Wine: drink now or hold?

One of the most common questions I am asked, as a sommelier, is whether a certain wine is ready to drink now, or should it be stored away for later? Well, the answer will involve going back to my previous articles on tasting. If you are comfortable with the steps in tasting a wine, then you will have a better idea on how well a wine will age. 

First, if you are buying the wine at your local retailer, and have not tasted it, you should know that over 90% of all wines are produced and released, ready to drink. I heard somewhere that the average aging of a wine, purchased at a local retailer, is about 40 minutes (the time to drive home, and open). Another thing to understand is that it is just as easy to age a wine for too long, as it is to age it for too little time.This is where your expertise at tasting will suit you well.

Some general things to keep in mind: 1) expensive wines can usually age better than inexpensive wine; 2) red wines are more likely to improve with age, than white wines (but there are a lot of exceptions); 3) if not stored properly (a subject for another article) aging may actually ruin a nice bottle of wine.

So how do we determine the potential ageability of a wine? There is no definitive answer, but we can make an educated guess, based on our tasting profile, and those handy little vintage charts that are available in many wine magazines and websites. High rated vintages (year that the grapes were harvested) would give an indication of higher potential. When you taste, take note of the acidity, tannins, alcohol, and residual sugar levels. On those nose, take note of the primary fruit aromas, versus the more complex aromas of a developing bouquet.

In general, when you smell a wine, you may get a lot of fruit (primary aromas) on the nose. This is an indication of youth. As you move into more "non fruit" related aromas (called secondary aromas) these are signs of aging. Primary fruit, with no secondary aromas, might mean there is aging potential...but not always. As wines age, they gain complexity, while losing fruitiness. Most white wines are made to preserve and emphasize fruit aromas (and some reds like Beaujolais Nouveau for example) are meant to be drunk now. We need to look at some other factors, other than just smell. Tannins, acid and alcohol all have a role in determining a wines' future potential. All three of these components act as preservatives that prevent a wine from oxidizing. As wines age, chemical processes within the wine cause the tannins to soften and actually settle out as sediment. The trick with tannins is how they taste. I find that many tannins taste "green" to me, and I find that green tannins, stay green even with aging. Look for ripe phenolics in your tannins.  High alcohol in wine, acts to prevent the processes associated with oxidation (the main reason wines were fortified for long boat journeys back in the early days of wine export). Acid, like tannins and alcohol, is a preservative, but acts to balance the fruit component in the wine. Wines high in acid but with a strong core of fruit are perfect wines for aging. Over time, the acid will act to maintain the structure of the wine allowing the wine to age more gracefully. Just remember that acid does not change in the same way that tannin does. The wine will need more fruit to balance the higher acidity. Residual sugar also helps to balance acidity. This last point explains why white wines, like German Rieslings, and dessert wines (Sauterne and Tokaji, for example), age so well.

Oxidized Wine

One other thing to keep in mind is the size, or format, of the wine bottle. The standard wine bottle is 750ml. Each bottle will have a little head space of oxygen (known as ullage). Since oxygen is the greatest threat to aging, the amount of ullage in larger formats (1.5l or higher) versus regular sized bottles means less oxygen exposure. Larger formats age better.

Remember, that when determining whether or not a wine will improve with age, trust your tasting notes. Talk with your local retailer, or review the write ups in your favorite wine magazine to find out which wines have potential, then buy more than one bottle.  Store the wine properly and taste a bottle every so often. Make tasting notes on how the wine is developing and changing over time, and enjoy the journey!

Carménère - The lost grape of Bordeaux

Have you tried a merlot from Chile in the past few years? If so, are you sure it was merlot? You may have been tasting carménère (car-men-YEHR).  Let’s take a quick look at Chile, and how carménère may be the “signature wine” of Chile. 

Spanish missionaries brought the first vines (pais) to Chile around 1549 (there are no native grape vines in South America). Between 1840 to 1850, French immigrants, brought with them, the vines from their homeland: merlot, cabernet sauvignon, chardonnay, sauvignon blanc, plus many others. Chilean winemakers modeled their wineries after those in France and began planting in the valleys around Santiago.

