Shortly after each of us begins to drink wine many of us start to think about collecting wine. We find bottlings we are enamored with and think how nice it would be to have some around. Whether it be for a special occasion, or just a special mood, it occurs to us that rather than trying to track down that special bottle or something similar, it would be great just to snatch one from the rack and “pop the cork.”

Also true for most wine consumers is that palates change, tastes evolve over a number of bottles consumed. Some of us trend towards fuller bodied wines with extracted flavors, while others crave lighter lower alcohol versions, and then sure enough we head back the other way yet again. The real challenge for all of us who want to have wine around is how to reconcile these two wants. How to have wine around we have liked in the past and know we will like again, and have a collection that can accommodate our changing tastes.

In an email exchange with a wine club member last week, I learned that indeed his tastes were changing. Despite a long held affinity for big and oaky Northwest produced wines he was starting to embrace more old world style wines with lower alcohol and less oak influence. He even said “Every time we go out to dinner now we order only French wine.” In his wine cellar though were hundreds of bottles of his Northwest favorites, he sounded a bit sad for having many bottles of a style that appealed to him less.

We have all gone through this, even though our own collection is smaller now when we look at the bottles there are concentrations of things we might not buy today. Here are some pointers for every wine consumer to build a collection that accommodates today’s likes and tomorrow’s favorites. First get a sense of how much wine you consume. We can all quickly figure out how much wine we drink in a week, then a month and then annualize those figures to yearly consumption.

Anticipate and embrace that your tastes will change, in any number of directions. So it is best to aim for turning your collection over every two years at the max. You may still get caught with some bottles that are no longer your “go tos,” but this should keep it manageable.

We all have our very favorite producers, of which we may want to have verticals (multiple subsequent vintages of the same wine) of those they produce. Stop there. Rather than branching out to more wineries from the same area with a similar style, and purchasing many similar things, save your capital and cellar space for some more diverse names.

Add in some multiple bottles of things that you really like but are stylistically different. For this segment I suggest focusing on newer finds, wine that you might not normally expect to like based on your past preferences, but when you tasted them you said “wow that is a surprise.” A bit of a research note here, try new things. When you are out to dinner at a restaurant or at a dinner party request something you would not normally ask for. Resist the impulse to get the Chardonnay or Cabernet and ask for a Muscadet or Pinot Noir, whatever grape but make it something you do not normally get. It is a small commitment and a great way to find your next favorite.

Embrace all color of wine even if it is only to have a couple bottles around. This is vital to us and something we really emphasize in our wine club. We really try to keep folks from getting all white or all red club packs. The idea of our club is to introduce folks to new wines and educate on all the choices out there, but color is perhaps the most important part of that. You will be surprised at how often you might crave a light white or dry rosé by having a couple of bottles around it gives you the chance to satisfy that craving. It also gives you the chance to have the right wine on hand for guests.

Finally also in the “have a few bottles around” category, if your current tastes are mostly for domestic purchase some old world wines to add to your “cellar,” and conversely if your tastes tend toward the old world have some new world selections too. Again this will accommodate guests when entertaining but will also give you the chance to experiment with things and gradually adjust the focus of your collection as your tastes evolve.

Changing tastes are part of the wine journey, a bit of forethought on our purchases will prevent the wakeup call one day of having too much wine that no longer thrills us.

If there is a topic you would like to read about or if you have questions on wine, you can email George@thedinnerpartyshop.com, or make suggestions by contacting the Healthy Community section at the Coeur d’Alene Press.

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George Balling is co-owner (with his wife Mary Lancaster) of the dinner party, a wine and table top décor shop located by Costco in Coeur d’Alene. George worked as a judge in many wine competitions, and his articles are published around the country. You can learn more about the dinner party at www.thedinnerpartyshop.com. Be sure and check out our weekly blog at www.thedinnerpartyshop.com/home/blog-2 You can get all of these articles as well as other great wine tips by friending us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/#!/dinnerpartyshop.