs!!
Now normally I also wouldn't think it would get too sweet but since this is Argentina....their reds have big bold fruit forward flavours and tend to have higher sugar content because of how hot the climate is - higher sugar does allow for wines to age longer than normal and might possibly give you that raisony/cognac-ish flavour.

Storage - who knows - sometimes you get lucky and even stored incorrectly everything works out!!

Value - likely not much - Argentina while a great producer of bulk wine that they export around the world isn't really know for their estate wines now - especially back in 1974. Heck..in 1974 any self respecting wine drinker wouldn't touch the swill from North America (now some of the worlds best) mainly from "Old World" snobbery

But - the real 'value' in wine is in the enjoying with friends and family and the memories it creates - if you enjoyed the wine had a good time while tasting it then it's priceless!!
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Collector Lonestar private msg quote post Address this user
@Rafel I'm no expert, but know enough to be dangerous, as the saying goes. I concur with @KatKomics post, likely a pinot blend made in the Burgundy style. I doubt it was kept for monetary value or expectation of it aging to be a great wine. Most likely it held some sort of sentimental value to your father. I have several bottles of wine that I won't be drinking, but I'm keeping for the memories associated with them.
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Collector Rafel private msg quote post Address this user
I should have mentioned that it is stored in a cellar (of sorts) cool and dry on its side at an angle with the cork face down and has not seen sun light in the last 47 years when it was bought.
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" . " Davethebrave private msg quote post Address this user
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rafel
I should have mentioned that it is stored in a cellar (of sorts) cool and dry on its side at an angle with the cork face down and has not seen sun light in the last 47 years when it was bought.


Interesting. So cork down and in a cellar (sort of)?

You mention dry. Of course that is relative but how dry? Ideal wine humidity is different than comics and more on the humid side (>50%).

What was the condition of the cork? Pliable top to bottom or any crumbling?

The sweetness and description suggests some temp variance or humidity variance. Although for aging that long a lot of care is really required.

It may have been in a cellar the past x years but somewhere before? Also, cellar-like has a big range from what I have experienced.
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Collector Rafel private msg quote post Address this user
Quote:
Originally Posted by Davethebrave
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rafel
I should have mentioned that it is stored in a cellar (of sorts) cool and dry on its side at an angle with the cork face down and has not seen sun light in the last 47 years when it was bought.


Interesting. So cork down and in a cellar (sort of)?

You mention dry. Of course that is relative but how dry? Ideal wine humidity is different than comics and more on the humid side (>50%).

What was the condition of the cork? Pliable top to bottom or any crumbling?

The sweetness and description suggests some temp variance or humidity variance. Although for aging that long a lot of care is really required.

It may have been in a cellar the past x years but somewhere before? Also, cellar-like has a big range from what I have experienced.


The cellar was built by my dad, a friend and myself back in 72'. It's 90 percent underground, it is dry, no windows, over head lights and has a drainage system which no water has ever been gotten in. When the bottle was inspected everything was intact. Cork looked good. No cracking or mold. A cork screw was used which was the wrong thing to use. About 80% of the cork was removed and the remainder pushed into the bottle. The wine was poured through a coffee filter to capture all small pieces of cork then poured into a decanter.
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