One of my main obsessions with wine is the vintage. As someone who manages a wine boutique, I find that only a very small percentage of customers ask about what years are best for certain types of wine.
There are specific years for areas like Napa Valley/Sonoma and Bordeaux where the year the wine was produced and released is crucial. For example, 2010 was a landmark year for both the Left and Right Bank of Bordeaux. Other notable years were 1961, 1982, 2000, 2005, 2009, and 2015. In Napa and Sonoma, 2007, 2012, and 2013 were all great recent vintages.
However, just because you have a great vintage for a wine doesn’t mean the wine will still be good. I once opened up a 1990 Jordan Cabernet. I was so excited about it- a wine that I already loved as a 2012 vintage, but 1990!? …
Much to my surprise the wine was flat and was lacking in a lot of fruit. The wine just wasn’t good. When I did further research I realized for this particular producer the shelf life was MAYBE 15 years. Some quality red wines only have 10-15 years until they peak, some can go on for over a hundred years. For example, you can still buy a 1900 Chateau Margaux and apparently it’s still going strong. 118 years!
I recently was able to get my hands on a wine I had never heard of before, but was a seemingly kept intact 1989. Everything I read about this wine lead me to believe it was going to be a stinker. When I opened it the cork was disintegrating before my eyes. However, WHAT A WINE! The fruit did come down a bit, but what came out were chocolaty and gamy notes due to the 30 years of aging! However this was kept and stored was excellent.
Overall, a good producer and a good vintage usually indicate the wine will age well over time, however you never know. Sometimes a good wine can only live so long before that inevitable decline, sometimes that wild card, lesser known wine that’s 20+ years old might taste exquisite.
The Chosen Vine 