In a perfect world, where wineries and winemakers had infinite amounts of time on their hands, every customer would understand the optimal cellar program for each wine. Unfortunately, most winemakers are running around with their hair on fire and that information often gets lost. So let’s discuss the basics.
A wine for the ages needs a few basic components:
- Acidity. An acidic wine is typically very stable over time because it inhibits the growth of undesirable little beasts like bacteria, yeast and fungi. In addition, a wine that starts with high acidity will retain a balanced profile over time. On the other hand, wines that start with a higher pH (lower acidity) have a richer, broader mouthfeel from the start – without the astringent characteristics of typical young wines.
- Tannins. Tannins are extracted from the skins of red grapes, and form the “structure” of a wine: Its full-bodied, flavorful backbone. A wine that starts with good tannins will become rounder and fuller over time.
- Flavor. As a wine ages, fruitiness and phenolics soften along with the tannins and acidity. This perhaps goes without saying, but a wine better start with a lot of phenolics and flavor compounds in order to maintain an interesting flavor profile over time, much less develop a more interesting flavor profile.
- Cleanliness. If a wine is going to be set away to age for years, it is essential that nothing bacterial, fungal or yeasty is growing in the wine at the time that it is bottled. Skilled winemaking will ensure that a wine is “clean” before it goes into the bottle, but when in doubt a sterile filter will do the trick.
In general, if you are attempting to determine how well a wine will age, examine the acidity, tannins and overall flavor profile. If the wine seems acidic bordering on astringent, that’s a telltale sign that it could use a little more time in the bottle before prime drinkability.
A wine that is built for the ages will exhibit some of characteristics that make young wines less drinkable: high acidity and strong, punch-you-in-the face tannins. The tannins and acids will oxidize and “mellow” over time, creating the rich, round flavor of a well-aged wine.
Image Credit: Mr. T in DC on Flickr