What's the most expensive bottle you ever dropped?

[Really Nice!]

So you have your treasured masterpiece in your hands and your grip somehow slips. As it gets closer to the floor, you can't move your foot quick enough to soften the crash, all you can do is yell F#(!<!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Don't ask how, don't ask why, but this happened to me today. I can't even bring myself to say what bottle it was except to say that I'll never be able to afford to purchase it again, no matter what the vintage.

I'm so depressed.

[wattacetti]

1997 Penfolds Grange.

Didn't even get out of the wine shop with it; slipped out of my grasp as I attemped to transferred my purchase into the satchel. After having everyone around me turn crimson following my tirade, they offered me a discount on my next purchase as a consolation prize.

[Tess]

Condolences to both of you.

I've never dropped a bottle of wine, but one Valentine's day we were having a bottle of Dom. We were drinking it out of regular wine glasses for some reason. While I wasn't looking, my dog got her nose in my glass and polished the whole thing off-- 1/4 of the bottle. At least she didn't get into the chocolates; that would have meant a trip to the vet's. (We knew she was OK with alchohol because she'd stolen people's beers before.)

[winesonoma]

So you have your treasured masterpiece in your hands and your grip somehow slips. As it gets closer to the floor, you can't move your foot quick enough to soften the crash, all you can do is yell F#(!<!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Don't ask how, don't ask why, but this happened to me today. I can't even bring myself to say what bottle it was except to say that I'll never be able to afford to purchase it again, no matter what the vintage.

I'm so depressed.

←

You did lick the floor I hope.

[ozmouse]

i had friends from california visit me in melbourne australia. They lovingly carried a merlot all the way with them from home....

.... only to proceed to drop it on the front door steps!!

the nose was beautiful!

another time we packed 2 cases of wine with us when travelling from melbourne to vancouver. they survived 2 change of planes in sydney and hawaii...

... only for us to watch it come out at the vancouver airport special baggage chute and slide and hit precisely on the corner. one broken bottle of barossa shiraz!!!

it just slowly oozed out into a nice puddle, and we proceeded to leave a trail all the way to the parking lot!

sigh......

[rockdoggydog]

For a friend's 25th birthday I was in the process of pulling a bottle of 1978 Chateau Ste Michelle Reserve Cabernet and dropped it watched it bounce and then hit again and shatter. Not the most expensive wine around but pretty much irreplaceable, it was given to me by a client as partial payment for services rendered.

Rocky

P.S. for some perspective I'm 27 years old

[melonpan]

last year we went to visit my husbands fathers grave site.

we had brought along a bottle of soju and some cigarettes to offer (as he was fond of both). half way up the hill to the site i tripped and broke the bottle i was carrying. the soju spilled all over the dirt and the rocks of the path.

we paid our respects and lit a couple cigarettes for him.

it was not the most expensive bottle of spirits but it certainly was kind of sad to have made the long trip and drop that bottle just before reaching the site...

[Carlovski]

You know it's expensive when you purposely let it hit your shoeless foot to soften the blow - Bones heal right?

[jeffperez62]

A few years back on a trip to France (about 20 of us) we were unloading the bus, putting all of the luggage on the curb. The last piece of luggage was a Jeraboam of Chateau Soutard. Someone bumped the first piece of luggage, and they all started to fall....like a row of dominos......the last piece to fall, at the end of the line was the Soutard....it was by far the most expensive puddle I've ever seen, flowing through the parking lot and into the sewer. It was a very somber evening.

[wattacetti]

You know it's expensive when you purposely let it hit your shoeless foot to soften the blow - Bones heal right?

←

I have saved a couple of bottles that way; didn't break anything but I came up limping afterwards. A rescued Margaux or a broken foot: seems like a moot point since Canada is a land with socialized medicine.

[wkl]

1992 Rocca Albino Barbaresco.I pulled it out of the styrofoam pack it was in and the bottom of the bottle seperated from the rest of the bottle.Strangest thing I ever saw.

