That’s humility for you - a MW willing to take the risk of publicly tasting what is almost a tall order to get right. Great vid as always.

@KonstantinBaumMasterofWine

9 ай бұрын

Much appreciated

Double mags are cool...½ bottles are cute and just right in the Goldilock's sense. I wish that 375s were more commonly available, as they are perfect for every night dinner for one (or for two, if you just want food accompaniment).

@barath4545

10 ай бұрын

I agree and the notion that 375ml bottle dont last long is BS at least it can be. I've had a 1916 half bottle twice of D'Issan and both were still good (92-93) but ofc browning fast. I usually buy Krug GC NV in half bottles and some Sauternes as well. A friend, a lucky bstard, has half bottles of 1990 Latour and other reaaaaally nice stuff :)

@eric1richards

10 ай бұрын

​@@barath4545 I love half bottle Bordeaux. My favorite was 1989 Lefleur-de Gay. That 1990 Latour sounds awesome.

@airblizzard

9 ай бұрын

I love 375s and purchase them whenever I see them. I don't like the pressure of having an open bottle that I have to finish.

@1949cr

9 ай бұрын

Also fantastic for storing a half bottle of a wine, meaning you don't have to worry about drinking a full bottle. Pour wine to the very top of the half, reseal and the wine will last for weeks.

@RCTricking

6 ай бұрын

Agree, less stressful to know less wine is left to have to finish

KB, I have twice tasted 50+ yr old Bx in the same vintage+castle and on the same night - Storage had been in the same cellar for the past 16-20 yrs on both occasions. 1981 Giscours in Magnum vs Normal - Both were great (94 and 95+ for Mg) both the magnum was younger, like more tobacco less ready, and needed more time I felt. 1962 Pontet Canet, Magnum vs Normal - Both were okay, I rated them 92 and 93(Mg), fully ripe, little green, but tertiary and fullbody, but the Magnum was more solid and less browning! Try to get some cheaper old stuff in Mag vs normal from a private guy and see if the difference is there - I doubt a young wine (2000+) would show any difference.

Fast forward ten years when Konstantin is tasting 4 different bottle sizes of petit chenin blanc

My experience.... DEFINITELY ! The larger the bottle, the more "long lived" / the slower the aging and development...

I've heard that the origin of the 75cl comes from Bordeaux. A barriques has a contenance of 225 liters, which gives you exactly 300 bottles of 75cl. A case of 6 also gives you 4,5 liters, which is also roughly an english gallon. Thus the origin of the 75cl bottle comes from the wine trade between Bordeaux and the brits.

@xander1052

10 ай бұрын

The Irony is that this very trade is what lead to the rebranding of Stale to Barleywine around the same time, to help it compete with french wines.

Big bottles are for bragging. Magnums are for thirsty best friends. Regular bottles for enjoying with the wife. Half bottles are perfect just for me.

Hi Konstantin! I do like your channel and this week I even have something constructive to offer... Years ago I bought 6 standard bottles and 3 magnums of "Phillip L" 1993 from Lergenmüller & Sohn in the Pfalz. It's an odd blend (for Germany and especially in those days) of Cabernets Sauvignon & Franc and Tempranillo. I drank and thoroughly enjoyed the 6 bottles and one of the magnums over the next 25 years but the last couple of 75cl bottles were definitely fading: losing fruit, freshness and colour and acquiring that dusty, flat smell. More intellectually interesting than outright good. Six months ago I opened the second magnum with some friends and it was certainly mature but fresh as a daisy. It had aged magnificently over its 30 years, a really lovely wine. I should say that everything was kept in my Eurocave all those long years. From this (albeit limited) experience, I would suggest that big bottles are truly advantageous only once the wine is genuinely old. I think 10 years for a wine of the quality of Guado al Tasso is not long enough for any of the bottle sizes in your experiment to be over the hill. I have a magnum of 1983 Winkeler Hasensprung Riesling Spätlese from Deinhard, which should be interesting sometime!

Big bottles (over magnum) can't go through traditional bottling lines that have adequate protection systems against oxygen dissolution. Without the use of specific extra equipment big bottles contain much more (10x) oxygen in the wine and in the headspace than traditional formats therefore ageing faster. Because one can't know what equipment is used at every given winery, the safest choice for long term ageing is magnum.