Vine cuttings of carménère were imported by growers from Bordeaux, where they were frequently confused with Merlot vines. Carménère was part of the field blend, grown with merlot. So, when cuttings were brought from the merlot vineyards of France to Chile, carménère came along with it. In Bordeaux, carménère was considered as good as cabernet sauvignon, but it had irregular yields, so was not as reliable. 

Chile is a very isolated country. Bordered by the Pacific Ocean on the west, the Andes to the East, the driest desert on earth (Atacama) to the north, and the ice fields of Patagonia to the south….Chile is apart from everything. This isolation prevented Chile from the phylloxera louse (a serious vine killing organism).  In the 1870s, this louse spread all throughout France, and from there to other European and North American vineyards, destroying the vines at the roots. Among those displaced by phylloxera were winemakers, growers, and coopers (barrel makers). To this day, the wines of Chile come from vines that grow on their natural rootstock.  Most other growing areas in the world require that the vines be grafted onto phylloxera resistant rootstock. Can you taste the difference?

For a while, Chilean growers thought carménère was merlot and labeled their wines as such. Evidently “Merlot Chileno” was thought to have a distinctively green tasting characteristic for many years. Then in 1994, thanks to DNA testing, it was discovered that the reason for this was that much of the merlot production included, or was, carménère.

Genetic research has shown that carménère may be a distant relative to merlot. Carménère buds and flowers later than Merlot and the yield is lower. When young, carménère leaves have a reddish hue underneath, while the leaves of merlot are white.  Merlot ripens two to three weeks earlier than carménère.

As a wine,  carménère has deep red color, and low acidity. When ripe, it displays black plum, blackberry, coffee, grilled meat, soy sauce, and spice. The tannins are gentler and softer than those in cabernet sauvignon and it is a medium body wine. When produced from ripe grapes, carménère has a fruity, cherry-like, flavor with smoky, spicy and earthy notes. Its’ taste might also be described as dark chocolate, tobacco, and/or leather.


So, is this the “signature wine” of Chile? Give carménère a try, and let me know what you think of this lost grape of Bordeaux.

Are you a Wine Snob?

Let's be frank about it, when you're at a restaurant, or a friends house, and the topic turns to what wine to have that evening, do you intimidate others with your knowledge? Do you turn your nose up at the suggestion of Charles Shaw Cabernet with your meal? Or, are you like Myles in the movie Sideways, who won't drink any f*@%ing Merlot? Come on, admit it. Could you be (gasp) a "wine snob"?

What is the definition of a "wine snob"? The dictionary says a "snob" is, "somebody who looks down on others and considers their own knowledge, or position, to be superior". This might be a good thing when it comes to wine, as a wine snob might know enough about wine that they can pick an excellent bottle off a wine list, without paying a fortune for it. And, that pick might just be the best pairing you ever had. Then again, that same wine snob may make you feel insecure about your own decision, and even ridicule your choice. I think there is a fine line between being a wine snob, and a wine enthusiast (or even a "wine geek").

I think we should all try to be "wine enthusiasts". To me an enthusiast is willing to try new wines, and is always exploring new pairings, new varietals, and continuing to learn. An enthusiast never belittles other peoples' wine choices, tastes, or opinions. An enthusiast likes to learn about wine, and is eager to share that knowledge with others.

Recent reports show that individuals aged 21 to 34, are increasingly pursuing wine for a variety of reasons. “They equate it with sophistication, it allows them a means to connect with friends, and they see it as a more healthful alternative to other alcoholic beverages,” This age group tends to purchase more imported wines than baby boomers. We are in the age of the enthusiast!

My hope is that we remain enthusiasts, and never turn into snobs. Let's leave the snobs to their own self-image, and simply enjoy the wine we are drinking. After all, Psalm 104: 14-15 says, "He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle, and plants for the service of man: that he may bring forth food out of the earth and wine that maketh glad the heart of man, and oil to make his face to shine, and bread which strengtheneth man's heart."

Okay...let the comments begin. Are you a snob, or an enthusiast?