Wine: The last glass from the bottle

[Mike Buckley]

Winery: Far Niente (owned by Nickel & Nickel)
Year: 1997
Brand: Estate Bottled Cabernet Sauvignon
Region: Napa Valley, California
Grapes: 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Merlot and 7% Cabernet Franc


I bought a case of this wine in 2000, which was when I began seriously pursuing my wine hobby for the second time after a hiatus of nearly twenty years away from it. It was the first really nice wine I had ever purchased, mostly because it was the first time I could justify paying the cost of high-end wine. Even so, this is not the estate's more expensive flagship wine. I saved this bottle since then so I could eventually learn how to properly photograph it.

When the grape is identified on the front label of a bottle of wine produced in California, that means that at least 75% of the juice was made from that particular grape. Almost all high-end Cabs made in California (and elsewhere) are blended with other grapes, usually the same grapes used in Bordeaux for centuries. As you can see from the information provided above, this wine is also a blend.

WARNING: Many people are surprised to see such a large wine glass, so much so that some photographers feel a glass of this size is a distraction from the primary subject -- the bottle. I relish drinking red wine from a glass this large. So, the two objects make an ideal pair as far as I'm concerned. It's not unusual for high-end restaurants to serve wine in glasses this large (that's how I first learned about them) and dinner guests have often told us how luxurious it is to be drinking from such large glassware.

Feel free to disagree with me about the photographic merits of including such a large glass in the image, but don't think for a nanosecond that you're going to change my mind. Instead, be glad that I didn't use an even larger glass because, yes, they are readily available.

[Brownbear]

Exquisite...

I love the inclusion of the wine glass (big & beautiful, and a great match for the handsome bottle) and the reflection captured in the base of the glass, and also the small portion (shadow?) of the glass visible through the bottle.

Thank you for the interesting and informative wine stories.

I believe I need some new wine glasses!



Seems

[Loose Canon]

That is one whoppin' glass Mike! I was wondering about that on your other shots!

I thought you just poured the entire bottle in there and save yourself some trips!

But I am going to observe a Moment of Silence for the last glass and a Dance of Joy for the enjoyment the bottle and its contents have brought!

Great stuff as usual, Mike.

[Mike Buckley]

Who let Terry out of his room?

I thought you just poured the entire bottle in there and save yourself some trips!

The glass would actually hold an entire bottle of wine but only if you would fill it to the very top.

the small portion (shadow?) of the glass visible through the bottle.

Thank you, Christina! That isn't a shadow. The wine is visible through the bottle, though the bottle is refracting the light. That refraction actually caused me a bit of consternation for a couple of minutes. I was trying to get separation between the label and the wine appearing through the rear. It took me a couple of minutes to realize that that is not possible due to the refraction that "joins" the label and the wine.

[Loose Canon]

Is there just the one label (front side) on these bottles Mike?

[Downrigger]

Simply really nice - up to the usual magnificent standard, and informative. Thanks Mike... I'm thinking of transitioning over from beer, but first, is it allowed to drink fine wine in Carhartts?

[Mike Buckley]

Every wine bottle except one I have ever seen has a paper or plastic rear label. Fortunately, I have not had to remove any of them so far because the rear labels have been smaller than the front labels and obscured by both the front label and the dark wine. The one exception is this square bottle, which has a label on both sides and labeling of a sort in the form of embossed glass on the rear. I didn't remove the side labels and couldn't have removed the embossing even if I had wanted to.

I dread the day that I have to remove a plastic label. They are much more difficult to remove than paper labels. One of the photos on my shot list is a series of wine bottles with all labels and wine removed.

[Mike Buckley]

Thank you, Mark!

I'm thinking of transitioning over from beer, but first, is it allowed to drink fine wine in Carhartts?

Fine wine is great regardless of the clothing or lack of clothing. Even so, if you somehow feel bad about drinking fine wine while wearing Carhartts, drink bad wine from a paper cup. It will still be better than the best beer.

[Loose Canon]

Just curious Mike if you have been having the same problem with commercial glass beverage bottles that I have.

I’ve had to remove the rear label on every commercial bottle I have shot so far. They throw horrible shadows exactly where you don’t want them. I don’t know about plastic labels but I’ve had pretty good luck with a single edged razor blade and then using fingernail polish remover (acetone) which takes the remaining glue off tout de suite!

[Mike Buckley]

I haven't had that issue, Terry. I think there are several explanations. My primary light source has been large and from the rear, which casts shadows of the rear label toward the front label. The front label on a wine bottle is always larger (sometimes much larger) than the rear label, so the shadow of the rear label is hidden by the front label. Red wine is opaque in all but the most shallow depths and wine bottles are generally made of glass that is just barely translucent. That's true even of much of the the glass used for bottles storing white wine. The so-called clear glass almost always has a strong green cast, so much so that I'm rather proud of my collection of 12 bottles that really are clear (for a series of photos not yet made).

I've seen photos of other commercial bottles that are clear or very translucent with relatively clear liquids where I'm sure the rear label had to have been removed.

I use Goo Gone to remove labels and the glue that adheres them. The less porous the label, the longer I let it soak in the Goo Gone before trying to remove it.

Trust me that you do not want me to use a razor blade to do remove labels. Razor blades in the hands of a total klutz is not a good combination unless your goal is to photograph blood.