Some thoughts on how to select age-able wines and what to expect from the
time investment.
Cheers,
JIm
http://winefolly.com/tutorial/collecting-age-worthy-wine/
Built to Last: Collecting Age-Worthy Wine
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May 27, 2016Blog <http://winefolly.com/blog/> » Wine Tips & Tricks
<http://winefolly.com/category/tutorial/> » Built to Last: Collecting
Age-Worthy Wine
Articles <http://winefolly.com/tag/articles/>, Collecting Wine
<http://winefolly.com/tag/collecting-wine/>, Intermediate
<http://winefolly.com/tag/intermediate/> 1
<http://winefolly.com/tutorial/collecting-age-worthy-wine/#fb-root>
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Some things (wine, clothes, people…) improve with age and others do not.
Maybe you have a t-shirt that’s 10 years old that looks better and better
with each wash cycle. Some of us believe that the secret to true success is
to slowly cultivate a life surrounded by classics. It becomes a simple
question: “Will this endure the test of time?” Suddenly, choosing the right
thing becomes much easier and, the best part is, you won’t regret it later.
*So the question is, how does one identify future classics in wine?*
As it happens, most wines (the ~95%) aren’t meant to age, so you’ll
discover that finding an age-worthy wine is a bit more challenging; almost
akin to finding well-made clothes. So…
If most wines only last a couple of years, what makes a wine worthy of
cellaring 10–20 years? Let’s discuss the primary traits of age-worthy wines
and what considerations to make for collecting age-worthy wines.
Wines with Structure
[image: Structure in Wine article by Wine Folly
http://winefolly.com/tutorial/collecting-age-worthy-wine/]
<http://winefolly.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/structured-wines.jpg>
Finding wines that will improve over time requires that you pay attention
to a wine’s structure. What is structure? It’s the taste attributes found
in wine that act as natural preservatives:
- Acidity
Wines lose acidity over time, so it’s important that the acidity be
moderately high.
- Polyphenols (Tannin)
The polyphenols in wine stabilize things like color and flavor. Thus,
wines with moderate tannin (from both oak or grape) have a longer runway to
age.
- Sweetness
Sugars have been used as a fruit preservative (jam) for a very long
time. The same ideology behind fruit preserves also applies to dessert
wines and wines with high sweetness levels.
- Alcohol level
Alcohol is one of the primary catalysts that causes wine to break down.
Strangely enough, it also acts as a stabilizer in higher amounts (e.g.
fortified wines and some dry wines with >15%+ ABV). So you either want
lower balanced alcohol levels or high alcohol levels.
- Low Volatile Acidity
Acetic acid is detrimental to age-worthiness in wine. Avoid wines with
VA levels around 0.6 g/L and above.
Balance
[image: Balance in Wine article by Wine Folly
http://winefolly.com/tutorial/collecting-age-worthy-wine/]
<http://winefolly.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/balanced-wine-definition.jpg>
After structure, look at balance. Are all the attributes of the wine in
balance with one another? If a wine has tons of tannin, acidity and
moderate alcohol (maybe around 12%–13.5% ABV) but has no fruit then it’s
not really in balance.
Producer
Who made the wine? Before buying, look into the producer’s history.
Ideally, grapes are grown on the producer’s estate and the winery has a
track record of solid winemaking for 15+ vintages. Of course, there are
many well-made age worthy wines made by producers who don’t fit this
profile (and vice versa), so don’t let this alone deter you. The biggest
red flags for producers would be inexperienced winemakers who don’t have a
scientific understanding of enology at the helm. These wines are no problem
upon release but subtle flaws will become exacerbated with age. Another
deterrent would be white label wine brands
<http://winefolly.com/update/white-label-wines-what-wine-buyers-dont-know/>;
these wines are usually made to drink now and will not increase in value.
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On Buying Dry Red Wines
[image: How to collect red wines by Wine Folly
http://winefolly.com/tutorial/collecting-age-worthy-wine/ ]
<http://winefolly.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/aging-red-wines.jpg>
*As red wines age the polyphenols degrade and the wine fades in color and
becomes more translucent*
Dry reds are the most collected of all wines, not necessarily because they
age the longest, but because it is a delight to drink old dry red wine.
Beyond seeking an ideal basic structure in the wine, you want to make sure
that the wine has ample runway which means moderately high acidity. One way
to pay attention to the acidity is to feel the finish. Wines usually have a
long tingly aftertaste from the acidity paired with residual fruit flavors.
If you feel just the dry astringency of tannin, then the wine might be a
bit out of balance (too much tannin, not enough acidity).
