Q&A: Wine & Food Questions
Wine expiration
My parents have several bottles of wine that have been around for years. Is there a source I can consult as to the quality of these wines given the passage of time? I am looking for some sort of resource that gives the average life span for specific years, types of wines, and brands. Thanks!
Answer From Expert Roger C. Bohmrich, MW
Many people have suggested that wine labels should have an expiration date, but while I sympathize with the desire to know if a wine is past its best drinking date, the circumstances are not analogous to food products. With jam, ketchup, or cereal, and certainly highly perishable packaged items (seafood, meat, eggs, etc.), a guideline has been established to provide consumers with a date after which the product may no longer be healthy or safe to consume. In other words, past that expiration date, the foodstuff may have seriously deteriorated or even spoiled. With wine, it is far more complicated. While the overwhelming majority of wine is intended for near-term consumption (within a few years of release), a certain number may actually improve with lengthy cellaring. A wine that is decades old may be even more desirable than a young vintage! Unfortunately, there is no truly reliable guide or chart which predicts the evolution of all wines since this depends on a myriad of factors including the specific wine/producer, vintage and storage conditions. However, for the world's classic wines (Bordeaux, Burgundy, Rhone, Piedmont, Tuscany, Vintage Port and some others) you can consult the websites of well-known reviewers who usually give their personal opinions regarding "ready to drink by" dates.
About The Expert
Roger has enjoyed a lengthy career in the wine trade as an importer and retailer, and at present he is an educator, speaker and consultant. He set up and managed Millesima USA, a New York merchant affiliated with Europe's leader in direct sales of fine wines to consumers. Previously, he served as senior executive of Frederick Wildman & Sons, traveling regularly around the world to visit wineries and taste the new vintage from barrel. Roger became one of America's first Masters of Wine in 1993.
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