PoSt away folks!!!

Courtesy of CJ:

cjsiege wrote:List of previous WW gatherings by area. Great reading and great examples of how to set up a Get-Together Thread.
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Upcoming Woot Wine Gatherings…All The News for the week of February 4th.

Have you acted on that New Year's Resolution to open that wine you've saved for a special occasion???

February 2013
2/9: NorCal #?: Vintage Pinot
2/22: 2013 Dark & Delicious (Alameda, CA)
2/23 - 2/25: 2013 D&D Napa/Sonoma Weekend
2/23: NoVA/DC #28: Sweet and Sour

March
3/16: NYC #?: Cupcakes
3/22: Minnesota #20: Visitors from Afar
3/23: SoCal #24: Aged Zins
TBD: Colorado/Wyoming #?

Pending
TBD: NYC Tasting #21: A Tribute (interest thread)
TBD: NorCal: Volcanic Terroir and/or Eastern European Finds
TBD: NorCal: Wheelbarrow o' Wine
TBD: Dallas #11
TBD: Arizona Verde Valley Winery Weekend

Looking for some helping hands:

• Atlanta Area Interest Thread
  
• SeaTac & Western Washington Interest Thread.
  
• South Florida Interest Thread
  
• NorthEast Florida Interest Thread
  
• Missouri Interest Thread
  
• Central NC Interest Thread
  
• Albuquerque Interest Thread
  
• Lake County/Chicago Interest Thread

No events in your area??? Start one! Create an interest thread in the World of Wine Woot Community Tab.

So join or create a WW Gathering!

trifecta wrote:Whew... Just finished up an inventory overhaul. I knew something was seriously out of whack with my bottle count. A couple years back I was not judicious at all about tracking things.

After completing I found ~40 bottles that were not entered and about 130 bottles that were never removed.

From now on I need to be way better about tracking because that was a pain in the neck (and back). Never again do I want to have to take each bottle out of the cabinets/fridges, write down the name, and update location in CT.

polarbear22 wrote:Good luck. I think I have said I'll keep it up to date about three times already. And I am due to complete an inventory again soon. CT is way out of date.

Although not exactly way out of date, I/we are going to have to go through the same thing sometime in the near future. With all of Cat's wine coming to me, and the fridges already basically full, we'll want to do a complete overhaul.
First of all my two smaller fridges will be getting transferred to my parents basement, so those ones will need all the bottles taken out of them and most of them re-assigned. Since I think the best use for them now will be for the higher end bottles we will want to age for a long time.
And then just trying to organize "locations" for all the rest is going to be interesting, to say the least.

HitAnyKey42 wrote:Although not exactly way out of date, I/we are going to have to go through the same thing sometime in the near future. With all of Cat's wine coming to me, and the fridges already basically full, we'll want to do a complete overhaul.
First of all my two smaller fridges will be getting transferred to my parents basement, so those ones will need all the bottles taken out of them and most of them re-assigned. Since I think the best use for them now will be for the higher end bottles we will want to age for a long time.
And then just trying to organize "locations" for all the rest is going to be interesting, to say the least.

Just a tip on location that I ended up using. Instead of assigning my Vinotheque specific locations for each row/column, I broke it up into sections. Each column had a letter (A through H) and I broke it up into 4 sections vertically. This made assigning the bins in CT much easier (only 32 bins instead of 288), and if I have to do a little tetris later I can keep it to that section and nothing changes.

When I am looking for a specific bottle I have it narrowed down enough it should be quick.

trifecta wrote:Just a tip on location that I ended up using. Instead of assigning my Vinotheque specific locations for each row/column, I broke it up into sections. Each column had a letter (A through H) and I broke it up into 4 sections vertically. This made assigning the bins in CT much easier (only 32 bins instead of 288), and if I have to do a little tetris later I can keep it to that section and nothing changes.

When I am looking for a specific bottle I have it narrowed down enough it should be quick.

Nice. If I find I need to reorg my cabinet again that's what I'm going to do.

trifecta wrote:Just a tip on location that I ended up using. Instead of assigning my Vinotheque specific locations for each row/column, I broke it up into sections. Each column had a letter (A through H) and I broke it up into 4 sections vertically. This made assigning the bins in CT much easier (only 32 bins instead of 288), and if I have to do a little tetris later I can keep it to that section and nothing changes.

When I am looking for a specific bottle I have it narrowed down enough it should be quick.

