Jan 8 2012

What Wines Need Aging/Cellaring?

Fine wine gets better with age, they say but it’s important to stress fine. Not all wines age; in fact, experts estimate that, on the global market, the wine sold and consumed is generally too old and passed its prime. Less than 10% of the wines produced today are suitable for aging, and less than 1% are suitable for long-term aging, of more than a decade.
So, what wines need aging/cellaring, and why?

Wine Cellar Red Wines That Need Aging

Even if most wines do not age, there are still a select few that improve in time. Red wines that need cellaring are those with high content of tannins and other flavor compounds, called phenolics (these, by the way, are also the compounds that make red wine one of the worst drinks for the next-day hangover). If you can taste tannin, the wine should be left to age until it reaches its full potential – the tannin fades away, leaving room to a rich bouquet. The king of aging red wines is the Cabernet Sauvignon quite surprisingly, considering that it’s relatively cheap and very common. Even some brands sold in supermarkets will improve if kept for a few years, while the best of them develop in up to 20 years. Pinot Noir also improves in time and increases its value, though it generally is quite expensive to begin with, considering that it’s rather difficult to produce.
A Merlot with a high percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon in the mix can be cellared for about 5 years. The Syrah is quite fickle, and its quality depends on a lot of factors, but the types produced in Rhone develop a spectacular taste after about a decade.
Finally, Nebbiolo is a wine created especially for long-term aging. Very acid and with a strong tannin taste when it’s first produced, it gets a surprisingly complex bouquet in time, and may continue to improve for up to 30 years.

White Wines That Need Aging

White wines rarely have tannin, which is why some of them are aged in oak barrels, which contaminate the wine with phenols. The white wines with good aging potential are generally those with a high amount of acidity and fruit extract.
The Chardonnay may need a few years to reach its distinct, flavored self, but not too many (6 at most) or it will begin losing its qualities. The most common aged white wine is Riesling, with some German varieties being famous for their 30-year old aroma. Aged Riesling develops a very specific petrol taste and smell. Experts consider this a good thing, making the aged wine very valuable but it’s an acquired taste, and many people will find the kerosene flavor unappealing at first.

Short-Term Cellaring: Curing the Bottle Sickness

Almost all wines are susceptible to getting bottle sickness – when the flavor becomes flat, losing the fruity aroma, and, instead, the wine tastes acid. This happens when the bottles of wine have been shaken too much usually during transportation. Have you ever been to a wine tasting at a winery, then bought a couple of bottles to bring back from your vacation, and, when you opened them for your family, they didn’t have quite the same taste? That wasn’t because you were cheated by the wine producers, that was the bottle sickness.
A similarly high level of acidity in wine is caused by another condition called bottle shock. When the wine is bottled, it gets in contact with oxygen, causing a series of chemical reactions. Fortunately, this problem is quite easy to solve the wine just needs time to dissolve the oxygen and will return to its normal structure in a few weeks.
You will likely experience any of these conditions if you place custom orders with wineries and they bottle it up especially for you, or if you get custom deliveries from distant areas though there’s no guarantee that the wine sold at your local retailer doesn’t suffer from bottle sickness. Both issues have the same simple solution: you need to let the wine rest in the cellar for about two or three months. (This is vital if you’re planning a big party: think ahead, placing your orders months before, so that the wine will have plenty of time to recover from the delivery.)

What Wines Need Long-Term Aging/Cellaring?

Long-term aging as an investment is best left to experts, as it depends on a wide variety of factors from getting the perfect temperature in the cellar to having the best corks that do not develop mold and bacteria in time.
But if you’re looking to put aside a couple of bottles now, that you’re going to open when your toddler gets engaged, there are a few good choices. Vintage Ports should be kept at least 20 years some are best after 50 years but remember that they represent less than 1% of the total production – so always buy from a reputable supplier. Tawny Ports, on the other hand, do not age well at all.
Certain French varieties are also well known for improving in time Loire Chenin Blanc, Grand Cru Burgundy and Classified Bordeaux same as some Southern-European wines Nebbiolo, mentioned above, but also Aglianico, from Italy, and Baga, from Portugal. Furmint from Hungary can also be kept for up to 25 years, with some strange results (strange in the good sense of the word). Furmint is an odd variety, and it comes in all styles – from very dry to very sweet – so it ages accordingly. The dry sort gets a smoked flavor in time, while the dessert sort becomes heavy, fruity, with chocolate and marzipan accents.

A Word of Warning… to Prevent Surprises

When you’re thinking about what wines need aging/cellaring, you should take into account these general rules:

Most bottled wines begin to lose their flavor after about 6 months.
Varieties branded as table wines and Nouveau wines are not suitable for aging.
No wine sold in jugs or boxes is suitable for aging.
If it’s cheap, it’s not worth keeping around (generally speaking, if you pay less than $40 for a bottle, you should drink it as soon as possible though there is one notable exception, the Cabernet Sauvignon).
Rose wines do not age they just turn into rose vinegar.

