“I cannot imagine any wine improving past ten years of age, red, white, sparkling, still or sweet. In my experience I have found that ten years is the limit. Let me explain.
I have been tasting newly released Barolos and Brunellos and it seems like, in these times, the wines are being released ready to drink now. I know, I know, some of the big names in wine reviewing like to say things like ‘drink 2023-2030’ but in reality, they are full of shit. They have no way of knowing where the wine will be stored, how it gets there and what the wine will be served with and what time of the year it will be served. It could be in December when the temps are cooler. Or it could be in August when the heat index is in the triple digits. There’s no way Mr. Big Shot Wine Critic can reliably recommend a wine to be drunk in a time period somewhere off in the future. They’re selling their brand and their penchant for prediction.
But one can recommend a wine for now. And the folks in Italy are making more red wines for now.
Does that mean they won’t or can’t age? Of course not. But the way wine is being made today is not like it was being made in 1958, 1964, 1971, 1987, 1990 or even 2000. The technology and the ‘culture’ of winemaking has progressed. And society is more impatient now.
Yeah, yeah, I know, all the snotty somms are posting pix of 40, 50-year-old wines they are drinking with their buddies on Sansabelt Island in July. Good for them. But half of those wines aren’t even from the vintage that is pasted on the bottle. And the other half are so damn old they are barely wine anymore.
I want flavor. And I want fruit, fresh not rotten. I don’t want my glass to smell like a bloody compost heap. I want flowers and fruits and perfume and ¡life! for Heaven’s sake. I don’t want to drink decrepitude. I can see enough of that in some future mirror. In the meantime, I want to enjoy the fruits of the labor of the winemaker and drink wine with pleasure.
I know, I know, I sound like a g.d. hedonist. So be it. But I’m telling you, once a wine passes the ten-year mark, it’s downhill for it and everyone who is trying to wring any amount of delight from it.
Call me ageist? Not so quick. When was the last time you preferred to take an Uber in a 10+ year old car? Or rented a 15-year-old car from Turo to drive around Minneapolis in December? No, you’d go with the newer model because it is more reliable.
And there you have it in one word – reliability. A younger wine is more likely to not disappoint you with off flavors or tired tertiary aromas.
Oh yeah, it’s savage to flex on the socials about all the great old wines you are tasting – all at the same time! Yeah, that will get you a gold star in the wine world. But the reality of wine enjoyment today boils down to those singular moments when one can savor a bottle over an evening. It’s part of something bigger in your life, not the main attraction. The culture of wine appreciation has changed, and all the conspicuous and gnathonic posturing of old times will now lose you aura points in today’s world.
So, for me, the meat and potatoes of wine enjoyment is that exactly – enjoyment. And my research, albeit purely anecdotal, has proven, for me, to generally stay far away from wines older than ten years. That’s my prescription for fine wine enjoyment in the future.
Now, I’ve got to catch my Uber and get to the airport. And next time we chat, let’s talk a little more about that broken heart of yours, ok?”
