+- WineBoard (https://www.wines.com/wineboard)
+-- Forum: GENERAL (https://www.wines.com/wineboard/forum-100.html)
+--- Forum: For the Novice (https://www.wines.com/wineboard/forum-2.html)
+--- Thread: How to tell if an unknown wine will age well? (/thread-19375.html)
- bakadue - 08-24-2004
OK, here's my delima. I live in Atlanta, GA, and there is a local winery called "Habersham" that makes some pretty tasty reds. Particularly I enjoy their Merlot.
Anyways, what I want to know is "Is there some way I can tell, based on taste, texture, etc. whether this wine will age?".
I know there are vintage charts, but I doubt there's any which will include information on my local "Micro-Winery". I guess there is one sure way to find out, but I'm an impatient man. Thanks
- californiagirl - 08-24-2004
My guess would be depending on the level of tannins in a wine, you can guesstimate the ageability of the wine, since you don't have the background of the winery's past vintages. (Tannins are the tongue in cheek, banana peel pucker kind of feel.)
I only know of a few Merlots that I would personally age. (I have 1997 Mayacamas Merlot in my wine cellar.)
- dananne - 08-24-2004
IMHO, Habersham wines are best consumed young. I don't think there is enough "stuffing" for them to last very long. Also, I don't think their Merlot has the structure or balance needed to age, even though it may be tasty short-term due to its low-tannin, juicy, fruitiness.
A better bet for a local wine to age a bit is Tiger Mountain Vineyards -- they make several wines, including a Tannat and a Mourvedre, both of which I've let sit a bit. Also, their Norton ages nicely, too. You can visit the winery to pick those up, though they also have them at several Atlanta shops, too.
All that having been said, sometimes you can be surprised. I recently had a 9 yr old Malbec from a Virginia winery that was very nice. So, the only way to find out is to tuck one away (assuming you have good storage) and try it in a few years!
I'd also encourage you to visit the Georgia Pavillion at Wine South next month. It was very fun in the past, with good wines and the opportunity to talk with the winemakers, who could answer questions such as this. [img]http://wines.com/ubb2/smile.gif[/img]
- bakadue - 08-27-2004
Thanks Dan for the advice, I'll check out the event next month.