Is This Really a Wine Worth Aging?
“You’re just like wine, you get better with age.” A phrase I hear often (at least from me), but does wine actually get better with age? How do you know which bottle is best left to mature, and which one you’re better off opening right away?
The vast majority of wines are produced to be drunk within a year or two. In fact, only one percent of all wines made are intended for aging. That doesn’t mean you have to drink the other 99 percent immediately, but they don’t necessarily get better if you leave them to age either.
Modern techniques
There are certain wines that used to be almost undrinkable when young. Barolo, for example, was sour and austere and absolutely not enjoyable, but if you left it for a few years? Wow, what a beautiful wine you would have. Nowadays, modern winemaking techniques mean there are plenty of Barolos that are drinkable earlier.
Barolo or Bordeaux
So when should you leave a wine to age? Cheap wines virtually never get better with age. Does that mean all expensive wines are worth aging? Nope. Red wines that are high in tannins have the best chance of becoming more delicious over time. Tannins act as antioxidants and help preserve the freshness of red wine. Two classic examples are Barolo and Bordeaux.
Many people think red wine is particularly well suited to aging, but white wines can also be kept very well. In that case, it’s important that the acidity is good, as acid also works as a natural preservative. Grapes such as Riesling and Chenin Blanc, for example, often produce excellent wines for aging. If in doubt, you can always ask the store staff.
How to store it
Another very important factor is how you store the wine. Did you receive a beautiful Bordeaux, but is it sitting in a wine rack under a lamp on your kitchen counter? Forget it—you’re better off drinking it soon. Store wines in a cellar or climate-controlled wine cabinet, somewhere cool and dark. And if you’re unsure? Just open the bottle. It’s always better to drink a wine too young than when it has become so old that it’s oxidized or genuinely undrinkable.
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