Do all RED WINES improve with AGE??? (Let’s Raid MY CELLAR to find out)

[@sirclemeni1]

i think the most important thing is to try for yourself. i have wines in my cellar where i thought that a couple of years would benefit the wine but it didnt and on the other hand i opened some rather cheap bottles i had forgotten about after some years and they turned out to be amazing. so i think there are no particular rules in aging wines except for sweet wines. even high tannic and high acid wines can fall flat after some years.

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Sweet wines and fortifieds are always the safe bet indeed

[@xiaovino]

Hi Matthew, thank you so much for featuring Avignonesi’s Nobile 13! Here's to celebrating great aged wines together! Cheers! 🍷

[@drmatthewhorkey]

🥂🍷😬😋

[@ongcheonghock]

Oldest wine I ever tasted was a Chateau Petit Village from 1937!! the cork came out jet black with a soft sigh, the nose was initially musty but slowly a delicate perfume spread around the room. On the palate it was wonderful, especially from a good(not great) producer and an average vintage. Within 40 minutes, the wine completely oxidised!! The wine was probably bought new and then forgotten in a passive underground cellar. To give a comparison, the wine we drank before this one was a 1970 La Mission Haut Brion. What a privilege and experience.

[@drmatthewhorkey]

It happens! Older wine often fall apart quickly

[@stepsin2492]

Amazing to see a Canarian wine! I holiday in Gran Canaria quite often, and have found some really amazing wines from across the Islands. Super underrated region!

[@drmatthewhorkey]

An amazing terroir for sure

[@MMM41086]

You’ve definitely sparked my husbands and my love for Sangiovese! It has become our go to favorite!

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Niccccee

[@karlinggard]

Napa Cabernet can stay fresh for a looong time... A few months ago I tasted a 1989 Robert Mondavi Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve, blind, and I couldn't believe it was more than 20 years old. Exceptional quality as well!

[@drmatthewhorkey]

No surprise, Napa Cabs from 60s and 70s are stellar in my experience

[@fredericperrin3279]

As always, interesting. It's mostly a matter of personal preference. But here, most of the wines you try are barely old at all. Personally, I hardly ever remember opening bottle and thinking "that's a shame, it's too old". On the other hand, I frequently open bottles that I find should have been kept. I ask winemakers how long their wines should be aged. They often tell me (for pretty ordinary stuff) 3-5 years. And yet, I find that they are fine and usually better after 10 years. Older is not always better, but it usually is unless the wine is really not well made. But I understand some prefer the fruity flavors of young wines. I prefer the complexity of older ones. In 2017, I opened a 1954 Bordeaux that was left in my dad's cellar. The label was more or less gone. It was an ordinary Bordeaux. The cork was surprisingly good. The wine had little alcohol left, it was certainly past its peak but I found absolutely wonderful. Light, refined, just delicious. What a great memory!

[@drmatthewhorkey]

That’s what wine is about! Exquisite memories…

[@welshtoro3256]

Good review Matt but I would have liked to see you taste a couple of real old boilers in there. A little while ago I left a comment on John's channel (Attorney Somm) about us not needing to age stuff until we're grey and got slammed by a bunch of jerks. I've bought wine from great vintages and kept them for the right occasion but time flies by and the next thing you know your sitting on bottles of great stuff that should be opened but you can't do it with your regular mid-week meal. I have a lot of Italian wine which I think benefits with age and some French which does too. However, as you can guess, I have a huge amount of Spanish wine from great vintages such as 2004, 2005, 2010, 2015, etc. I know that these wines are well in their window and could go downhill. Those tertiary notes can make old Spanish wine taste all the same if you're not careful and taste no different from one winery to another. I've decided to open them before they go south. Cheers. WT

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Pardon me but what does 'boilers' mean???

[@welshtoro3256]

@@drmatthewhorkeyOops, a bit of a Brit expression. It means old and seen better days.

[@andrewkarl5174]

Aged wines seem to go through phases. You can open a wine that’s seams to have taken a nap, closed and not much there. Other times, it’s like catching lightning in a bottle.

[@drmatthewhorkey]

You got that right

[@JohnAmidon-c6r]

Not just red wines....In 1989, I made a Gewurztraminer from Apponagansett Bay Vineyard in southeast Massachusetts. An early frost has stripped the leaves off the vines and the grapes stopped ripening at 16 degrees Brix. I fermented the juice with champagne yeast, chaptalized with table sugar to 12 percent alcohol and bottled it. When young it tasted like rather acidic, simple champagne. Then, in 1998 I opened one of my last bottles and it had softened, to reveal a spicy, softly acidic Gewurz reminiscent of decent Alsatian Gewurztraminer. Blew me away, you just never know! 😊

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Niceee!!!! That is an awesome story

[@Furyofwaaagh]

I feel Rioja, especially Gran Reserva are extremely underpriced, at least in the UK, if you want to drink an older bottle for little money, a larger supermarket will probably have a couple of these. I gambled on a 2015, which was marked reduced to clear, likely hitting the max age for that style that retailer considers OK, it was one of the best wines I have ever had and cost me £11.99.

