that is the question
Fine wine manager Shaun
Kiernan sheds some light on
the meaning of drinking
windows and how to decide
when best to pull the cork
When to drink wines held in Reserves
(or understair cupboards) is the
question we get asked most often
through our wine advice e-mail
service. There isn't a scientific answer
I'm afraid, and when I give advice to
members I often say it's about your
personal preference. I can provide a
guide, but I might like wines at a
different stage of maturity compared
to the next person.
I know I'm lucky as I often get to try
wines at different stages of maturity;
very young wines, those with a few
years' ageing and, if I'm very lucky,
wines that are fully mature. But
working out your own preference
for mature wines is part of the fun of
laying them down in the first place.
I recently had real pleasure and
excitement when I took from Reserves
a case of mid-range 2003 clarets. I have
been drinking them over the last year
and every bottle has been super. I have
tended to decant them early, three to
four hours in advance of serving, and
then watch them develop over the
course of the evening. The wines are
roughly mid-way through the drinking
window that we provided. I could have
taken a few bottles out at a time with
our part-withdrawal facility option
(which allows you to take out up to
four different wines from stored
unmixed dozens) but I gambled on all
the wines being ready. I was interested
to see if the wines already showed a lot
of maturity as 2003 was an extremely
hot vintage and I was worried that they
may not have kept as well as some of
the more classic vintages with more
acidity. I need not have worried.
I know I have hit them at the right
time for my taste, at 12 years old; still
young enough to have plenty of fruit,
but old enough for the wines to have
shed some tannin and have sweetened
up. Experience tells me, though, that
red wines will happily last well after
the recommended drink date too
and can provide a lot of fun charting
them as they grow old gracefully.
So, my advice would be to always take
advantage of opportunities to try wines
that you think may be well over the hill;
after all you may be pleasantly surprised
and if not, they can always be added to
the gravy!
Ultimately, it's up to you when to pull
the cork as only you will know what
you like. But as this can take some
practice we provide a guide by assigning
'drink windows', giving an indication as
to when we think the wines will be at
their best. If you prefer fresh, crunchy
fruit flavours, err towards the start of
the drinking window; for more earthy,
mellow flavour, leave a little longer.
En Primeur offers (where wines are
offered for sale before they have been
bottled) are a very easy way to start a
small collection of wine. This is how
I started, buying a case or two a year of
wines at the cheaper end of the scale
and then taking them out of Reserves
years later; it is very exciting to see
how they have developed. I tend to buy
mixed cases from the Rhône or
Bordeaux where cases often start at
around £70 for wines which will happily
keep for five to 15 years. This is a great
way to start a cellar and begin to
understand at what stage of maturity
you like your wines.
Please don't hesitate to contact us if you'd
like advice as to when to pull the cork on a
particular bottle. You can do this online at
thewinesociety.com/advice or by
contacting Member Services.
Drink windows for past en primeur offer
wines (from 2000) can be found on
our website and drink dates for specific
wines can also be found under the
'My Wines' section of the website which
provides drink dates on wines you have
bought going back to 2009. There's
more information on en primeur offers here.