Crazy about wine
When is a wine ready to drink?
It varies a lot, but there are a few rules of thumb
There are as many answers to the question of how long a bottle of wine has to lay before you drink it as there are wines. It varies a lot, but there are a few rules of thumb that can help.
Sometimes, when you buy a bottle of wine, i.e. a bottle that will benefit from being stored for more than a few years, the storage potential can be specified in several different ways.
When it is stated that the wine should be consumed within 10 years, the starting point is the harvest year. However, it also happens that your wine dealer says the same thing, and then it may be that it is meant from the time of purchase. Therefore, it is a good idea to eliminate potential confusion by asking what is meant. The smartest thing is when it is stated that the wine should be consumed from 2018 to 2025. Then there’s not much to come after. And yet...
From whom does the advice come?
Producers have a general interest in you as a consumer consuming your wine as quickly as possible in order to increase the chance of buying a new bottle of the same product. This is one of the reasons why many producers recommend that the wine is consumed within a few years.
Of course, it can also be wines that are only intended to be drunk young. However, there are many fun and big surprises hidden when storing certain wines that are traditionally associated with rapid consumption.
Old champagne (50 years old and older) can taste divine and completely different from young champagne. The same applies to the traditionally simple and fresh wine from Muscadet in Loire, which can easily be stored for 20 years. There are plenty of examples of wines of this kind that can surprise positively during long-term storage. Again, your wine dealer must be a good adviser.
Taste & Preferences
In addition to the undecided atmosphere and the little nostalgic feelings that can arise when a bottle from before you were born is opened, the question is whether it is something you like to taste at all.
Basically, you save on wine because the taste changes to something that you consider to be better. As we all know, taste is a relative thing.
Some people don't like old wine. They think it tastes the same and that the wine lacks fruit, juice and vitality. They may prefer to drink wine at a young age, even large traditional gem wines from Bordeaux or Barolo, for example. Hard tannins (tanned acid), high intensity and good acidity are excellent for especially protein- and fat-rich winter dishes.
Others find it interesting to taste wine that is velvety and almost muddy, while they feel the wings of history in the glass.
And then there are those who love both. Those who find it fun and educational to follow the development of a wine over time. That’s why they buy a box of 12 bottles and open a bottle every now and then until the wine is perfectly ripe.
Many factors
In addition to differences in your taste preferences and those recommending a wine’s storage time, there are variables of the storage location. The warmer and the more temperature fluctuations there are in your wine cellar, the faster a wine will develop.
For example, if it is stated that a given wine can be consumed between 2018 and 2025, a hot cellar will mean that you should not wait until 2025 to drink your wine. The opposite applies in a cold basement.
It’s about finding your own preferences, knowing your basement and, not least, about tasting things out. And finally, in addition to looking at shelves for your basement room, you can explore our range of wine coolers if you want to ensure optimal storage of your bottles.
Get going and try it out.
Have fun with style!