I've just shoved my old fashioned hammer barrel shaped jobby in there, the one I use for "conseilles pour le service du vin"

Will come back and edit this post with the reading.

I have the glass under a bottle of 2005 Dom Vincent Escalier Aloxe Corton 1er Les Fournieres, which I'm hoping will taste as if it came from higher up on the Hill If I move it, the air that poors in thru the door, it rises to 14C. It has been a warm and clammy afternoon here in Berkshire. In the Winter I'm well down at 6 to 9C. and unfortunately acquire tartaric chrystals in Claret - too cool !

I too use a comodious cupboard under the stairs right in the middle of this victorian building. I may take up the floor boards completely, as the earth is 4 feet below. This is a drafty old place, gappy floor boards, gappy old doors, gappy sash windows, but great in a hot Summer, it was 15C in the Dining Room when I went to get the thermometer.

Shezza, you dont have a severe problem, if your Winter figures are low, the cheapest way you can reduce is to get the floor up and expose the soil under the middle of the house or under your stairs. Then line out the cupboard walls with thick 3" polystyrene (unless they are double brick or stone and lying on the subsoil) and then stick 3" Poly from builders merchants on the back of the door, to stop warmth from the hall. Then lock-up the cupboard , in case the kids or the Misses forget, and leave the door open all day.

I'd say if you can maintain no more than 16C or so during most of the Summer and complete darkness, you could adjust cellaring by a linear factor - Divide potential period to peak and then waining by 1.33, interpolate and Hope. I have never ruined a wine per se', other than by being a forgetfull twerp or because the marketing people deceived me. I have tested over the years, I've been here for nearly 30. I have pulled out a Chateau Filot 1983 at 25 years and it's been heavenly, I've pulled out affordable 1990 left bank at 15 years, and its been worth all the waiting, I'pulled out nearly 20 year Ygay or Tondonia Rioja, and it's been fascinatingly fragrant and fine. So sample as you go is my message, if they are horrendous money, make sure you have 3 bottles, that way at least 2 will be great if you are cautious with the 1st try.

Saint Emilion these days does not keep well, except the great ones. Haut Medoc lasts nearly twice as long as softer Medoc. With affordable claret and Cote d'Or, if the release tasting notes say - " full and easy on entry" - drink-up. A wine with a short length is generally going nowhere, wines that are over dry for the friut on the finish, eventually pucker the palate with age - You know the Rule of Thumb

Have you noticed recently .....and mentioning no names; That some retailers use the same tasting notes that refered specifically to the grand vins of the appelation for that year, or, copy and paste the same notes for that wine, when it was rated highly for a completely different vintage......Grrrrrrr.

Over to you Mel, you've done all the studying to qualify your opinion, mine is based on over 40 years of buying and trying.

_________________
Duncan

Thought that tartaric crystals are pretty harmless anyway...

Sounds like its nice and cool at 'Chez Dunc'
Mrs Shez is terrible for feeling the cold - still tries putting the heating on even now ! I'm total opposite and can be happily walking around in a t-shirt while she's shivering wearing 3 layers and under a duvet !

New build house so temp stays pretty constant thruout due to decent insulation but means that taking up floorboards isn't possible.
Obviously it's definately cooler in the winter so hopefully a gradual climb in temp over ther year won't be too much of a shock.
If things get any warmer than 16C under the stairs during the summer I may look to transfer some bottles to the garage if I can do it without too much disruption.
That said, I don't think I've got anything that'll be there for longer than 10 years max

I too have noticed a number of occasions where quotes are made referring to tasting notes that refer to a completely different vintage.
Can be very misleading