The World of Rare Wine: Chateau Lafitte and Chateau dYquem {Luxist}

Feb 22nd 2008 12:58PM All of your old bottles may for sure be worth something, but more than likely they are not drinkable. In order for a wine to survive and improve over time, it must first be a wine capable of aging---probably less than 1% of wine produced is capable of making it past ten years. Further, the wine must be kept in cellar conditions (54* fahrenheit and 75% humidity) to have a chance of being drinkable. For the people asking about their older bottles, ask yourselves whether the bottles have been properly cared for. If not, you have a collector's piece to show your friends, but it's doubtful if you have a quaffable beverage worth the kind of cash this article is speaking of.

P.S. The New Yorker article link posted by Paul is an excellent read. I have no doubt that the Jefferson bottles are a fake and that the man who procured and sold them is a fraud--supposedly they're making a movie about it