Out & About Spring 2019

FOOD & DRINK – JAMES ALLEN

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tipples

JAMES ALLEN explores the ageing of wine, with some suggestions for trying and offers some tips for springtime drinking

In the meantime, here some mature wines to try:

Vina Urbina Seleccionada Rioja 1999, Spain Naked Grape, Hungerford £22

This wine is beyond belief. The colour and palate belie it’s two decades of age. The palate is utterly smooth with amazing smoky rich fruits. A brilliant Rioja.

T he ageing of wine has long been prized. In the Bible ‘old wine is preferred to new’ ( Gospel of Luke ) while the Romans sought after Falernian wine because it could age successfully. So what was it about the ageing of wine that made it so attractive? Wines that age successfully are those with more concentrated flavour compounds, notably tannins in red wines and wine acids in white wines – these tend to be found in the more expensive wines. There are some 600 flavouring compounds in wine and the small amount of air between cork and wine interacts with these over time forming a myriad of variants that give the wine variety and complexity of taste as well as smoothing out the tannins. Wines will age differently according to lots of other factors too… including grape variety, vintage, vineyard practice, wine region and winemaking styles. Top wines from good vintages can last a long time. Clarets in particular are known for their longevity with 20-30 years, or longer, being possible for top wines. However, Australian Shiraz is now making its presence felt with 20-year-old wines not only drinking well, but also being a delight to try. So here’s a thought for 2019: buy six bottles of wine which can age and drink one bottle per year thereafter and see how it develops.

Castillo de Javier Reserva Navarra 2006 Laithwaites, Theale £14.99

A one-off parcel of wonderfully mature Reserva. You don’t often come across one that’s 13 years old and definitely not one at such a good price. Tempranillo with dashes of Cabernet and Garnacha, aged long in oak, silky, rich and lavish. Mature Wines from the Barossa Valley and Maclaren Vale From Vinorium (www.thevinorium.co.uk) mail order All between £14 and £16 per bottle, vintages 2001-2006 from: Kaesler, Olivers Taranga, Pertaringa, Kay Brothers and Fox Creek • very limited stocks of these wines, so very much a first come, first served basis.

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