@WillCL1994

10 ай бұрын

Couldn’t have put it better myself

Great video. I love that unlike some wine personalities more focused on their image as omniscient wine deities (hum, hum, looking at you James S) you never shy away from a challenge. I also like that you are very data driven and willing to shatter wine dogmas by experimenting and see where it goes. Keep up the great work. To your question, double mags and up look cool but are a fantasy for this city dweller who barely has room in his wine fridge for 4 magnums 😢

I have been a subcriber for some time now and loveee the content you put out and have learned so much more about wines watching you.. But my good friend please please get a large table for these videos it would be so much safer for some of these very precious wines! lol

Splits (375) are perfect for when you have the mood to have the taste of wine on your palette but also have to show up to work in the morning. Standard 750 is by far the best. The bigger sizes are "fun" to bring to party where everyone is drinking the same thing, but beyond that, they are a bit of a pain to handle and store/laydown.

Purchased a double magnum at Canoe Ridge in western Washington state near Walla Walla, Washington. Tasted the Cabernet Savingon several times in their tasting room. Cab was already eight years old, and tasted marvelous. I cellered the bottle for seven more years before opening. Turned out to be in my top three of all time. This, from a winery I had never heard of. The magic of wine is discovery. Thank you for your expertise.

I like half bottles. Great opportunity for a less expensive experiment either with a young wine or a type I’m not familiar with. Large formats, though, are so impractical for me to store that I never buy them.

Interesting as always Konstantin, cheers!

Love these experiments, thank you so much!!!!

Magnums make for great convivial drinking! Perfect size for champagne.

Great job! Honesty is everything,,, :) Love your channel! Cheers from across the pond!

Loved it. I am a big fan of large formats. Super fun for special occasions. Something really cool about a 3L or larger bottle.

I love experimenting with larger formats (I have a Melchior waiting for the right occasion), but love magnums and double magnums for the drama and theatre! Great video, thanks @Konstantin Baum!

Good video. I'd also be interested in one that compares the same wines opened for different periods of time and/or decanted too.

Excellent video and a great idea for the channel. I love your honesty which makes for a very interesting conclusion.

Yeah. Im inclined to agree that there might well be more of a difference in a tasting of 20-30 year old wine. I understand of course that that would be rather expensive and difficult to put together. For me the advantage of a large format is with an old wine where you and your family and/or friends are all tasting the same thing. Or perhaps a very old wine indeed where the standard bottle might be over the hill but the magnum is still on song. I had not considered that they would also be less susceptible to temperature variation...

👍👍 If Riesling comes in a BIG bottle, I'd love to do the same thing with that varietal. Yes indeed, I'm a Riesling freak! 😅

@niftyorca

10 ай бұрын

It would be a lot of fun to open a double magnum trockenbeerenauslese😂

@SlowlyDecomposingSolicitor

10 ай бұрын

I've only ever bought bottles and magnums but based on this maybe I ought to be buying some half bottles. There is something about the sense of occasion of opening a magnum (or bigger). You could coravin the double magnum maybe if your friends can't help you finish it but if you got halfway through it it might well empty an entire gas bulb.

Great video as usual! I hope you will revisit the same 4 wines in 10 years and post a video about it!

@sambowles9746

10 ай бұрын

I came to say exactly this also 👍

Konstantin, you are so freaking awesome!! I love this vlog. First of all, first Mike Tyson reference in a wine tasting vlog😂😂, full marks for that. I’ve always had this question, great to have a trusted expert weigh in. I have never purchased a large format bottle, but might. I do buy 375’s , mostly for port and Sauternes. Plus for the cute 😉😂😂. Keep up the fantastic work.

I'm glad that I have two bottles of Guado Al Tasso in my collection

I'm with you on the half bottles sir, very cute absolutely love them... Bought a specific half bottle wine rack especially for them... Great video 🍷👍

Last night I had an inexpensive Portuguese blend the first glass was fantastic by the last of the bottle it had developed a much earthier aspect and was not as enjoyable. My point is even within the same bottle the wine changes dramatically over the course of a few short hours

Great Video, time to try it with older wine!!

I totally agree with you and your ipothesis about the "time of the opening". I would be curious to try the same with ageworthy white wines! By the way, I tasted Guado al Tasso from the '97 vintage last Sunday...and was absolutely stunning. Still fresh, but sooo smooth! Thank you for your always precious videos!