I contemplated sticking a straw where the wine had gathered.

[winegeek]

......the last piece to fall, at the end of the line was the Soutard....it was by far the most expensive puddle I've ever seen, flowing through the parking lot and into the sewer. It was a very somber evening.

←

As opposed to sober. Sorry.

I can't believe that I haven't ever droppeed a "jewel". I am a bit of a klutz. Having said that, I think I'll go wrap up my few rare bottles with bubble wrap .

[Busboy]

Two summers ago the family spent a week in Provence as the last half of a French vacation. By the time we caght the TGV back to Paris, we probably had eight bottles of Vacqueyras -- where we had stayed -- and Cote Ventoux, and four bottles of olive oil. None particularly expensive, but all souvenirs from ab extraordinary trip) Between packing, loading, hauling cases precariously balanced atop rolling suitcases from house to cab to train to cab to.... we started losing them bit by bit. It was like Napoleon's retreat from Moscow. A bottle or two in Avignon. A bottle or two at Gare du Lyon. A bottle loading up in Paris. And the final blow: when the cabbie opened the hatchback as he dropped us in the alley behind our house, the case containing many of our remaining bottles tumbled out, smashing one last bottle of Vacqueyras and the roll of film I got up a dawn to shoot at Mt. St. Michel.

I think we lost half the oil and two-thirds of the wine before we got home.

[DaleJ]

In the winter of 1957 two friends and I were in Union Station, Chicago, to board the train for California. One of my pals had a bottle of Johnny Walker Black under his trench coat. As he reached for his ticket the belt slipped.

[GordonCooks]

I've never dropped one myself (knock on wood) but suffered a personal wine disaster. A couple of summers ago, a wine buddy was coming over with his new girlfriend of 3 weeks for some dinner. I had some beautiful Rib-eyes to accompany a 86 Mission Haut Brion, a citrus salad with Laurent Perrier and some oysters with a Sancerre. Well......I had opened the Mission beforehand and left it on the table to breathe. The guests arrived and we moved ot the kitchen to chat. I was cooking, we sipped champagne, etc.. As I prepared the bernaise - I heard the sloshing of the bottle in the other room. I figured my friend was decanting the 86 for me - upon turning around and seeing him in front of me, I harked my girl's name - she was in the garden getting tarragon. In walks the new girl with empty bottle in hand - she had seen the citrus segments in a large bowl on the table and decided to help out my making the sangria.............

[andiesenji]

Several years ago I had come into a couple of bottles of Chateau d' Yquem, '81, given me by a friend who was clearing out his cellar before moving into a hospice.

Some time later, a couple who have been friends for years, were celebrating their 20th anniversary and were having a party.

I presented them with the bottle which was placed with some other gifts on a side table.

Some time later I noticed the bottle was no longer on the table and mentioned it to the host.

He walked into the kitchen to find that one of the catering help had apparently picked up, then chilled the bottle and poured it into some of the champagne flutes setting on trays.

They at least got a taste as it was obviously a still wine but they had planned on saving it for a more private time.

The caterer nearly fainted when she learned how much the bottle was worth.

[Dave the Cook]

It certainly doesn't qualify on a per-bottle basis, but I once broke every bottle in eight cases of one-gallon jugs of California Cellars. Thirty-two gallons, nearly every drop of which disappeared down an elevator shaft.

[andiesenji]

It certainly doesn't qualify on a per-bottle basis, but I once broke every bottle in eight cases of one-gallon jugs of California Cellars. Thirty-two gallons, nearly every drop of which disappeared down an elevator shaft.

←

How?

[andiesenji]

Someone, who shouldn't be hanging over my shoulder reading this, just reminded me of last March, the day after my birthday, when I set a bottle of San Giacomo Gold Label balsamic vinegar, 25 years + on the kitchen counter, not noticing that a chopstick was laying on the counter (nearly the same color, blending in) and it tipped over fell forward off the counter, turning over in mid air so it landed square on the bottom, sat there for a moment then with a little "pop" cracked all the way around the bottom and the vinegar oozed out onto the floor.