That might be a good idea, yeah. I just have to try to really convince myself to do it. I'm a bit obsessive about my ultra specific labeling of bottle locations.
Though I can certainly see how it would make things easier in some ways too, and if I at least somewhat group the "sections" by varietal and drinking window....when we want to drink a certain varietal, we can just drink whichever one we grab from said section. Definitely something to think about.

trifecta wrote:Just a tip on location that I ended up using. Instead of assigning my Vinotheque specific locations for each row/column, I broke it up into sections. Each column had a letter (A through H) and I broke it up into 4 sections vertically. This made assigning the bins in CT much easier (only 32 bins instead of 288), and if I have to do a little tetris later I can keep it to that section and nothing changes.

When I am looking for a specific bottle I have it narrowed down enough it should be quick.

Very similar to what I've done with the large cooler. Twelve columns, A~M, 17 rows, 1~17 duh, and F/B for Front/Back. So a location looks like C15F, H2B; bottle bingo of sorts with absolutely no ambiguity.

The 170 bottle Danby and small Vinotemp just get drawer numbers assigned.

For the above, I long ago gave up on sorting by drinking window, type, etc. Way easier to just look it up and grab the bottle.

Off-site is a bit more a problem, as the various lockers are 3~4 x 3~4 x 3~4 cubes. So I use locker and case numbers. and just keep a drawing where the various cases are located. Need suggestions on better solutions, 'cause this one isn't working out all that well.

My, you people certainly are OCD-like. As for my 334 bottles (counted them yesterday) and some Orange Crusher on the way, I am sticking to the old tried and true "I think that one's over here somewhere" approach. Cellar Tracking to me is knowing where the cellar is.

coynedj wrote:My, you people certainly are OCD-like. As for my 334 bottles (counted them yesterday) and some Orange Crusher on the way, I am sticking to the old tried and true "I think that one's over here somewhere" approach. Cellar Tracking to me is knowing where the cellar is.

+ infinity

rjquillin wrote:Very similar to what I've done with the large cooler. Twelve columns, A~M, 17 rows, 1~17 duh, and F/B for Front/Back. So a location looks like C15F, H2B; bottle bingo of sorts with absolutely no ambiguity.

This is actually what I do right now, though I use all numbers (and actually don't record if it's front/back. So, for example, I have Vinotheque 2-6, which lists the two bottles in row 2/column 6.
Switching to trifecta's method I would have a more general grouping. Such as there being 10 bottles listed in section C1, with those being all the bottles in the third column from the bottom up to the first horizontal crossbeam. Then the next 10 in that column would be C2. The next 8 being C3, the next 8 after that being C4, and finally the next 8 after that being C5. (though that's just the ideal, since many of my slots don't hold two bottles depending on size/shape/orientation)
And then I'd have the letters A-J. So, in total the fridge would have 51 sections (one of those sections, being the larger open bottom section).
The more I think about it, the more I'm starting to like that method. Even if it's not as easy to find a specific bottle when I'm looking for it, but it's certainly easier for actually putting bottles in and recording them.

I just keep my drinking and hoarding in balance, so I keep a smaller amount on hand and no need to do extensive locating.

HitAnyKey42 wrote:
The more I think about it, the more I'm starting to like that method. Even if it's not as easy to find a specific bottle when I'm looking for it, but it's certainly easier for actually putting bottles in and recording them.

This is precisely why I did it this way. It also allows me to shuffle a bit within that section without completely messing up my tracking. This helps a lot when trying to re-org to fit those longer bottles with shorter ones.

The other way it saves time is on multiples of the same bottles. You can bulk edit those 6 corison's and put a single bin on them. Makes CT updates a lot quicker.

By the way, I am a bit jealous of that cabinet....

coynedj wrote:My, you people certainly are OCD-like. As for my 334 bottles (counted them yesterday) and some Orange Crusher on the way, I am sticking to the old tried and true "I think that one's over here somewhere" approach. Cellar Tracking to me is knowing where the cellar is.

It is a bit OCD. It is frustrating for me though when I can't find that one I'm looking for and end up playing tetris for 20 minutes. Also if you don't have a single cabinet, you may be looking in vain. I have a Vinotheque, Eurocave, and two different small fridges.

trifecta wrote:It is a bit OCD. It is frustrating for me though when I can't find that one I'm looking for and end up playing tetris for 20 minutes. Also if you don't have a single cabinet, you may be looking in vain. I have a Vinotheque, Eurocave, and two different small fridges.

Yes, and add to that off site storage and you get the idea.
It's just that case tetris that is really out of control.

I want THIS and I already have the cooling unit for it.

cortot20 wrote:I just keep my drinking and hoarding in balance, so I keep a smaller amount on hand and no need to do extensive locating.

that is pretty much my approach....until hubby figures out I have almost a case of wine in my closet... and who knows how much I will buy for the D&D weekend......

rjquillin wrote:Very similar to what I've done with the large cooler. Twelve columns, A~M, 17 rows, 1~17 duh, and F/B for Front/Back. So a location looks like C15F, H2B; bottle bingo of sorts with absolutely no ambiguity.