Somewhat over-simplified overview of red wine aging potential:
- Nebbiolo ~20 years
- Aglianico ~20 years
- Cabernet Sauvignon ~10–20 years
- Tempranillo ~10–20 years
- Sangiovese ~7–17 years
- Merlot ~7–17 years
- Syrah ~5–15 years
- Pinot Noir ~10 years (longer for Bourgogne)
- Malbec ~10 years
- Zinfandel ~5 years
On Buying Dry White Wines
[image: How to buy age-worthy collectible white wines by Wine Folly
http://winefolly.com/tutorial/collecting-age-worthy-wine/ ]
<http://winefolly.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/aging-white-wines.jpg>
*As white wines age they oxidize and become brown*
White wines have a much shorter timeline for aging. This is because they do
not have the same structural components (tannin) as red wines. Certainly,
there are a few exceptions to this (such as orange wines), but for the most
part, most white wines will be over the hill after 10 years. There are 3
factors to look for with age-worthy dry white wines: acidity, a touch of
phenolic bitterness (see below) and, in some whites, oak tannins. White
wines aged in oak, such as Reserva Rioja Blanco and Chardonnay, have added
polyphenols from the oak. And, since polyphenols help mitigate chemical
reactions that break down wine over time, oaked whites typically have a
longer timeline. Be extra sure that the acidity is high to keep wines from
getting flabby
<http://winefolly.com/tutorial/wine-descriptions-chart-infographic/> with
age.
What is phenolic bitterness? Bitterness in white wines can come from 3
primary places: from a specific aroma compound (it’s called terpenes and
it’s found in aromatic white wines like Riesling), from using slightly
underripe grapes, or from longer skin contact during winemaking. While most
of us detest bitter flavors in white wines, this trait does add enough
polyphenols to create a longer runway on white wines. As long as the wines
aren’t overly bitter and have good acidity, you can expect the wine to age
moderately well.
Somewhat over-simplified overview of white wine aging potential:
- White Rioja ~10–15 years
- Chardonnay ~10 years (longer for Bourgogne)
- Trebbiano ~8 years
- Garganega ~8 years
- Sémillon ~7 years (longer for Bordeaux)
- Sauvignon Blanc ~4 years
- Viognier ~4 years
- Muscadet ~3 years
- Pinot Gris ~3 years
On Buying Sweet Wines
Sweet wines and dessert wines have some of the longest runways to age of
all wines because of the high sugar levels acting as a preservative.
Generally speaking, red dessert wines will last longer than whites. The
real secret to finding age-worthiness in this category is acidity (again!).
When you taste a sweet wine to check for its cellar-worthiness, you’ll be
surprised how dry it tastes for the level of residual sugar. For example, a
good Spâtlese Riesling will have somewhere around 90 g/L RS and taste only
off-dry, it will also likely have ripping high acidity and a touch of
bitterness (phenolic bitterness) on the back mid-palate.
[image: The Royal Tokaji Wine Company Szt. Tamás 6 puttonyos]
<http://winefolly.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/royal-tokaji-6-puttunyos-hu…>
Somewhat over-simplified overview of sweet wine aging potential:
- Recioto della Valpolicella ~25–50 years
- Hungarian Tokaji Aszu ~20–30 years
- German/Alsatian Riesling ~15–25 years
- French Sauternes ~15–25 years
On Buying Fortified Wines
Fortification is a practice of adding a neutral distillate (usually grape
brandy) to preserve a wine. Of all wines, these wines last the longest, and
some continue to improve in taste as they age in the producers cellars for
200+ years. Of course, some fortified wines aren’t meant to age, such as
Ruby Port which is made and bottled in a way that makes it impossible to
cellar for very long. Generally speaking, the fortified wines that have
spent the longest time in wood will age the longest. The time spent in wood
continually exposes the wine to small bits of oxygen which causes the color
to drop out of red wines (and white wines to brown) but it actually
stabilizes the taste. It was a surprise tasting of an Australian Tawny that
had been sitting opened in my grandmother’s cellar for nearly 20 years and
it still tasted vibrant and delicious.
[image: port-wine-bottle]
<http://winefolly.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/port-wine-bottle.png>
Somewhat over-simplified overview of fortified wine aging potential:
- Tawny Port ~150 years (when aged in winery)
- Madeira ~150 years
- Vintage Port ~50–100 years
- Banyuls ~50–100 years
- Sherry ~75 years
- Vin Santo ~50 years
- Muscat based fortified wines ~50 years
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[image: Duckhorn 1987, 1999, 2006 and 2011 vintages of Three Palms Merlot
by Wine Folly] <http://winefolly.com/review/how-wines-age/>
How Red Wines Change
Understand how red wines change in taste as they age. We tested a single
vineyard Merlot wine over a period of nearly 30 years and have some very
interesting notes on the evolution of collectible wines.
<http://winefolly.com/review/how-wines-age/>
How Wines Age <http://winefolly.com/review/how-wines-age/>
<http://winefolly.com/review/how-wines-age/>
<http://winefolly.com/review/how-wines-age/>
*Sources*
Read more about Volatile Acidity on Dr. Waterhouse’s (UC Davis) site
<http://waterhouse.ucdavis.edu/whats-in-wine/volatile-acidity>
--
James Ellingson cell 651 645 0753
Great Lakes Brewing News, 5219 Elliot Ave, Mpls, MN 55417
James(a)BrewingNews.com BeerGovernor(a)gmail.com
