Connoisseur's old record I preserve (7)
I believe the answer is:
epicure
'connoisseur's' is the definition.
(thesaurus)
'old record i preserve' is the wordplay.
'old record' becomes 'ep'.
'preserve' becomes 'cure' (curing is a kind of preserving).
'ep'+'i'+'cure'='EPICURE'
(Other definitions for epicure that I've seen before include "Person with refined taste in food and drink" , "Fine food expert" , "Lover of fine foods" , "Bon vivant" , "One enjoying fine food and drink" .)