Hi Konstantin! Very interesting video. I had some magnum and super magnum bottled wines (Portuguese wines from Douro and Alentejo regions), that were sold to me as being forcibly better than smaller sized bottles. I actually compared some of them and couldn't reach any conclusions. So, Big thanks to you for reassuring me😅. Maybe you're right and the more time passes the bigger the differences between bottle sizes but...

I like the notion of whipping out a nice magnum at a nice dinner with friends.

Fantastic subject matter. @2:26 was fantastic editing!!!

Great video, thank you for that. (hugs from brazil)

This was a fun video, I would prefer the magnum size but I can't find many wines I like in the bigger bottle. Thank Konstantin.

I pressed the like button before watching the video! Please make a lot of useful videos like this!!!

love and really appreciate your videos!! If you should ever feel like it I would be really glad about a Riesling tasting with different styles. I love wine but am far from knowing a lot about Riesling. But since there is such a huge variety in Riesling like Kabinett, Spätlese, ((Trocken)beeren)auslese (sometimes in addition with trocken), GG, Alte Rebe etc. I would love a video where you taste different styles and talk a little about it. I guess this huge variety and my lack of knowledge has always kinda kept me from trying more of it. Either way cheers for your work!!

A great video of an interesting subject.

Very interesting as usual! A suggestion for your next videos could be exploring emerging great producers i.e. rising stars from different regions that are not yet overprice (ex. Guiberteau, Envinate, etc, etc).

Guado al tasso is one of the better wines I‘ve tasted so far. Love it!

Thank you for this! I’ve always gone with consensus opinion that the large format bottles were “better” but I remained skeptical

I suppose there may be unseen variables, slight differences that occurred at the bottling stage.. But there's definitely something nice and celebratory about a huge bottle of wine. Cheers! 🍷⭐👍

Great video! I played this game by myself at mendo pinot fest last year producers party. Incredible wine, name forsakes me. I thought the magnum and 750 showed best, preferred the magnum. And ya , the half bottle and 2L were just different. Great video

As the video advanced I was just wondering what you were going to do with all that great wine!!! Thankfully you answered in the end😅😅

Love the content Konstantin! An idea, in this context or another. Maybe could you try to taste the wines first while seeing and identifying them (label and all). After, blind taste the same wines and "prove" that you can identify and remember the differences (maybve throw Leon in there to pull a trick on you as well). Don't know if it makes sense or too sounds simple for you, but I think peonple would be impressed by your (absolutely expected) success in the challenge. Cheers from Sweden! /Mikael

This was an interesting result because in your champagne comparison a while back you did find that bigger was better when running a similar size comparison.

ah, the eternal question 'does size matter'. As always, great video and I love how we get to follow the thought process and come along for the ride. ❤

I hope you had a family party afterwards in the evening :) great video!

Not sure if this would make a good segment or not. But I bought a case awhile back of 2011 La Madrid Single Vineyard Reserva Cabernet Sauvignon (Agrelo, Argentina). While I haven't done a blind tasting, I find that different bottles taste different to me. While all bottles are certainly drinkable, some seem to be to be well past their peak. Others are drinking quite nicely. It's hard to figure out, as they'll all stored under the same conditions in a wine locker that I rent from a wine store. It would be worth considering doing a segment to see if different bottles of the identical wine taste differently, although it could be boring if they do (mine don't).

Hey Konstantin, at least you identified the half and DM as having small/subtle differences on the palate! Good job, sir. BTW, I'm the type of guy who would help in this predicament: I's actually help you drink some of the wine you'd opened....I know, I know, I'm all heart :-)

Very interesting. And a bit myth debunking. One of the reasons I love wine is because of the “ it depends” law. It’s the only universal rule…. 😁 Also, having the bottles coming straight from perfect cellaring conditions directly from Antinori made the variables as limited as you could I’d suspect. Do you know if they are one of the producers that add inert gas prior to corking? In any case cool video.

