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Great Grape News |
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February 2002
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 Wine Aging A frequent question in our store is, how long do I keep the wine before it is ready to drink? It is a misconception that wine must age to get better. As a matter of fact, most wine is drunk young, about 12 to 24 months after it is produced. While it is true that some wines will "get better" (mature) over time, most are at their "peak" maturity when you purchase it. Regardless though, all wine will "go over the hill" with time, even the ones intended to be kept for many years. So which wines do get better with age? Generally, but not always, red wines are the ones that can be kept for long periods, even several years. Red wines get their color from the stems and skins of the grape. This gives the wine tannin and the capacity for aging. White wines usually have no contact with skins and stems and have little tannin, although some can be added through barrel aging. Therefore most white wines are not intended for aging. Another important factor is the amount of acidity in the wine, which contributes greatly to the way a wine ages. So, how do you know how long to keep (age) a wine before it is past its peak? Well, let’s see, this is not easily answered. As we said, tannins and acidity play a great role, but it also depends on many other factors, such as climate, soil conditions (terroir), the age of the vine, alcohol and sugar contents, the way the wine is processed, many are filtered before bottling and others are not. Even the size of the bottle makes a difference. Wine will age much quicker in a half-bottle (375ml) than a larger bottle. Oh, and don’t forget the storage conditions once you bring your wine home. Bottles that are improperly stored will quickly go "over the hill". There are lots of reasons and because of all these variations that come together during the wine-making process, a bottle of wine made from the same type of grape from one producer will taste different from another producer and one will age better than the other. Here then are some very general rules when it comes to aging wine. Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc do not benefit from aging and can be consumed immediately after purchase, but should be consumed within 3 to 7 years of production. Dessert wines such as Sauternes or other wines (Riesling) that are harvested late in the season definitely benefit form aging. As a matter of fact, they must be aged before they reach their peak. This can be from 10 to 20, or even 40 years and more. Red wines, such as Beaujolais Nouveau are usually light in fruit and tannins and are intended to be consumed upon purchase or within a couple of years of production. Other red wines such as a French Bordeaux will definitely benefit from aging 5, 10 or even more years. Cabernet Sauvignon will be at its best within 5 to 15 years. Merlot and Zinfandel 4 to 7 years and Pinot Noir should be consumed within 5 years of its vintage date. OK, confused enough? Keep in mind that the recommended aging years here assume that the winemaker intended for the wine to improve over time and contains the characteristics mentioned earlier (terroir, tannin, acidity, etc.). There are some other believes I heard over the years. For example, California wines do not "go bad" in the bottle (not true), Australian and Chilean wines mature much faster even when kept under ideal storage conditions and that European wines last for ever. If you truly enjoy wines one way of judging the maturity of wine is to taste the same wine from different vintages, say 1970 through 2001. Now, don’t take me literally, do not line up 31 wines, but take several bottles that fall between these vintages and compare them. If you are unable to find several vintages of the same type and producer of a wine, you may use wines from different producers, but I would at least make sure it is from the same geographical area and, of course, the same grape varietal. This may not be as accurate, but for the purpose of learning it will do. Assuming that the wines are to be aged, the younger will have a harsh taste from the tannins. As you get to the older vintage bottles the wine mellows and the complexity of the fruits come into balance. The oldest vintages will flatten out and the fruit intensity and tannins will diminish. Somewhere in between you will find the vintage that you like the best. Other people may select a different vintage indicating that all of us have a different taste and that we all have our own opinion when it comes to wine.Storing Wine at Home What’s the best way of storing your precious wines? Well, I tell you. You dig a cellar, 20-30 feet under ground. Make sure it’s in an area that provides lots of dampness, is dark and the temperature is at around 50-55 degrees. A few bats, lots of spider webs and a skeleton in the corner are not needed. OK, that’s not practical for you, so you say.
