I'm not one to practice being old. When asked where I grew up, I reply that I never did and don't plan to.

There is simply no benefit to doing so. I insist, as does my friend John, that I'm 19 in my head (though I really should say 21 lest I run into trouble with the thought police for underage drinking).  But the reality is that my body has a mind of its own and insists on calling the shots, which it's been lobbying – thus far unsuccessfully – to be alcohol-free. So now into my eighth decade, I have been thinking about what I'd really like to do before I can no longer do anything.

I have visited six continents and would like to complete the set before the seventh one completely melts. I still have three US states to set foot in and many more countries to visit. Of course, there are books to read or reread, movies to see or see again, and concerts and operas to attend. And then there are wines.

For a long time, I envisioned expiring while sitting at my desk doing math with a glass of ancient vintage port, then having my ashes scattered in a vineyard. These days it is more likely that I'll become a hood ornament on a vehicle operated by someone driving while self-absorbed as I cross the intersection of 2nd Street and 99W in my hometown, before my pump has a chance to peter out on its own. But the desire to have a few more old ports as well as other venerable vinos from the past couple of centuries persists.

I have previously written about the four notebooks that contain my impressions of wines I tasted from 1969 to 1979. I drank more fortified and dessert wine back then than I do now. Of the ones that I'd like to revisit which might still be around and – more important – still enjoyable, are the 1960 Vintage Port from Manoel D. Pocas Jr. and the 1960 Warre's Vintage Port. I am curious to see how the 1963 Quinta do Noval Port developed after noting in 1977 that it was "very much a fetal wine". And then there is the 1882 Blandy's Bual Madeira, which should evidence that Madeira lives forever.

Other gems from my days of yore are a 1952 Châteauneuf-du-Pape from Pere Anselm, which I described as "a classic, probably not to be duplicated", the 1961 Château d'Yquem, the 1959 Steinberger Trockenbeerenauslese, the 1959 Château Mouton-Rothschild, and a 1949 Wehlener Sonnenuhr Feiste Auslese from J. J. Prüm. 

The last one was from my birth year and proved that not only was 1949 a great vintage for people but also for European wines. I have been able to celebrate a few of my birthdays for years ending in 0 or 5 with bottles from that vintage. The most recent, a 1949 Marchesi di Barolo Barbaresco was well past its "best by" date in 2019 and well into its sipping vinegar phase. In contrast, the 1949 Volnay-Caillerets from Pierre Latour proved the hit of my 65th birthday celebration.  It showed plenty of life and would easily have made it five more years.  For the next milestone birthday, I would like to have something of at least that quality from Bordeaux, perhaps Château Margaux; or another from Burgundy, the Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Romanée-Conti and a  La Tâche would do. I also wouldn't refuse a 1949 Barolo Riserva Monfortino from Giacomo Conterno or a 1949 Blandy's Vintage Bual.

I could go on, but it would be an exercise in futility since all of these have been priced well out of my range.

So let's be less aspirational and more practical and look at some affordable wines that aren't as old that I have wanted to try. Over the past decade, I’ve become a fan of grower Champagnes, which I exclusively get directly from Caveau Selections. I have a nice varied and varying selection that includes bottlings from Laherte Frères and Marc Chauvet. Within the past few years, however, Scott Wright, proprietor of Caveau, has been importing examples from new producers which for various reasons including limited space and limited availability, I have not purchased. E-dangled temptations include bubbles from Champagne Étienne Sandrin, Champagne Heucq, and especially Champagne La Parcelle. 

Caveau also directly imports Burgundies. Again for reasons of space and availability, but also in some instances, price, I have not acquired Chablis from Fred & Céline Gueguen, Chapelle-Chambertin or Corton-Perrières both made by Wright under the Caveau label, or Grand Crus from Domaine Heresztyn-Mazzini and Domaine A-F Gros.

White Rhône and Italian wines have been rare pleasures. I'd like to taste more bottlings from St. Joseph and Châteauneuf-du-Pape and all of the indigenous white Italian varieties from around the boot.

I occasionally sample the products of some of the newer American wine regions like Texas and Michigan and would like to delve deeper. I even hear there is some good stuff in Arizona.

