Wine vintage rating 1961

What was the vintage 1961 like?

1961 was one of the most perfect vintages ever. The reason for the reduction in yield and thus the high concentration in the vines was heavy rainfall during flowering. After that it stayed dry and warm. Thick-skinned, very well-ripened grapes were harvested in September.

Hard to find and unsurpassed in 1961: Chateau Latour (which only reached drinking maturity after 40-50 years) and Chateau Petrus. And a second-tier winery created a legend with the 1961 vintage: Chateau Palmer. The Barolo and Barbaresco by Giacomo Conterno and Angelo Gaja are also very large.

Weather in the year 1961

The year began with a mild winter. The spring was exceptionally dry and warm. Occasional heavy rain. In May there was another frost in the north.

The first half of July 1961 brought intense heat. Violent, hot storm winds appeared. Then came a few heavy rains. August and September became very dry and hot. In Bordeaux, temperatures of almost 40°C were reached on individual days. The result was forest fires.

The 1961 harvest began in mid-September.

The current stock of wines from the 1961 vintage

All wines from the 1961 vintage are in our own wine cellar and can be shipped immediately or picked up at the wine shop. To the wines of 1961

Good filling levels, good wine quality

The fill level of an old vintage wine reveals important information on the drinkability of the wine.
Of course, the good condition of a wine from an old vintage depends on excellent storage. Above all, the wine must not have frequently changed cellars. Ideally, the wine will have rested in one and the same wine cellar.

But also the cork that sits in each individual bottle is very important. A perfect cork has few pores and keeps the wine stable. If an inferior cork happens to have been used in a bottle, the porous surface will begin to soak up wine and allow micro-quantities of the liquid to evaporate over the decades. Poor fill levels are the result.

A poor fill level therefore also indicates a high risk that the wine bottle could soon begin to leak.

The fill levels explained:
In the bottle neck (high fill to base neck) about 2 cm is perfect for wines.
Top and upper shoulder, ([very] top shoulder), approx. 3 cm is very good for very old wines.
Medium shoulder (mid shoulder), about 4 cm is only acceptable for rare top wines and in individual cases.
Everything below the red line should not be offered any more.

Wine rating

Do you have a 1961 vintage in your wine cellar and would you like to know how much it is worth?

Here are a few tips: in order to still have any value, the bottle must be leakproof. The wine must not be cloudy. It should be of good quality (not supermarket wine).

Search for the wine online without specifying the vintage. If it is a well-known winery, you will find the wine immediately and also the price you have to pay for the current vintage. If the current wine costs from EUR 20.00 upwards, that's a good sign.

The filling level is decisive for the value. Upper shoulder to base neck is required. Medium shoulder is only acceptable for extremely rare, already valuable wines.

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