The basic concept of aging
To talk about the problem of aging, some basic concepts need to be clarified. These basic concepts describe the evolution process of a bottle of wine throughout its life cycle. After wine is bottled, there is a changing process in the bottle, which can be basically divided into rising period, drinking period and declining period.
The so-called rising period is the stage of wine development in the bottle. Not all wines have such a stage. Most new world wines, even top wines, can be drunk immediately after they are listed. However, some old-world wines are more obvious in this rising period. They are not suitable for drinking when they first come out, or they are too sour and unbalanced, or they are very closed and have no aroma. It will take several years to continue to develop and mature in bottles before they become perfect and smooth.
The suitable drinking period is the stage when the wine becomes relatively perfect and smooth, and the best and most balanced time is called the peak period. After the peak period, the wine began to decline slowly, losing a lot of aroma, and the taste was slowly out of balance, entering a recession, not suitable for drinking, and even rancid into vinegar.
Aging and preservation status
The problem of wine aging has been studied, and it is finally found that oxygen is the biggest influence on wine aging. Someone once did an experiment in which wine was divided into six different test tubes, three of which were full, the other three were only half filled, leaving half air, and then stuffed with stoppers. After opening and tasting at different times, it is found that the wine in the test tube with air can become as old as it has been for several years in just a few months.
The change of wine in the bottle is a slow process, and the cork can slowly penetrate oxygen, so that the wine can continue to develop in the bottle. Too bad preservation environment will accelerate this process, make the wine mature too fast, and the wine will become rough and even rancid soon. The wine should be stored horizontally under the conditions of light and shock resistance, temperature at10-18 degrees and humidity at 70-80%. Other methods will accelerate the ripening of wine and even turn it into a bottle of vinegar.
Aging and wine types
The wines that can be aged mainly include high-grade dry red wine, sweet white wine, top-grade dry white wine, vintage champagne and port wine.
Red wine contains tannin, which itself is an antioxidant, so the amount of tannin plays an important role in the aging ability of wine (of course, the heavier the better). Tannin takes time to soften, and it can generate new substances through proper contact with oxygen and the reflection of other substances in wine, which increases the complexity of wine. Most dry red wines can be put on1-2 years without any problem, except for Beaujolais, which needs to be drunk in a few months. The higher-grade dry red wine needs to be aged for a period of time, so that it can develop into a suitable drinking period.
Dry white wine is generally in the drinking period as soon as it is listed, and it can be opened for drinking. Moreover, white wine has no tannin and can be aged for a short time. Of course, there are some very top white wines that can be aged for a long time, but they are very rare. Most sweet liquors have certain aging ability. Champagne without a vintage can also be drunk when it is on the market without aging. But some expensive vintage champagne, vintage champagne and famous champagne can be aged10-20 years, or even longer. With the aging, champagne will become more and more delicate, but it will gradually lose its vitality and strength.
Porter wine is special, it is produced after a long time aging, and can continue to age in bottles for a long time, especially vintage Porter wine. However, it is relatively rare in the domestic market at present.
Aging and wine year
The quality of wine year determines the quality of wine, and correspondingly determines the aging ability of wine. If this year is rainy and humid, the grape skin is thin and there is much water, the wine in this year will generally ripen quickly and not be aged. In hot and dry years, the grape skin is thick, resulting in strong tannins and better aging ability.
The aging ability of wine mainly depends on the "potential" of wine, which comes from tannins, acidity, aroma substances and so on. The better the wine, the more these ingredients there are, and accordingly more complex ingredients can be obtained through aging. Let's talk about some factors that affect aging. The best way to know how long a wine can last is to try it. Of course, you need some experience. The best way is to buy a dozen bottles of wine and open one bottle every 3-6 months to see the development. The simple way is to open a bottle of wine and drink it slowly. If it keeps a stable structure for a long time, it can be kept for a while.
Aging and grape varieties and producing areas
Grape varieties have great influence on wine aging. Just now, I said that tannin is an important indicator of the adult ability of red wine. Different grape varieties have different skins, and the tannins produced are different, which correspondingly affects the aging ability of wine.
For white grape varieties, most white wines can't be aged, and for certain varieties of certain producing areas, some have good aging ability.
Riesling: Germany has good aging ability above QmP grade, and some BA and TBA grade Riesling can be aged for quite a long time. Riesling dry white produced by Alsace in France can also be aged for more than 10 years. Besides Riesling, other aristocratic varieties of Alsace, Muscat, Pinot Gris and Gerwuztraminer, can also be aged for a long time, sometimes exceeding 10 years.
Sauvignon lanc: Most Sauvignon should be drunk as soon as possible, whether it comes from Loire Valley in France, New Zealand, California and so on. Only Bordeaux dry white wine, which is a mixture of Sauvignon and Semillon, can be aged for a certain period of time.
Chardonnay: Chardonnay can be aged for a longer time than Sauvignon, and Grand Cru in Burgundy and Grand Cru in Chablis can be aged for more than 10 years.
The varieties of red grapes that can be aged are those with thick skin. Of course, the better the wine, the older it will be.
Cabernet Sauvignon: As a widely planted grape variety, Cabernet Sauvignon has a good aging ability, whether in the new world or the old world. Of course, as a place to let the world know Cabernet Sauvignon, in Bordeaux, France, it takes a long time for top-class wines to mature and reach the drinking period. For wines like Chateau Latour, it may take as long as15-20 years, and Chateau Montrose may take longer. In the new world, there are fewer such problems. Even the top wines can be drunk without aging when they are first listed, but they can still be aged for a long time.
Syrah/Shiraz: It is also a variety that can be aged, whether it is Hermitage or Cote Rotie from Beilong River or Shiraz from South Australia.
Tempranillo: It is the main wine of Rioja, and it can be aged. Some Rioja Gran Reservations have been aged for nearly 10 years before being listed, but they can still be aged for more than 10 years after being listed.
Nebbiolo: a noble variety of Piemonte in northern Italy. Barbaresco and Barolo brewed by this variety can be aged10-15 years.
Pinot Noir: It is the main variety of Burgundy, but it is planted all over the world. It is a thin-skinned variety and matures faster. Only the Grand Cru in Burgundy can have a long aging capacity.
Gamay: It's almost the grape variety that can't be aged. Beaujolais new wine needs to be drunk within 3 months. Only a few Beaujolais Cru can be aged for a long time, such as Moulin a Vent, Morgon, etc. (You can refer to the previous article by Beaujolais Crus.)
Generally speaking, old-world wines, especially good red wines, need to continue to develop in bottles for a period of time after they are put on the market, but new-world wines generally do not need to do so.