Jan 7 2012

Temperature to Serve Wines

Some folks bring their wines home from the store, plunk their bottles in the refrigerator, let them chill and then drink them when theyre cold enough. It matters not whether theyre white, red or ros They’re not fussy. Other folks, especially when they’re serving wine at a dinner party, are more careful about the temperature to serve wines. The temperature at which a wine is served does make a difference in its taste. Theres actually some science behind the temperature to serve wines.

Wine Temperature Chart

Much of a persons enjoyment of wine is conveyed through the sense of smell, which works through taking in and analyzing vapors. Red wine is less volatile,or vaporous than white wine, so thats why much red wine is allowed to warm to room temperature. This is the temperature where its aromatic compounds begin to vaporize into the air, though a light red wine like Beaujolais can be treated like a white. But a really robust red like a Barolo needs not only room temperature, but the warmth of a hand cupped around the glass. This is why the shapes of wine glasses are different for reds and whites. Finally, a red will need the warmth of the inside of the mouth to achieve its full glory.

Cold temperatures also serve to moderate some of the over-richness of very sweet white wines, even if the cold also obscures some of their flavors. To salvage some of the flavors of sweet wines like Tokay or light muscats, the host might want to pour them very cold and let them warm up a little bit as theyre sipped. As the temperature goes up, but not by too much, the aroma and the bouquet are released. Also, very cold temperatures can take years off some overaged white wines, and make them taste almost good.

Its easier to serve white wine cold than to serve red wines at just the right room temperature. The best way to chill a wine is to put it in a bucket of ice water. If the bottle is very tall, it should be put upside down in the bucket for a minute or two so the wine in the neck cools off as well. In a hot room, or if the partys being held out of doors on a warm summer evening, its best to rest the bottle in the ice water bucket between pourings so it can stay cold. The host shouldn’t worry about the wine being too cold when its poured because it will warm up very quickly.

Getting red wine to warm up is a challenge. The most robust red wines shouldnt be warmed to much more than 65 degrees F. If the host is fortunate enough to have a wine refrigerator or even a cellar, it can take hours for the red wine to get to the proper temperature. They might want to bring the wine out the day before the party and put it on the kitchen counter. But they should be careful. When the oven is working the kitchen will get well above 65 degrees. Hot temperatures will imbalance red wine and make it start to vaporize. The bottle should be moved to a cooler place then, or served if the partys started.

What temperature to serve wines? Here are some examples.

Sauternes – 41 degrees F
Sylvaner – 43 to 46 degrees F
Best Champagne – 46 to 50 degrees F
Vin Jaune – 50 to 54 degrees F
Cotes due Rhone (Red) – 54 to 57 degrees F
Ordinary Red Bordeaux – 57 to 61 degrees F
Vintage Port- 61 to 65 degrees F

Jan 4 2012

Some Simple Suggestions for Ordering Wine at a Restaurant

Many people will simply look for a wine they are familiar with when dining out at restaurant but this will not help you discover new wines. One of the best ways to do this is to pair your wine selection to your entree order. This can be taken even further with a different wine served with each course of the mael. There is no right or wrong when pairing wine and food but you will find several combinations that are generally agreed upon by as being the most popular. A nice dry, crisp pinot gricio is often suggested as a good match for white fish of all types.

Food and Wine Pairing Chart

Red meats and chocalate are often paired with full bodied red wines like a good cabernet sauvignon blanc. For those who find this wine to be too rich a good alternative may be a smooth merlot. Some will suggest you try a peppery red zinfandel as a change of pace. White wines have there place at times with lighter red meats such as a broiled rack of lamb. The mild flavor mixes well with a good riesling wine as well. This wine has a sweet but balanced flavor that also serves well as a dessert wine.

None of these will help on their own as suggestions for ordering wine at a restaurant. But some understanding of the flavors and textures of most commonly carried wines can help you decide in a pinch. In a good restaurant your wait staff employee or wine steward should be able to offer some good advice. A sommelier or wine stward should be able to offer you a sample of different wines that you might enjoy. Depending on the restaurant, your wait staff employee may be able to do the same.

There are times when the help at the resraurant you have ended up at seems to have no idea what they are taliking about. Your might be left on your own or perhaps you feel like trying a new wine of your own choosing. The Internet and library offer a wealth of information regarding wine and grape types, the historical signifigance of wine, the art of pairing wines and food, and general guidelines to follow when tasing new wines. With a little bit of back ground knowledge you will know which sweet Gewurztraminer will go with your cheesecake. As you expand your taste in wines you will find that suggestions that worked for you before do not hold the same appeal to you now.

The simple suggestions of pairing dry, white wines with most seafood entrees and maybe a little sweeter white wines with chicken or pork will suffice in a pinch. Darker reds with red meat or any thick, earthy mushroom flavored sauces. You will learn to appreciate the way different flavors react against each other as you try new wines. Wines have been part of the human culture for thousands of years and you will find a wine that will pair with almost any recipe on earth.