Welcome back! We’re sure you’ve been wondering about the other kinds of label imperfections that can be encountered while navigating the wine auction catalog. Though if you haven’t read part 1, you may want to start there. Otherwise, lets dive into the other, more telling, kinds of label imperfections one may encounter.
More Telling Label Imperfections
There are certain label notes that could be clues to the conditions in which a bottle has been stored. Zachys always vets the storage conditions of every consignment that goes to auction, of course, and immediately rejects wines coming from clearly inappropriate conditions before assessment even becomes necessary.
We will, however, admit wines from cellars that may not be sparkling clean if the temperature and humidity conditions are acceptable. This is when you may see notes indicating bin soiled, damp stained, or wine stained labels. These and all label notes will be cataloged at levels of severity from light to heavy.
Bin soiling is fairly common note and encompasses a number of possible label imperfections. These could include dirt, dust, or stains from non-wine elements. A light bin soil would indicate a less-than-perfect label that is still in good shape, whereas a heavy bin soil would indicate a very dirty, not-for-display label.
A wine stained label is one of the more important label notes to consider. It might have come from an unrelated bottle breaking in the cellar and leaking onto other bottles. Or it’s possible the wine stain is a result of old seepage directly from the cork of the bottle in question. Always look out for additional assessment notes when you see a wine stained label, specifically “signs of old seepage.” Depending on the age of the bottle, these combined notes could be concerning as to the condition of the wine inside.
A damp stained label indicates either a moisture-related imperfection (not resulting from wine, but rather water). This moisture could be the result of the label being spilled on, or depending on the severity, possibly submerged in water or ice. Depending on the patterning, humidity could also have been a contributing factor to a damp stain.
Keeping an Open Mind
If you are interested in collecting more mature wines, it’s important to keep an open mind when it comes to label conditions. Some of these wines might have seen a World War, the Civil Rights Movement, the Watergate scandal, or maybe even all three! Anything that sticks around for decades is going to acquire some wear and tear along the way.
Zachys will never allow a bottle into an auction with a label indicating obvious flaws in the wine. But we certainly won’t reject a bottle for cosmetic reasons – the contents inside are too special not to allow back into the market and into the hands of a new collector. At the end of the day, the importance of label conditions is in the eye of the beholder.
Care to put your new knowledge of wine auction catalog labels to the test? Head over to our sale schedule, pick a sale, and start scrolling through the lots. And if you have questions, you can email us.
If you’d like to read up on other helpful tips for navigating the auction catalog, you can head over to our first installment on our assessment process or our explanation of what “ullage” means.