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What I Learned Today

March 10, 2007
I finally broke down today and entered our collection of wine into Cellar Tracker, mostly at the repeated urging of Dr. Debs from Good Wine Under $20.

I learned that I do not like when wine clubs ship you wine yet do not list on the packing slip or anywhere in the shipment how much each bottle cost. Yes, I can look it up on my credit card bill and figure out the total, but that doesn't break it down by bottle. It's a royal pain in the rear end to figure out the price of something, especially when it's an older bottle that was sent and is not available on the website to purchase. Note to wineries: Tell me how much my wine costs!

I learned that we currently have 84 bottles of wine that are all now rearranged into 9 wine racks. This is both good and bad. We started, back in early September, with 12 wine racks and a wine fridge full (read: approximately 150 bottles). So this means that at a minimum, since September, we have consumed 66 bottles of wine. However, this is not nearly the extent of the wine we have actually consumed, given that we were receiving shipments from 12 wineries during that time and we bought several cases of "everyday" wine, not to mention the odd bottle here and there for WBW. By rough estimating, I gather we've received around 60 bottles of wine from wine clubs. Rough guess? I would say the number of bottles consumed (or given away as presents) exceeds 150. In approximately 185 days. At that rate, what we have in our racks will only last us about another 100 days. And we will not be drinking all of it, since there are bottles I know are not ready yet. Additionally, since we cut out half of our wine clubs, the wine will not be arriving fast enough to cover the rate we are drinking it. I guess I will be hitting up the local wine shops more this spring.

Finally, I learned that the wine we do have adds up to a cost that I don't really want to think about. And if I do think about it, and and I assume it roughly equates (if I extrapolate it to include more bottles) to the cost of the wine we have consumed thus far, we have, in the last 6 months, probably drank several thousand dollars worth of wine.

In conclusion, wine drinking is an expensive habit, and if you'd like to have a mini-heart attack like I did this afternoon, head on over to Cellar Tracker and enter your collection in. I will be recuperating from the shock this evening with a bottle of wine.

7 comments:

  1. Dr. Debs said...

    Ouch. I know, it's a shocker to see it the first time. Especially when there are four or more numbers to the left of the decimal point. But, as new home owners, you were already feeling the budget pinch. Now you know it wasn't an imagined pinch. Hopefully, with CT you'll be able to stay on top of it and not find yourself in the unenviable position of not being able to pay your mortgage (unless the lender will take wine as payment!)Hopefully there was some good payoff, too, from all that entering and you feel like you're onto a good tool to help you keep track of all kinds of things--not just the $.

    3/10/07, 8:06 PM  

  2. Dr. Debs said...

    PS. My decision to start Good Wine Under $20 was not entirely unrelated to what I learned when I joined CellarTracker!

    3/10/07, 8:07 PM  

  3. Anonymous said...

    'Dora, are enjoying the wine? Sure seems like you are. And perhaps one day this blog you write so well will be your way out of the G-job.

    A wise man once said "Budget the luxuries first." That's not to say you should not take care of the necessities, but rather to make sure you don't miss out on the good things along the way...

    Put another way, don't think of all that wine as a cost, think of it as an investment in future happiness.

    3/11/07, 1:15 AM  

  4. Dr. Debs said...

    Now that's something I'd like to see on a T-shirt: Wine--an Investment in Future Happiness.

    3/11/07, 12:00 PM  

  5. Anonymous said...

    ...just ask for a prospectus...!

    3/11/07, 4:37 PM  

  6. Dr. Debs said...

    Maybe it's perfect for the spring t-shirt for TO, to accompany the famous Wine Rack?

    3/11/07, 10:38 PM  

  7. Sonadora said...

    Dr. Debs- Yes, I'm sure it will help with when to drink things and simply let me keep better track of where the bottles are in our house. I can see how it would spur you on towards the search for more wallet friendly wines!

    El Jefe-Yep, definitely enjoying the wines. Have no intention of stopping the drinking! Just a momentary sticker shock. I'm considering it more of an investment in my current happiness!

    3/12/07, 11:36 AM  

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