My large cabinet is row-column with no front/back (1-8, 0-17, where 0 is beside the cooling unit). My smaller wine fridge is just by shelf number, counting form the top. My locker is supposed to be 3 cases wide x 2 tall x 2 deep, so wines are labeled by case left/middle/right, top/bottom, front/back. Easy enough since the locker is for long term storage anyway.

CT makes all this gloriously easy. Relocating bottles is also super easy with the new interface. If you leave things on "individual bottle" display then you just use the checkboxes and things are context-aware enough to give you the options as you go.

HitAnyKey42 wrote:That might be a good idea, yeah. I just have to try to really convince myself to do it. I'm a bit obsessive about my ultra specific labeling of bottle locations.
Though I can certainly see how it would make things easier in some ways too, and if I at least somewhat group the "sections" by varietal and drinking window....when we want to drink a certain varietal, we can just drink whichever one we grab from said section. Definitely something to think about.

A bit? Also, grouping by varietal/drinking window is a bad idea unless we purchase very specifically to replace bottles.

HitAnyKey42 wrote:This is actually what I do right now, though I use all numbers (and actually don't record if it's front/back. So, for example, I have Vinotheque 2-6, which lists the two bottles in row 2/column 6.
Switching to trifecta's method I would have a more general grouping. Such as there being 10 bottles listed in section C1, with those being all the bottles in the third column from the bottom up to the first horizontal crossbeam. Then the next 10 in that column would be C2. The next 8 being C3, the next 8 after that being C4, and finally the next 8 after that being C5. (though that's just the ideal, since many of my slots don't hold two bottles depending on size/shape/orientation)
And then I'd have the letters A-J. So, in total the fridge would have 51 sections (one of those sections, being the larger open bottom section).
The more I think about it, the more I'm starting to like that method. Even if it's not as easy to find a specific bottle when I'm looking for it, but it's certainly easier for actually putting bottles in and recording them

No. Just, no. Not unless you start color coding your crossbars or something. It's weird enough you make me count from the bottom up instead of top down. Why do you do that?

cheron98 wrote:It's weird enough you make me count from the bottom up instead of top down. Why do you do that?

I bet you he starts counting at 1 also...

mother wrote:I bet you he starts counting at 1 also...

little endian or big endian?

cheron98 wrote:No. Just, no. Not unless you start color coding your crossbars or something. It's weird enough you make me count from the bottom up instead of top down. Why do you do that?

Clearly because zero is the lowest energy state and should be closest to ground. How could you build up and add rows if zero was up in the air and positive was lower? Negative rows on top? That would just be wrong.

rjquillin wrote:Clearly because zero is the lowest energy state and should be closest to ground. How could you build up and add rows if zero was up in the air and positive was lower? Negative rows on top? That would just be wrong.

Groan.
Anyway, she's a programmer. (0,0) is the upper left. QED

rjquillin wrote:Very similar to what I've done with the large cooler. Twelve columns, A~M, 17 rows, 1~17 duh, and F/B for Front/Back. So a location looks like C15F, H2B; bottle bingo of sorts with absolutely no ambiguity.

This is exactly how mine is organized! I also keep a notepad on my cabinet to write down what I remove and replace, so I don't have to enter it into CT at that moment. Like they say, "A short pencil is better than a long memory."

IMHO, I think it's worthwhile to take the extra time to be specific with the location tracking. When you're short on time and digging for a bottle, you're going to wish you had organized better.

mommadeb1 wrote:that is pretty much my approach....until hubby figures out I have almost a case of wine in my closet... and who knows how much I will buy for the D&D weekend......

I was cleaning my room and had 7 bottles lying around. On the other hand I'm a well rounded person, sparkling, 3 whites, 2 reds, and a port

I have a bunch of boxes and sometimes find out, hey look at that, I've got an entire case of Toothy left. You people and your staid cellars. Where is your sense of adventure???

bhodilee wrote:I have a bunch of boxes and sometimes find out, hey look at that, I've got an entire case of Toothy left. You people and your staid cellars. Where is your sense of adventure???

Your organization system sounds like mine.

ajrod27 wrote:IMHO, I think it's worthwhile to take the extra time to be specific with the location tracking. When you're short on time and digging for a bottle, you're going to wish you had organized better.

I can understand how identifying each row and column is helpful, but the F/B doesn't make much sense to me. Lets say you have a bottle in the back position of C6:

Case1 - CT tells you its in C6back
You remove the front bottle from C6 (this is not your bottle) and then remove the back bottle (this is your bottle.