Awesome episode idea! I agree, I would do this with at least a 20 year life. One of the best bottles I have ever had was a 1988 Pichon Lalande. Unbelievable juice. I’ve had many vintages of Lalande and the only one better was the legendary 1982

Great video. Nice wine to test your theory with too :) The Mike Tyson reference made me chuckle. I think what you ultimately proved was that a larger format is no better, it just ages slower. Your ‘more backward than the others’ reference was made when tasting the largest format bottle. High quality younger wines do tend to come across more backward so I think you called that one correctly 👍

"It depends..." my first, or the first part of the answer to pretty much every question about wine. :D

Further proof that you have a fantastic palate to pick up the minute differences

It depends on how many people are with us. For my wife and me, a standard bottle is perfect. Once we start entertaining others, the big bottles are fun.

Hi, Konstantin. You know, I heard many times from others that size of bottle works only for sparkling wines, because of CO2, bubbles and all that processes around. Bigger bottles of champagne mature better and more enjoyable. Think About that for next tasting. Thanks !

Very interesting. I wonder if individual bottle variation has as much or more influence than the size of the bottle. It would be interesting to see you try this with two of each (maybe 1/2, S, M) and see if the same size bottles taste like each other.

My wife doesn't drink wine as frequently as I do so I quite like the half bottles but there is just not enough variety to buy. Usually I have standard bottles and drink half on one day and the other half the following day although I feel like on the second day it will not be as good anymore as on the first - shame. My price range is usually between 20 and 30 CHF / EUR.

@holyfox94

Ай бұрын

Get a Coravin , or a new wife😉 Seriously. The Coravin is a great tool

I had a think it was a 2017 bottle of that same wine a few months ago and it was very nice. Mine was the 750ml size.

I have to buy full bottles due to price but rarely finish a bottle in an evening. I drink red and tend to pour amd let the wine breathe in the glass because i can keep a bottle in the fridge and it will easily last 2 days without going over a cliff. Heresy to some but it works for me.

Super interesting! Thank you very much for this. I always wanted to do the same but could not bring myself to opening 7 1/2 bottles for the sake of curiosity, aeh sorry for the sake of science… What does your finding mean to me? It still makes sense to have the same wine in different bottle sizes so you can cater to the occasion. Half bottle for the solo evening or if you just want to have a good glass for the dinner of two. Standard bottle for the standard case. Magnum and above for the large dinner round or the special party. And since drinking wine is always about having fun, I openly admit that opening and serving from a double magnum or even a larger bottle increases (at least for me) the overall fun quite a bit…😊

Wow...., Guado Al Tasso!

After watching you open all that wine, I wish I was your neighbor!

Dayum...after you're finished with it you can ferment more wine in that 3L one!! :)

I’d like to see your opinion on the longevity and flavor preservation of the Repour wine savers. I had a Malbec under one of these for 15 months during cOvid and the fruit was still present and the wine was sound.

So cool this video. Thanks. And please redo the test in 10 years 😅

It would have been interesting to know for how long have you left the bottles open before pouring them on the glasses. Do you think there would have been a different outcome if you left the wines breathing longer?

Interesting as always. Wondering why you didn’t stand all four bottles upright the day before? Seeing you twiddle the big bottles just before tasting made me think ‘ouch’!

@pleun315

10 ай бұрын

You proved a point ☝️who is the expert ?

Love this video. Does It make sense to consider that this is a very technical wine and so It makes sense that not so mane differences can be spotted?

Very interesting video, curious how different it was worth the champagne compared to this. Could you do a similar aged test between different closures? Screw v cork v vinolok etc. Not sure exactly who would have examples to use but I'm very interested to see how they compare. Answering your question - standards because they fit in my wine fridges

Let’s see some Tasmanian Chardonnay and how it compares to Bourgogne classics!

Please make a video about the effect of decanting a wine and the differences in time !

Really like half bottle for sparkling wine with normal wine I don't have problem leaving them for a day or two but with sparkling in my experience you loose to much CO2.

Even though the weather is dreadful in our parts of Europe, you should have a barbecue with these wines.

Great Video as always, but I have one question: what do you do with all that wine now? ^_^ LG aus Köln

I prefer wines in magnums.The wine develops better in larger bottle.If you drink a magnum in one week time,you see a big difference between opening the bottle and finishing it.I've enjoyed some magnums of old Bordeaux.

@barath4545

10 ай бұрын

Same, also Champagne, at least when more than 4 guests, it always get drunk and it's "festive" in a way :) One can get some otherwise sold out stuff in Magnum too, cause ppl only check for normal bottles too. Got a 1982 DBMG smaller chateau (Phelan Segur maybe? ... iirc) for 300 euro last year.