It was a gift and rather than confess to the person who had gifted me with it, I immediately bought a replacement bottle (around $200.00).

I did feel rather foolish for some time, particularly since it was witnessed by a big mouth!

(She isn't going to leave till I post this so here goes.)

Edited January 21, 2005 by andiesenji (log)

[peppyre]

My Dad has a pretty impressive cellar and he's been collecting his wines for the last 20 years. In the early 90's he started collecting A LOT of Leonetti. At one point about 5 years ago, he had enough to easily sell off a couple of cases. Any how, a few years ago I walked into the wine cellar, noticed the stain, noticed the hole on the rack, noticed the broken glass and asked him what had happened. He lost his grip on some wines that he was moving around and dropped them onto the 89 Leonetti's!! I think it was a few thousand dollars that ended up smashed on the floor of the cellar.

[Coop]

3 bottles of Castelgiocond or Banfi Brunello 1999 (can't remember which) directly onto the concrete floor of my cellar. Unbelievably they did not break. Why? I have no answer. Raised my heartbeat to a dangerous level.

[winesonoma]

We once had the hose come off our 400 gal blending tank while bottling a few years back. Lost about a case before I got to the valve. Not enough wine away in the whole world to clean me up. Hose clamps are now on everything.

[andiesenji]

We once had the hose come off our 400 gal blending tank while bottling a few years back. Lost about a case before I got to the valve. Not enough wine away in the whole world to clean me up. Hose clamps are now on everything.

←

About 25-30 years ago, I was with friends in Napa who were doing a winery trek.

We took a tour of one place and one of the execs or maybe an owner (a suit) decided to show the group how the barrels were moved from one spot to another and rather than have a worker do the demonstration he proceeded to get onto a forklift and punch a hole in one of those huge wood upright fermenting tanks.

We ran for it as the thing emptied itself onto the floor and out onto the paving outside the building, down some steps and into the parking lot where it pooled.

They had workers put pallets down so we could get to our cars without wading in all that red stuff.

The fumes were so strong we could still smell it when when got out to the main road.

I almost forgot. They had a couple of Newfoundland dogs, who were happily lapping up the stuff in the yard as we were leaving. I wondered how they felt the next day.

Edited January 21, 2005 by andiesenji (log)

[Dave the Cook]

It certainly doesn't qualify on a per-bottle basis, but I once broke every bottle in eight cases of one-gallon jugs of California Cellars. Thirty-two gallons, nearly every drop of which disappeared down an elevator shaft.

←

How?

←

It was my very first real job: receiving clerk at the Sonesta Atlanta. The hotel wasn't open yet; we were laying in the opening stock for the bar. The liquor stores were in the basement, and the bar was on the first floor. It was a long, tedious trip going through two doors, past the steamy, hellish laundry room and boiler, up an elevator, through another door, then across a huge stretch of textured carpet in the lobby. Consquently, I wanted to make as few trips as possible, so I loaded up the float (a flat rolling platform about 3 x 6 feet with a wide, tall handle at one end) with two layers of four cases each of the house burgundy.

I made it past the maids' linen storage (staffed by a hellion as big as the float), the steam room and the mangle, onto the staff elevator, and hit the button for 1. When I arrived at the first floor, I pushed the float hard to get it past the gap between the elevator and the hallway floor. Unfortunately, the elevator hadn't been properly adjusted yet, and the front wheels caught. What followed as one of those events characterized by a phenomenon that seems to be pretty common on this thread: my Tower O' Wine tumbled over with excruciating but relentless indolence, heedless of my cries or attempts to stop it. The two stacks parted like the Red Sea, and then made one.

[jsolomon]

You know it's expensive when you purposely let it hit your shoeless foot to soften the blow - Bones heal right?

←

And according to Bart Simpson, chicks dig scars.

So... what do roosters like?

However, I've caught many a beer bottle, wine bottle, and liquor bottle that way. The absinthe bottle hurt the worst.