Instant gratification is overrated
Once again, I repeat my thesis: Wine asks more of its enthusiasts than any other hobby on record.
This week, enthusiasts, we’re asking you for patience.
After the past year it’s mad to think that you would keep wine in the house and not pop the cork. So why do we age wines? Why do we splurge on a bottle, or more sensibly, a case of wine, if we’re not going to think about drinking it for at least a decade? If you’re buying to age, you either have dollars to spend or you are a serious hedonist. Here are some bottles we believe are worth keeping in the cellar.
Let’s start with the 2016 Mayacamas Cabernet Sauvignon, for example. It was a great year for growers. The summer was long, not overly hot, and there was a burst of cool weather towards the end of August which gave farmers the freedom to pick when their crop was just right. How does this translate in the glass? Well right now, it makes for a tightly wound Cab with lots of acidity. But this wine is going places. Over the years those tannins will soften. The acidity will become more balanced and less austere, allowing for the wine’s fruit to shine. Those notes of cherry cola we found will settle instead as a bowl of cherries. Or so we hope. But that’s part of the fun too. It’s exciting to see how certain bottles evolve over time, even wine from the same region. The influence of the winemaker is half the reason you might want to start collecting. With the producer as your constant, you get to see how climate affects your wine. But that’s Napa.
If you enjoy the French style of Cabernet Sauvignon, you might be partial to the 2015 Château Pontet-Canet. Overwhelmingly fruit forward, its blackberry and cedar notes are only going to become more nuanced over time. The 2015 growing season was rather chaotic on the Left Bank of Bordeaux. It started off cold and wet but was made better by plenty of sunshine and near drought-like conditions. Late August rain evened the playing field a bit. All of this back and forth means that grapes struggled to ripen at first but developed thicker skin during the heatwave. Translation? This wine is still pretty green. Tannins remain tense and flavors are unripe, for the moment. There is a lot of fruit hiding behind the shrubbery though. We’re going to keep this one in the cellar for ten years and see what happens. It’s a great vintage to gift for a future anniversary, provided the couple in question has the patience.
What about Burgundy? There is a lot to be said about ageing white wine, so I won’t overwhelm you with nerdspeak. Suffice to say it requires either an incredible amount of acidity and sugar or needs to have been fermented and aged in oak to acquire the structure necessary for ageing. Sixty percent of the Chardonnay in Henri Boillot’s Puligny-Montrachet, 1er Cru Clos de La Mouchère was aged in new oak, the rest spent its time in single vintage barrels. Right now, this wine shows a great deal of citrus, from lemon to ruby red grapefruit. Opened now, you’d see that the oak has softened the edges of the fruit. But over the years, those zesty flavors will be able to show off incredible aromatics and silky texture. This wine’s powerful profile has a long way to go before it reaches its peak. See if you can’t wait five or six years before enjoying a glass.
No Pinot? We wouldn’t be Wine Press if we didn’t highlight at least one of Raj Parr’s wines. The 2015 Evening Land, Seven Springs, La Source is taut with wild cherries. It’s certainly enjoyable, but you get the sense it’s withholding something. Perhaps in three or four years we’ll see some earthier flavors find their way to the surface. Fruit is fun, but with Pinot Noir, I prefer the taste of dirt. Eola Amity Hills is an American appellation that produces excellent examples of Burgundian-style Pinots and this vintage is no different. It’s safe to say our own captain will be enjoying this vintage in the years to come, six or seven if he’s able.
“If anyone orders Merlot, I'm leaving. I am not drinking any f***ing Merlot!” Listen Miles, we get it. You were burned too many times by those flabby, over-ripe, fruit bombs devoid of complexity. On behalf of California, I sincerely apologize. But what about Bordeaux? What about Pomerol or St. Émilion? Weighing in at an estimated 88% Merlot, the 2015 Clos Fourtet, Saint-Émilion 1er Grand Cru Classé is an absolute stunner. Its musky, chocolatey flavors and seemingly endless finish are telling us that now is no time to wake the beast. After a decade or so, the boysenberries and the lavender will weave their way through the heady aromas. This is a wine that’s apt to sneak up on you. If you give it time, it will pay out dividends in pleasure what you spend in dollars.
Saving the best for last. How do I talk about the value of ageing without mentioning the varietal with, perhaps, the greatest potential for longevity? Never mind it’s a personal favorite. Nebbiolo is made for ageing. With acidity and tannins to spare, it possesses the inherent traits needed to spend several decades underground. 2015 gave Piedmontese growers a warm season that provided the Gaja, Sperss, Barolo with real muscle. Blood orange, violets, burnt cherries, and all the colors of the garrigue rainbow: thyme, rosemary, and sage. Could you drink it now? Sure, if you don’t need your tastebuds for a few days afterwards. The acid and tannin make for what I like to call a palate-shredding good time. If you’re opening this any time soon and you’re not eating red meat, call me. I’d like to see if we share any other sadistic habits. But seriously, it would be straight up disrespectful to open this now. If it were me, I’d save this for my fiftieth wedding anniversary and I’m not even married yet. If you need Nebbiolo now, and who doesn’t, reach for Langhe, something young and approachable. Leave this one alone, he’s not ready for you yet.
