hi everybody,
mark's analogy of whether or not you use a finely crafted bicycle or bottle of wine is an apt comparison.
I was a wine dealer for many years. like bicycles, there were many wines that people never drank because "the occasion never arose"--in fact, many such wines are now undrinkable. I tried to buy, several years ago, a cinelli laser in DC; the owner wouldn't sell it to me because when the owner asked if I would display it or ride it I guessed the wrong answer ("ride it" I said/guessed) and was told thank you, no, you may not buy it. same thing (in DC) with a campy 50th anniversary grouppo. luckily for both owners, the smithsonian is close by.
I own a bottle of harlan estate cabernet sauvignon, rated 100 pts (out of 100) by robert parker, wine guru. in fact, I own two. bought each of them for $60. in what I think is a fitting meld of the bicycle/wine comparison, I have made a choice: I will sell the non-drinking bottles for about $500 each (market price) and buy myself a nice riding bicycle with the ill-gotten loot.
I do hope that no one on my list would consider buying these bottles.
thank you!
ricky