© Ata Rangi | Any visit to New Zealand would include a trip to Ata Rangi.

I needn't leave home to finally get around to drinking some wines that I've been wanting to. My collection has always reflected the region I either lived in or close to. So now it includes a disproportionate number of Willamette Valley Pinot Noirs as well as some Chardonnay and other varieties from around Oregon.

Oregon Pinots, especially those from cooler vintages, can age for decades. I plan to open a 2002 Delara Pinot Noir from Maysara, the oldest Pinot I own, later this year. There are also quite a few others that I have cellared for more than 10 years. For example, I have been saving the 2008 White Rose Estate White Rose Vineyard Whole Cluster Pinot Noir (disclosure: I work part time in the White Rose tasting room) and the 2008 Archery Summit Estate Pinot Noir to taste alongside a 2008 Château de la Tour Clos Vougeot (also whole cluster). At the beginning of 2021, I began drinking 2011 Pinots from the last cool year in the Willamette Valley, some of which could use more time. Fortunately in many cases, I have more.  

There are still a few Oregon Pinots from the 1980s and 1990s out there that I'd like to try that are not part of my cellar.  I know that The Eyrie Vineyards, one of the two oldest wineries in the Northern Willamette Valley, keeps a library. There are other producers who do as well.   

Also in my collection are bottles that I have set aside for grandchildren, vintages 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2019. These include magnums of 2013 Adrián Pinot Noir Reserve from Guillén Family Wines and 2015 RR Wines Ridgecrest Vineyards Pinot Noir. Through 2017, I have laid down best barrel bottlings of Pinots and Chardonnay from my former employer, Chehalem Winery, and a remarkable 2017 White Rose Estate White Rose Vineyard Pinot Noir. I'm waiting for ageworthy releases for the one born in 2021. The hope is that I am around to enjoy these with the grandchildren either when their parents allow them a taste or when they no longer need to ask for permission.

Lest you think that I only collect Pinot Noir, I look forward to pulling the corks of a 2010 Armada Syrah from Cayuse Vineyards and the 2005 Paramour, a tempranillo in the style of a Gran Reserva, from Abacela when the moment is right.  I’ve just cellared the 2020 RR Estate Reserve Riesling and 2021 Ridgecrest Old Vine Pinot Gris, both made by Ribbon Ridge Winery, which I hope to enjoy when they are at least 10 years old.

Since 2012, I’ve attended most of the annual meetings of the American Association of Wine Economists (AAWE), which have been held, ironically given the name, more often outside of the United States in fabulous places like Stellenbosch, South Africa, Mendoza, Argentina, and Padua, Italy. There is still more travel to wine regions I need to do, with or without the AAWE justification. I have yet to visit wineries in Eastern Europe, the UK, Israel, and China, among many others.

I'd like to return to Australia and tour some regions there, not having had the opportunity to do so during a business trip in 1994. There are so many wineries I'd like to revisit or visit for the first time in New Zealand, like Ata Rangi for its excellent Pinot Noir, and in South Africa, including Kanonkop for extraordinary Pinotage (yes, there is such a thing) and Klein Constantia for a variety of expressions of Sauvignon Blanc.

If there is to be a second trip to South America, I would like to make a stop in Bolivia for the first time and taste more of their ethereal high elevation whites. It should also include my first visit to Brazil for an immersion in bubbles. My second visit to Chile would focus on old vine wines and whatever Alfonso Soto Gonzales, my guide the first time we visited in 2015, recommends. My second visit to Uruguay must include a visit to Bodega Garzón.

Prices of many of these wines have become prohibitive and are well beyond what I can afford. Andrew Jeffords suggests: "Perhaps there might be a future for something called wine philanthropy." If this becomes so, count me in on the receiving end. To anyone out there who will share one of these bottles with me, I offer a cameo in the video that I'm supposed to see before my mind's theatre darkens for good.

Admittedly, this list is far longer than I'm likely to be around. So realistically, I will only be able to check off a few. Fortunately, I am a satisficer, not a maximizer, so whichever of these wines I'll be able to taste will be good enough. Truth be told, I would be delighted to try anything from anywhere I haven't before.

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