February 23 is Open That Bottle Night

According to the Star, and backed up by the inevitable Open That Bottle Night website.

Open That Bottle Night (OTBN) is the event you have been waiting for…the time when you are entitled to uncork that cherished bottle and enjoy the contents. It doesn’t matter if the wine is expensive or low cost, white or red, or even if it is still good.

I like Gord Stimmell’s approach to owning a cellar:

At get-togethers, I discovered fellow wine lovers had immaculate cellars, with 2,000 bottles in climate-controlled perfection. And I also found out that some of their partners hated having 20-year-old Burgundies brought out as treasures that, once poured, were too often brown and dead in the glass.

I rapidly resolved to stop being a collector and began shrinking my inventory by enjoying it – before it was too late. What’s the point of keeping a bottle of wine from a great vintage and a great chateau that’s dead on arrival in the glass?

I think your cellar should always be an expression of your loves and preferences, not someone else’s. I see a cellar not as a financial investment, but as a layaway plan for personal pleasure.

Cracking open something interesting does seem an excellent way to celebrate the last Saturday in February.