Poking around in a fascinating wine cellar

I really love poking around in really good wine cellars and I had a wonderful opportunity to do just that last weekend at the MSLO sales conference at the Crystal Springs Resort in Hamburg, New Jersey. Restaurant Latour, a fine-dining establishment on premises, is renowned for its excellent wine collection. The vast cellars house more than 3,640 labels and more than 54,000 bottles, including rare vintages dating back to before 1900. I could not believe what I saw; it was really quite impressive. Come and take a peek.   

This is Restaurant Latour at Crystal Springs Resort.

This is a very special wine-testing machine -- this apparatus can determine the quality of valuable fine wines without disturbing the bottle one bit. This also really helps when buying and selling expensive vintages, to know how long the wine has left before it should be consumed.

More special equipment -- this is where vintage and rare wines are tested for cork taint. This technology can detect taint before the bottle is even opened! They really work hard to satisfy their customers.

As you can see from the layer of dust, these bottles have been aging here for quite a while.

La Tache, one of my favorite Burgundy wines.

Kistler -- another favorite. I guess I shouldn't have served this so nonchalantly at my last dinner party -- it is very coveted.

Penfolds, a wonderful Australian vintage.

Gaja is a great Italian winery located in Tuscany.

Here's a great 1989 Italian Barolo.

Harlan Estate Vineyard is located in Napa Valley. I didn't know this wine, but supposedly it's rated at 100 by famed wine critic Robert Parker.

Another favorite of mine, Mouton Rothschild. Some of the labels are unique and beautiful.

And here in one room of this grand cellar is the very rare collection of Chateau Latour -- starting with 1863 and going all the way to the present.

More Chateau Latour.

And more...

Chateau Mouton Rothschild by the case!

This may be my all-time favorite Bordeaux: Chateau Haut-Brion.

Chateau Pichon Longueville 1982 -- oh, my!

This is the type of delicious menu a client can order along with the wine tasting.

Comments

[Ewa]

Hello, I am first time here and I just saw this post - mostly fascinated me the apparatus, which makes possible to test wine without opening the bottle.
Thanks for sharing,

[Jan Erickson]

Hi Martha, I have never seen an authentic wine cellar before only those in the movies or on TV. Those usually have lots of cobwebs, as well as dust. How does the wine testing machine and the cork testing machine work? I have never heard of most of the wines you have in your blog, let alone tasted them. I can only imagine how great they are. How long can they keep wines in their cellar? How fascinating that some of these were over 100 years old. The Restaurant Latour at Crystal Springs Resort certainly looks like a wonderful place to dine. I'll bet your group had a fntastic time. Thanks so much for sharing. Jan

[maurdel]

I would definitely choose the Maryland crabcake, the rack of Lamb and most probably the strawberry rhubarb dessert (because I love fruitiness after a nice meal) - BUT I would want to take the chocolate Galaxy home for later. I prefer to eat chocolate and richer desserts on their own, not immediately after a meal)
What wines did Martha have with which course? I wonder who chooses... Martha or the sommelier?

[Hardboiledegg]

would you think an analysis of the chemical make-up of vintage varietals would add to the science of what separates a good wine from an excellent year of production sounds as if you found a perfect starting point

[Beth]

Wow Martha....if you did a taste test on every one you liked, you might have a buzz on at the end!! I have an uncle who lives in Napa Valley and he has access to many nice vineyards. He (on occasion) brings bottles for us to enjoy. Thanks for the tour!

[Maureen]

Thanks once again for a most interesting blog - this time on wines.

It would be very unique to taste a bottle of wine from 1863 to say the least!!!

[Kim Wylie]

Some of those old bottles are shocking! My guess is that they are either VERY expensive or not even listed on the wine menu. ;) Thank you for sharing this unique experience with us!

[Theresa]

Thanks for this post, Martha! I live right near Crystal Springs and didn't know this restaurant was there. DH and I will have to try it!

[Trish]

Hi Martha and Laura,

The restaurant looks nice and cozy and I notice they even have the same bright chairs in the testing room. Fancy!

The wine cellars remind me of the recent Doris Duke movie. Bernard Lafferty would have had a field day in there! I guess you didn't literally do any 'poking' or your finger prints would be in the dust; but I bet you wanted to do some dusting!

Thanks for today's fascinating blog. Trish

[Cadence]

What a beautiful opportunity! As a historian, it is wonderful to see the year labels on the bottles and wonder what was happening when this bottle was made (and how that could impact the wine!). My grandfather was a wine maker of minor proportions - mostly for his own enjoyment but I wish that history had not been lost when he died! Happy taste testing!

[Margie]

I would hope you would continue to nonchalantly serve wine. It can never be as wonderful as the delicious food and enjoyment of good guests.

[xoBeau]

Discovery is so fascinating! And especially of these wonderful treasures!

[DDRanch]

Martha, Enjoyed viewing your wines. Always enjoy learning. I have been colecting wine since 1970 & I have many of the wines diaplayed in your blog in my wine cellar also very dusty. Are they worth any $ or should I just drink & enjoy?!

[MillieRocky]

This wine cellar blog reminded me that Martha, on her show, used to have a married couple who reviewed wines and wrote a column for a newspaper, possibly the Wall Street Journal. I'm remembering their names as Dorothy and John, but I could be wrong. I'd like to see more wine tasting segments with them on Martha's new BIG show! They were very enjoyable and informative!

[Polka Dot Bride]

Ah I love Penfolds!

What a gorgeous place to visit, love it!

[danielle]

i love those labels. great design inspiration.

also, i've never found a wine i like. any recommendations for a novice?