Case2 - CT tells you its in C6
You remove the front bottle from C6 (this is not your bottle) and then remove the back bottle (this is your bottle.

Seems like extra work for no gain.

trifecta wrote:I can understand how identifying each row and column is helpful, but the F/B doesn't make much sense to me. Lets say you have a bottle in the back position of C6:

Case1 - CT tells you its in C6back
You remove the front bottle from C6 (this is not your bottle) and then remove the back bottle (this is your bottle.

Case2 - CT tells you its in C6
You remove the front bottle from C6 (this is not your bottle) and then remove the back bottle (this is your bottle.

Seems like extra work for no gain.

BINGO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

mother wrote:I bet you he starts counting at 1 also...

Nope, the big bottom bin is Bin 0. And that's why I started from the bottom to the top. So that the big open section could be Bin 0.

maybe I don't have so much trouble due to the inherently inefficient nature of my storage...

It's primarily visual. Also loosely sorted by varietal (right to left) and drinking window (top to bottom).

tenuki wrote:I was cleaning my room and had 7 bottles lying around. On the other hand I'm a well rounded person, sparkling, 3 whites, 2 reds, and a port

at least they weren't all open, were they? Didn't we hear from someone who had random open bottles in their bedroom that they found?

joelsisk wrote:at least they weren't all open, were they? Didn't we hear from someone who had random open bottles in their bedroom that they found?

Wasn't that Tommy (TtC)? Cause I seem to remember Cat had the Magic Wine Fridge, and Tommy had the um, err, Magic Wine Bedroom?

inkycatz wrote:Your organization system sounds like mine.

And mine. Which really only works on less than 100 bottles. Because then you aren't playing tetris to find the one bottle you want to bring to a WW tasting!

trifecta wrote:I can understand how identifying each row and column is helpful, but the F/B doesn't make much sense to me. Lets say you have a bottle in the back position of C6:

Case1 - CT tells you its in C6back
You remove the front bottle from C6 (this is not your bottle) and then remove the back bottle (this is your bottle.

Case2 - CT tells you its in C6
You remove the front bottle from C6 (this is not your bottle) and then remove the back bottle (this is your bottle.

Seems like extra work for no gain.

+1

I'm still waiting for a fight to the death to convince somebody that theirs is the ultimate in storage awesomeness.

HitAnyKey42 wrote:This is actually what I do right now, though I use all numbers (and actually don't record if it's front/back. So, for example, I have Vinotheque 2-6, which lists the two bottles in row 2/column 6.
Switching to trifecta's method I would have a more general grouping. Such as there being 10 bottles listed in section C1, with those being all the bottles in the third column from the bottom up to the first horizontal crossbeam. Then the next 10 in that column would be C2. The next 8 being C3, the next 8 after that being C4, and finally the next 8 after that being C5. (though that's just the ideal, since many of my slots don't hold two bottles depending on size/shape/orientation)
And then I'd have the letters A-J. So, in total the fridge would have 51 sections (one of those sections, being the larger open bottom section).
The more I think about it, the more I'm starting to like that method. Even if it's not as easy to find a specific bottle when I'm looking for it, but it's certainly easier for actually putting bottles in and recording them.

nice!! one day.. I will be the owner of super nice wine storage as yours!!

tenuki wrote:I was cleaning my room and had 7 bottles lying around. On the other hand I'm a well rounded person, sparkling, 3 whites, 2 reds, and a port

Nice....something for any occasion that comes up!!

joelsisk wrote:maybe I don't have so much trouble due to the inherently inefficient nature of my storage...

It's primarily visual. Also loosely sorted by varietal (right to left) and drinking window (top to bottom).

I like the visual with the wall .... unfortunately that wouldn't work here in florida!! esp. since I don't run my air that much!!

klezman wrote:+1

I'm still waiting for a fight to the death to convince somebody that theirs is the ultimate in storage awesomeness.

I've got time AND popcorn.

Scary: UPS arrived with a shipment for ddeuddeg. Since I have the flu, I didn't want to touch her pen & tracker thingie. I spoke to her thru the window & asked her to sign because I have the flu and then, just leave the pkg. She complied and wished me well. I checked on the tracking info and she signed MY name instead of ddeuddeg's! I guess we've all in the system! Crazy!

klezman wrote:+1

I'm still waiting for a fight to the death to convince somebody that theirs is the ultimate in storage awesomeness.

Haha... Just trying to pass on what worked well for me (only partial OCD) in case it might help others who have a similar daunting task.

At least the pub post count is up for once