Wine tip. If you've had an expensive bottle of wine, keep it. When you have guests to dinner fill it up with wine from a carton and place it on the table.
For over 25 years I've bought wine futures, or as they are known 'en primeur' purchases of wine. I used to buy a few Bordeaux chateau and a bit later I started buying some Burgundy. What happens is that in the year following the vintage, when the wine is still in the barrel, you buy a case of the wine (or a share of a case with a friend or two), pay for the wine, and then 18 months later pay for the shipping, duty and VAT on what you bought. Some say it's for mugs, some say you can always buy it later for nearly the same but spreading the expense over a longer period always appealed to me and I've rarely been disappointed. Just late last year I drank a bottle of 1988 Chateau Leoville Barton that cost me about £10 to buy and was absolutely superb. Lately I've been spreading my 'bets' a bit farther afield and been purchasing some Rhone, especially Northern Rhone reds. These are usually 100% Syrah (that's Shiraz to most non-Frenchman) and have bought every vintage since 2009. I love the wines and the Rhone is on a roll. When I first got out here and saw the wine prices (and there's no duty in HK) I thought seriously about giving wine a pass, but found I could import from in-bond warehouses (so no duty or VAT anywhere) wine from the UK. I bought a case of Tardieu et Laurent St. Joseph (which is a 100% Syrah) from the 2005 vintage. After about 6 months I drank a bottle and it was OK. Then I drank them fairly regularly until I had only 1 left, which after a year on its own I consumed in November. The last bottle was again superb. I had committed infanticide on the others (as nice as they tasted) and that made me realise you have to wait 7+ years for these babies. With my latest purchases my concern becomes that I get to drink them!! At the other end of the scale I look for value in everyday drinking. I've recommended on here the KWV Shiraz (2009/10 with the black label), and it's good. On the cheaper white label level they have a Chenin Blanc which in the 20012 vintage was surprisingly good, and far better than a lot of more touted wines. The 2013 is now out and has won some gold medal. It takes good but not as good as the 2012 yet (Chenin settles down after a year or two in the bottle as it can be edgy). As a change from SB I'd recommend it.
