Wine
Cellar Building
What to put in that beautiful cellar? Wine that you like to drink, of course. Award-winning sommelier Jake Kosseff answers frequently asked questions about stocking your in-home cellar

You’ve built (or remodeled) the house, moved (back) in and filled the rooms with furniture. You’ve hung the art thoughtfully and even filled the fridge and the pantry with your favorite foods. But what are you going to do about your beautiful new temperature-controlled cellar? It needs wine, of course … but what kind?

The two most common questions I get as a sommelier are “What should I put in my cellar?” and “How long should I keep this particular wine?” The second question is almost always followed up with “How much should I buy for my cellar?” or “Can you help me get some?”

What should I put in my cellar?
The best answer to this question is also the simplest: Buy wine that you like—with the emphasis on you. Wine, first and foremost, is about pleasure.

It is important to consider when the wine in your cellar will be consumed. Will you be drinking most of your wine over the next year or the next 15 years—or is it for your kids to drink? If you’re thinking long-term, it’s worth taking into account how well a wine will age before investing in much of it. There’s nothing worse than buying three cases of your favorite wine only to find that the last two bottles are flat, boring or spoiled by the time you’re ready to drink them.

How long will this wine last?
This is a more complicated question, and I’m not convinced that anyone has a perfect understanding of what makes wines age well. You could turn to a good wine critic for help, but part of the fun of having a cellar is being able to store enough of each wine that you can drink a bottle from time to time and keep track of its progress. Well-aged wine occasionally exhibits a character more profound than young wine is capable of, and these instances more than make up for any failed (but often interesting) experiments you might have along the way.

It’s important to try each of your wines often enough that you notice if the wine is tasting either especially good or seems slightly less vibrant than on previous tastings. That way, you can adjust your rate of consumption accordingly (in either of the preceding examples, it’s time to drink up). After a few trial runs, you will begin to have an idea about which of your favorite wines are worth buying in quantity and saving and which are best bought sparingly for near-term consumption.

A few missteps, combined with a lot of pleasant successes, in aging your wines will increase both your knowledge and your enjoyment of the wine. There is no more important purpose that your wine cellar could fulfill.

How much of this wine should I buy?
Once you know what wine to buy (what you like) and how long to keep it (as long as it tastes good), consider how much you should buy. Here’s my advice: Buy enough of any one wine to taste it on a regular basis, while still having a few bottles to drink when the wine hits its stride.

As for the last question, can I help you get some? Of course … but you might have to share. 

Jake Kosseff is the 2006 Chaine des Rotisseurs “Best Young Sommelier in America” and the founder of the Extraordi-nary Dining Society (theextraordinarydiningsociety.com). As a private consultant, Jake advises local restaurants and wine collectors on all matters pertaining to wine.