Aging Gracefully

When a zinfandel or merlot (and most red wine) is young, generally within 3-5 years of the vintage date on the bottle, it shows a lot of deep purple color, intensive fruit in the nose, somewhat hot alcohol to the taste and less overall smoothness than it will show later in its life. As the wine ages, the alcohol, tannic acid (from the grape skins and the oak in the barrel) and fruit flavors start to soften up and blend together to present a more smooth and finished wine. Often the differences in taste between young wine and well aged wine are extremely evident and aged wine is very desirable. How do you do that?

Please note that you, the consumer, have very little control over the many winemaking variables that affect wine aging, but have some control over cellar storage conditions that affect aging, namely temperature, light, humidity and vibration.

Out here in California there are darned few houses built with cellars in them. You can "cellar" a wine in a closet or pay big bucks for a temperature and humidity controlled cabinet in which you can store your treasures. If you are interested in and have the personal discipline to cellar some wines over the several years it takes, here is a tip before you start

Some wine does not get better with age, it just gets older. This is particularly true of most white wines and for certain sparkling wine or Champagne. I have shed tears over unopened bottles of excellent French Champagne that were saved in a well-intentioned effort from someone's wedding 20 years ago. Champagne is meant to be consumed shortly after it is released. It does not improve in the bottle after it is released.

The key to cellaring is to start with something that has the potential to improve. In red wines that usually means a big, well-made and probably expensive cabernet sauvignon, pinot noir, zinfandel or merlot or port. In whites a really big oaked chardonnay or a very sweet, rich, dessert wine such as true Sauternes or a German trockenbeerenauslese. I am afraid the "expensive" part of that statement is very true. Cellaring your typical $7.00 bottle of supermarket zinfandel is going to be a disappointing exercise in patience, but if you are able to purchase some massive, oaky, tannic red you will likely have a candidate for aging.

The most important variable in aging wine is the temperature at which it is stored. Not simply the number of degrees, but the RANGE of the temperatures. If you had a perfect situation and could hold your wines at 65