Wine care and serving

The life of a wine

The behaviour of wines can be compared to that of living beings: they are born, they grow, they develop and they reach the end of their lives. The longevity of a wine depends on the initial qualities of the wine in question and on the storage conditions. Not all wines improve over time, even if they have been stored well.

Due to their structure, vintage and noble origins, some wines improve and are enhanced over time whilst others lose their qualities in just a few months.

For this reason, it is advisable to divide wine into four large groups:

• Those wines that must be consumed within a year to a year and a half after the harvest. As is the case for the simple white wines which have not been barrel-aged and are not sourced from a noble grape variety; the Garnacha or Tempranillo rosés; and the simplest red wines.
• Those wines that improve over a 2 - 3 year period. This group encompasses the majority of normal red wines that have not been aged and white wines sourced from noble varieties that have not been barrel aged.
• Those wines which should optimally be consumed within a 3 to 10 year period. This group encompasses the majority of the barrel-aged red wines and great whites which have been barrel aged or fermented.
• Those wines which reach their optimum consumption period after 10 to 15 years, in other words the great bottles, such as red wines from very special vintages and sources.