June
16, 2001
By Holly Hubbard Presto
Aspiring collectors will have their hands full in the coming months
weeding through the so-called New World wines hitting the market almost
daily.
In Australia alone, a wine producer opens for business every 72 hours,
according to the Australian New Zealand Wine Industry Directory.
If the process sounds daunting, take heart: Specialists, ranging from
magazines editors to wine merchants, are right there with you, looking
for new wines worth storing.
The cover story of the Jan. 30 issue of The Wine Spectator, for example,
profiled 165 smart buys for a cellar, citing several wines from emerging
regions priced under $50 a bottle.
Among them: Domaine Wines Barossa Valley Alliance 1998, which the
magazine described as the "prototype for collectible Australian
Shiraz." Another was a 1998 Tatachilla McLaren Vale 1998 Shiraz,
followed by a Peter Lehmann Barossa 1998, a blend of Shiraz and Cabernet
Sauvignon.
Some Chilean wines highlighted included a 1997 Concha y Toro Cabernet
Sauvignon for $40 and a 1998 Errazuriz Cabernet Sauvignon Aconcagua
Valley Don Maximiano Estate Reserva listed at $25.
Michael Robertson, a self-described former francophile, has dedicated
his Boutique Wines shop in Hong Kong almost solely to selling wines
from Western Australia, New Zealand and Tasmania. The shop recently
sold out of the 2000 Whitehaven, a Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand
that lists for 135 Hong Kong dollars ($17.31). Clients are already
lined up for the 2001 release, expected in July.
A Tasmanian wine that has done well for Mr. Robertson is the 2000
vintage of Holm Oak at 158 dollars. It won the only gold medal awarded
to a Riesling at the Wines of the Pacific Rim industry competition
in Hong Kong in May.
Sergio
Esposito, co-owner of Italian
Wine Merchants, a wine retailer in New York, has no shortage of
business helping clients weed through the 17,000 different wines coming
out of Italy. He stocks less than 150 at a time, priced between $10
and $45.
One of his top picks for clients is the 1997 Super Tuscan Sassicaia.
Mr. Esposito first offered a 1997 Sassicaia in May 2000 at $125 and
sold 10 cases in a day. He reoffered it this May at $195 and again
sold about 10 cases in a few hours.
While the Sassicaia may seem pricey relative to the Australian wines,
Mr. Esposito compared it with many French collectibles.
"A grand cru from France retails at $300, and the best wine from
Bordeaux is about $700," he said.
"Buy a Sassicaia today and you'll be drinking it on the cheap
a few years from now."
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