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So, how about that $20,000 wine cabinet, which
provides optimum storage conditions for 1000 bottles, the built-in computer automatically
identifies the bottles that are at their peak and ready to be drunk. Oh, and a $5,000
battery backup unit provides power in the event you loose electricity while you are on the
Caribbean vacation. Hmm, that’s not a good idea either so you say. How about if we just find something that will do for all of us? But, first let’s see what we need to do to store and age our bottles of wine for months or even years. Prior to the Roman era wine was kept in crude jugs and leather pouches, not for storage, but rather just to serve. Wine was not kept for long periods because it just wouldn’t last. There was no such thing as cork and wine would turn into vinegar quickly because of the exposure to air. Wine was intended to be consumed immediately after production. The Romans found that wine would last for long periods and improve over time if it were kept in a tightly closed container. Only after the discovery (also by the Romans) of the cork for the purpose of tightly closing a bottle or airtight container could wine be kept for long periods of time, even years. That’s the end of our history lesson. While most wines are to be consumed within 1 to 2 years of the vintage date, there are many that benefit from aging. The conditions you store your wine under determine how quickly it will mature or how quickly it will turn into some bad brew. Wine should be stored in a clean, dark, damp place with good ventilation, free from vibration and at a constant temperature. The optimum storage temperature is between 50-55 degrees, but a constant temperature of between 40-60 degrees ensures that your wine is stored properly. Temperature fluctuations are very bad for wine, especially when it occurs daily. A slow change in temperature, say summer to winter, does not affect your wine significantly, although it may expedite or slow down the maturing process respectively. It is dramatic daily changes in temperature that are harmful to wine.Humidity is of equal importance. A too dry environment will over time cause the cork to dry from the outside in and may start to shrink. Eventually this may cause air to leak into the bottle and we all know what happens then. Excessive humidity does not hurt your wine but the labels may fall off, mildew may start to build cardboard boxes and other paper products begin to rot. A relative humidity of about 70% is recommended, but a range from 50 to 80% is within acceptable limits. Vibration is another enemy. Trucking you wines across the country to mom and pop’s anniversary dinner can be devastating. This is particularly true for unfiltered wines and more so for red’s. Road vibration may disturb sediments and affect the taste. Pack you bottles around a cushion to minimize vibration to the bottle. More damaging can be the vibrating compressor of a refrigerator. While hardly noticeable a wine stored in a refrigerator for long periods, say several months, will never "rest". Sediments are sloshed around and may impact the taste of a wine. Keep wine in a cool space in your basement and place the bottle inside the refrigerator a few hours prior to consumption. Lightening conditions are also important. Constant exposure to light can prematurely age a bottle of wine. Wine in darker bottles will not be as affected as wine in clear bottles, but ultraviolet light penetrates all wine bottles and may give a wine unpleasant aromas. Champagnes (sparkling wines) are even more sensitive to light. Incandescent lights are better than fluorescent lighting. But please, do not run now to your retailer and ask them to turn their lights off. We are talking about constant long-term exposure. Finally and the most important part to remember is, always store your bottles lying on their side. Never keep them upright for long periods, although a months or two is OK in most cases. Keeping the cork wet during storage prevents it from drying out and shrinking causing air to leak inside the bottle, which will quickly turn your wine into vinegar. How to Make Irish Cream In response to man questions here is the recipe for your own homemade Irish Cream. 12 oz Sweetened Condensed Milk 3 Tbs Chocolate Syrup 1 Tbs Instant Coffee 2 tsp. Vanilla (can be substituted with Almond extract or half and half) 1 Cup of Cream 4 Eggs Place all ingredients, except cream and eggs, into blender and mix on medium speed for 30 seconds. Add cup of cream and 4 eggs into the blender and whiz it up for about 20 seconds. Fill empty condensed milk can with Irish Whiskey and add to blender. Mix again for 10 seconds. Let it sit in the refrigerator for a couple of hours and then enjoy. |
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