I know that we’re in the middle of a worldwide economic crisis. I know that the unemployment rate is up and the stock market is down. And above all, I know that the last thing on anyone’s mind is spending money on nonessential consumer luxuries such as wine … particularly wine they won’t even see for two or more years. But knowing all of that, I still have only one thing to say about the opportunity to buy futures of 2007 California vintage wines: Run, don’t walk.

I recently had an opportunity to taste more than 70 barrel samples of California wines at the 24th annual California Futures Tasting presented by MacArthur Beverages. The event was originally conceived by Addy Bassin, the original owner of MacArthur Beverages, to mimic Bordeaux’s Union de Grand Cru, the annual weeklong affair where members of the wine trade get a sneak peak of newly vinified wines. Bassin wanted to give Washington area consumers the same type of exposure to the California wine industry so they could have an opportunity to purchase the not-yet-released domestic wines at a discount.