Sommelier Tastes the Same Wine at 5 Ages
(1978-2016).
Sommelier André Hueston Mack, a specialist
in wine, samples a Heitz Cellar Cabernet Sauvignon at 5 various ages, ranging
from the most recent 2016 vintage to a 1978 vintage, and he offers commentary
on how and why the ageing process impacts every aspect of enjoying a wine.
Wine Aging.
The act of allowing wine to grow and change
in flavors and complexity through time is known as "wine ageing."
During barrel and bottle ageing, many wines
get better. Such wines eventually reach their peak and start to deteriorate as
they age further. Acidity lowers, extra clarity and stabilization take place as
unwanted chemicals precipitate, and the various wine constituents produce
complex compounds that alter flavors and aroma during the ageing process.
Wines are typically matured in oak-wooden
containers that enable oxygen to enter while keeping out water and alcohol. The
flavors are flavored with extracts from the wood. The types of elements that
leave are influenced by humidity, with alcohol being more concentrated in wine
held in low humidity settings and weakening in high humidity. Volume shrinks as
the water and alcohol are expelled, leaving headspace, or ullage, which is
filled with additional wine from another container.
Wine Maturation.
All the responses and alterations that take
place after the first racking of wine that eventually led to improvement rather
than spoilage are together referred to as wine ageing. Like other groupings of
processes, ageing can take longer or shorter depending on the environment,
including the temperature. In the past, "ageing" was the process of
final clarifying, tartrate stabilization, and malolactic fermentation occurring
after fermentation.
Difference Between Wine Aging and Wine
Maturation.
There are slight variations in how these
phrases are employed in regard to wine, however they are not universal.
Usually, I learn about a wine "ageing" after it has been bottled. A
wine may "mature" at the winery between the time of fermentation and
bottling, usually in barrels, however I very rarely hear this time period
referred to as "ageing." Wine lovers probably don't want to buy an
already-old bottle that would soon pass their sipping prime, so it might just
be a semantics issue. However, a mature wine denotes one that is both ready to
drink and capable of further "ageing." If you're older, you may
recall the catchphrase from a well-known television commercial: "We will
sell no wine before its time."
Even though I typically think of wine that is
"ageing" as being in a bottle, it is also extremely common to refer
to wine that is in your cellar as "maturing," "evolving,"
or "developing." So, I believe either word is appropriate once it is
in a bottle. Just because the wine is still being made, I don't think it's
normal to conceive of it as "ageing."
Comparison of wine on following aspects:
1. Wine Brand:
Heitz Cellar’s Cabernet Sauvignon.
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| Heitz Cellar's Cab. Sauvignon |
Short information of Heitz Cellar:
Heitz Cellar, a family-owned winery that
was established in 1961 and has shaped the history of Napa Valley winemaking,
has a legacy as deep as the valley itself. With his worldwide acclaimed wines,
such as the legendary Heitz Cellar Martha's Vineyard, Napa Valley's first
vineyard-designated Cabernet Sauvignon, pioneering vintner Joe Heitz helped to
usher in the modern era of Napa Valley in the late 1950s. The Heitz family's
commitment to viticulture, stewardship, and traditional winemaking for
fifty-eight years kept the winery renowned as a model for its contemporaries in
California and Europe.
2. LABELS:
Given that wine labels identify the type and
provenance of the wine, they are valuable sources of information for buyers. A buyer's
sole real tool for assessing a wine before buying it is frequently the label. A
wine label often contains information about the maker, bottler, importer,
alcoholic degree, quality, type of wine, and place of origin. Producers may
also add a QR Code with vintage-specific information and their website URL in
addition to these national labelling standards.
Labels are not very different by vintages by the Heitz cellars 2016 vintage bottle have some difference than other vintages. Vintage 1978 does not have back label.
What does the term “Vintage” means?
A wine's vintage is determined by the year
that the grapes were picked. The weather that affects the grapes throughout the
growing season is the main factor that the vintage of a wine can has on taste
and quality.
Wines lacking an official vintage date:
Wine from different years is blended to create non-vintage wine. Non-vintage
wines are frequently affordable and are renowned for their consistent house
style. For instance, Champagne with the label "N.V." is an example of
a popular non-vintage wine.
3. Pricing:
Vintage 2016: $60
Vintage 2007: $337
Vintage 1994: $152
Vintage 1985: $272
Vintage 1978: $600
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| Pricing according to Vintages |
Comparison of Wines: (Youngest to Oldest).