I guess it’s time for a large dinner party at Contantin’s fueled by Guado al Tasso!!😂

I once heard that some wineries would reserve their best barrels for the magnums, for magnum's "ageing advantage". Don't know if it's true though.

There is no replacement for displacement. 😊

Hi Konstantin. Have you tasted the very same wine (same vintage) aged, say, 20-30 years, from several bottles of the same volume? I mean, it is also interesting to discover if every unique bottle evolves in a different way.

Really interesting...do you think sparkling (especially champagne) there would be a greater impact? When working as a champagne salesman (alongside a spirits portfolio...go figure) we were taught that magnums were better value and aged better...what do you think?

Dear Konstantin, I have heard that the large bottles do not fit into the usual production machines and are therefore closed by hand. However, this means that there is always some air in the bottle. This means that the wine reacts more quickly over time and has a shorter shelf life. Is that true or does it only apply to some manufacturers?

Concerning the interest of half bottle for the winemaker, it's true that in term of "bottling work" (and we could almost also say in term of packaging) the work is the same. BUT you have half the wine inside (and therefore half the "winemaking" work). Given the fact that the price is more than half the price of a big bottle, I would say that the unit margin is a bit higher than for classic 75cl bottles (at least in % or €/L if not in €/pcs) makes it economically more interesting than the classic bottles. My guess is that there are less half bottles mostly because of lower demand...

In the book “Inventing Wine” by Paul Lukacs, he states that the standard size wine bottle was due to the American market modeling after a fifth of Spirits. Is this true? Who knows… Interesting tasting, I wonder if the difference would be more pronounced in a good white wine. I do think that Guado al Tasso is a good wine but for some reason, it hasn’t ever really moved me. Cheers!

Interesting! Based on the region and the blend would that wine be considered a Super Tuscan? Have you done any videos on Super Tuscans? Thanks!

I think 375ml and 750ml are pretty perfect sizes for 1-2 people to drink over a dinner or a night, so they are the ideal format for most people.

Standard is best as one thinks that buying the magnum will last a couple nights but nah….it disappears just as quick and I guess the double magnum would suffer the same fate. :)

Personally I prefer the standard and magnum sizes; haven’t done a blind tasting between them though, and this video makes me really think about it..! PS. I have a question/idea for a test: Bottles excellently preserved (i.e. in perfect cellar conditions), versus the same bottles but bought from a standard commercial channel (I.e. supermarket/wine store) where usually bottles are vertically stored and exposed to various elements during storing and/or transport. How big will the difference be?

Do you plan some day some video "behind the scenes"? :) I always envy the crew (Leon?) who finishes the bottles with you after the shooting :)

I have some 3000ml bottles that I can't seem to find the occasion to open. They aren't of the quality of Guado al Tasso, I'm sure, but I kind of worry I either leave them too long or not long enough. I gave an event on Saturday where the numbers would make sense, but I'd be the only wine guy, with the others just happy to drink anything.

Just curious, do you finish all the bottles from your videos? Do you share or drink on your own?

I am more than happy to assist with the wine! Where are we meeting?😂

Konstantin, here's a theory...the double mag has a wider cork, and therefore a wider aperture for oxygen exchange. While the std., half and Mag share the same cork, you could expect a difference, but the DMag could end up behaving like the half as there is more room for oxygen to get in? 🤷🏻‍♂️

Now I have to ask what you do with all the wine after you have opened it? Do you drink it all, give it away or do you just put back the cork and store it again for the future? :D

The standard size is the most economical and other sizes are more expensive per volume wise. However, the standard bottle is a bit too much to enjoy in one sitting for me, even over 6 hours. The taste of many inexpensive table wines don’t last over 4 hours, so it is always a dilemma for me to get a 1/2 or full size. The larger size is for rare occasion that an age worthy wine on special sale and it is more likely that it can stay good for 3-4 days after opening.

I love a magnum bottle but they don't fit in the wine fridge and what do you do with them without a cellar and in a pretty warm part of the world

Thanks for supporting the "average" size... 😀 Size doesn't always make it better.

@KonstantinBaumMasterofWine

10 ай бұрын

You bet!

Jeroboam is a nicer word for the double magnum, but is victim of the typical ambiguity that plagues wine history