1956

What we would buy, and why

There is no good 1956 wine to buy, and a merchant who says otherwise is either careless or hoping you are. Go to spirit instead: a 1956 Bas-Armagnac at 300-550 euro is honest, delicious and genuinely of the year. It also reads better on the certificate - a bottle that survived the winter which killed the vines is a far better line than a thin claret that did not.

1956 in the world

The first Eurovision Song Contest was held in Lugano on 24 May 1956, with seven countries taking part and Switzerland winning at home. Earlier that month Look Back in Anger opened at the Royal Court and changed what a play was allowed to be about.

Best bets for 1956

• Bas-Armagnac 1956, 300-550 euro - the reliable answer for this year
• Vintage Madeira from the mid-1950s, effectively immune to its own age
• Vintage Cognac 1956, where the house can document the year
• An independently bottled malt whisky distilled in 1956, for a recipient who prefers spirit - though these sit in a different price world, so check before falling in love

How we grade a bottle

Fill level, label, capsule and cork, then provenance. Every bottle is checked by hand by people who have handled thousands of old bottles, and we write down the flaws as well as the good news. What the fill levels mean · How to choose a birth-year wine