4. Appearance:
First Wine (2016 Vintage):
Wine's appearance can reveal a lot about
it. A new, fresh, and young wine will often have a bright, vivacious appearance
with a shine and sheen. The meniscus, or outer rim, can be examined to learn
more about it. A watery rim indicates that the wine is young. Red wine's color
is derived from the skins, which are soaked while wine is being made, drawing
out tannins and color.
Phenolic compounds in Wine:
Wine's color, astringency, and bitterness,
as well as many physiological characteristics linked to wine intake, are
partially attributed to phenolic compounds. Significant advancements in the
identification and characterization of wine polyphenols have been made possible
by mass spectrometry. The main type of phenolic compounds found in wine,
including hydroxybenzoic and hydroxycinnamic acids, stilbenes, flavones,
flavonols, flavanonols, flavanols, and anthocyanins.
What are Tannins?
Wine tannins have a distinct mouth-drying
feeling in addition to their flavor. Tannins and other phenols, as they bind
and precipitate over time, can cause sediment to accumulate. Wine's color
deteriorates with age as a result of pigment interactions with other
substances.
Tannin is a naturally occurring polyphenol
that can be found in fruit skins, seeds, bark, wood, and plants. A complicated
link between an oxygen and a hydrogen atom is the basis of polyphenols, which
are macromolecules. The word "tannin" refers to the process of
tanning skins using tree bark and derives from the old Latin word for tanner.
It is important point to know that Tannins
provides the feeling instead of the taste.
There are many
different phenols in wine, tannin being one of them, and these different
compounds and molecules attach to each other and start to fall out of a wine, which
produce sediment.
What are Anthocyanins?
The primary macromolecular components of
red wines are polysaccharides and polyphenolic substances, including condensed
tannins or proanthocyanidins. Many organisations have studied the role of
proanthocyanidins in wine's astringency, and these chemicals are also thought
to have a role in red wine's color stability. It is well known that
anthocyanins and their derivative pigments are important for wine color; it is
unclear, though, how much of these pigments affect wine's mouthfeel.
In fact, Tannins and Anthocyanins both are
important Phenolic compounds present in the wine and as soon as they attach to
each other and form sediments. So,
the pigment in the color of wine, as it starts to age, over time, they start to
combine with other compounds and start to fall out of the wine. So, as a wine
starts to age, the color fades away.
Second Wine (2007 Vintage):
Kind much lost the raspberry-flavored lip
gloss sensation that was there previously. As you begin to examine
it, On the meniscus, there is a small amount of water
rim. demonstrating its youth, although not to the same extent as the
last one.
Third Wine (1994 Vintage):
slightly more brick-like. Just a tiny bit
less than with the prior wine, there is some watery rim. Yes, the difference in
age is evident. We are therefore beginning to sample some of the older wines
with this specific wine.
Forth Wine (19985 Vintage):
He suggested decanting, so I did, giving
the wine a chance to breathe and perhaps even removing some of the sediment.
Because drinking like that is a really bad experience. We adapted this using a
torch; it's called a cellar rat and comes with a candle. The wine will now be
poured and carefully decanted into the decanter. As soon as we start to see any
sediment come through, we want to light up the neck so we know when to stop
pouring. I also keep a close eye on the neck to make sure that sediment isn't
seeping into the wine. It's not an exact science, as you can see. Thus, silt
has been lodged in the neck.
We can actually see what's left here after
we decanted the wine. In fact, you can see it adhering to the glass's side when
I turn the glass up here. You kind of want to get rid of it because it tastes
almost grainy and sandy, like soot. Looking at it makes it clear that this wine
is aged. It's becoming quite brick-like. You know, a brick with a hint of
fading. There isn't a watery meniscus, which indicates that the wine has some
age.
Fifth Wine (1878 Vintage):
Red with more like a
purple hue here, kind of shiny and
glossy. Here for '78, it's
brickish orange. It doesn't jump
at you. It's not as bright.
This is like higher on
the food chain.
This is a really fun experiment.
The sommelier has taken us on an intriguing voyage through time, delving into the subtleties and development of a single wine over forty years. With each sip, the complex ballet of flavours, aromas, and textures that have evolved with age is revealed, serving as a monument to the artistry and expertise of winemaking. We are reminded as we say goodbye to this incredible tasting session that wine, like life, only gets better with age. Remember that every bottle of wine has something unique to offer, regardless of your level of expertise or where you are in your wine journey. Let us toast to the countless tales that lie waiting to be discovered in every glass of wine!
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