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Agreed on Rioja!

[@Furyofwaaagh]

Not a red wine, but I see little content about Cava, if we are talking about price to performance, how do you feel about vintage Cava, especially as an age worthy wine? Also, quite new to your content, good stuff, keep it up sir. @@drmatthewhorkey

[@drmatthewhorkey]

There are videos w Cava including in one of the VLOGs

[@solomonmengeu1003]

I have experienced leaving red wines on the shelf for too long and them being past their prime more than once. So I've learned to study the region and winery before aging them long-haul. On the other hand I had an amazing aged Rioja Gran Reserva that still had plenty of fruit but also had forest floor and smoky notes in spades, and a red Stellenbosch blend from 2012 that we had in 2021 was pretty awesome. I have aged Tokaji Aszus, 1 TBA and other dessert wines, but not so many whites yet. I do find that as I age I enjoy aged wines of all kinds, but I agree that the fruit has to be the structure and the backbone. With the secondary and tertiary notes adding complexity and layers to them. Great video, fun and informative. Cheers Matthew!

[@drmatthewhorkey]

I’m envious that you now have access to unlimited Aszú!

[@danf321]

The one test I did was pulling out a bottle of the generic Paso Robles Robert Hall Cabernet that I pulled out of my wine fridge after 5 years. The 5 years helped this $20 Cab quite a bit, mellowing it and making it very drinkable. Did it turn a basic Cab into the Robert Hall Reserve Cab? No, but 5 years really helped.

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Just a few years in the bottle do wonders for all types of wines

[@noahcap]

Great video- I have a similar experience to you: aged wines are sometimes disappointing, but sometimes can provide wonderful experiences that young wines simply cannot. Glad to see the Chehalem make an appearance- I had a 1998 a few years ago that was fantastic. Keep up the great work!

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Ohhh a 98’? Was it still fruity?

[@noahcap]

Yes! Amazingly young with red fruits. Some tertiary notes just starting to creep in. Wonderful stuff. My CT notes said I thought it would least 10 more years, and I bet that's true!@@drmatthewhorkey

[@VektrumSimulacrum]

Speaking of wine and volume of production, I got 7 bottles of 2016 Friedeman Pinot Noir. 103 cases made in total. But my favorite part is the info on the label. It lists the Grower (Ulises Valdez) The exact Vineyard (Lancel Creek), The clones used (Pommard 50%, Calera 30%, 777 20%) and exactly how they made the wine. No marketing poetry. I haven't tasted that many wines over 5 years old...but this one is *really good*. 🤤 I think the other 6 bottles can sit for quite a while longer.

[@drmatthewhorkey]

If that's the case, I'm sure they can last a tad longer

[@jameswingad3212]

I really love both and I´m surprised you didn´t have any Rioja as I find they can age beautifully as the time allows the wine to overcome some of the oak that they can overuse. At a birthday party last year I found a 2014 Primitivo and thought it would be fine ti use up in a sauce yet it was actually still lively with fruit and held up amazingly well. At the same time I´ve tried wines aged for a few decades that on release are hundreds of Euros a bottle and they´re essentially too old and completely done. My favourite approach is to buy a case and drink the wine every so often to watch it develop. That way you don´t let it dry out and miss the boat.

[@drmatthewhorkey]

I do love Rioja! Well-made Primitivo can be a treat indeed (although most is sweeter, cheap stuff)

[@marknelson8724]

Buying by the case and trying a bottle every once in a while is the old way. The idea being to zero in on that plateau we mistakenly call "the peak" and then drink soon rather than one bottle per year. This all adds to one's experience and helps when you are faced with just a bottle or two.

[@jameswingad3212]

@@marknelson8724 One a year seems unnecessary. You get a sense on release of what the wine is like and wait around that amount of tie. If the tannins are too harsh still, eat some meat and wait a bit for the rest though I really am reluctant to let wine get too old. I´ve tasted so many old wines that were great once that people let die in the cellar.

[@marknelson8724]

@@jameswingad3212 As I said, that was the old way of doing things when you would buy Bordeaux and generally the wine would drink well at fifteen years of age. Now, Jancis Robinson says ten years for a Bordeaux vintage, which is quite a change. For California Napa Cab, I like to be in the six to ten year range. I have seen four months make a big change.

[@jameswingad3212]

@@marknelson8724 so what is this new way you´re talking about? Accept a critics view and just drink the lot then?

[@neilfish2635]

I've just drunk a 1996 Mount Mary Pinot (Yarra Valley in Australia). I use a Coravin so I have drunk it over 4 days and each time I have been delighted. No brown edge, still pale red. Restrained nose, some dark fruits and earthy notes. The taste is just wonderful, soft tannins and gentle acid framing deep black fruits. Excellent length as well. I had found this hidden away in my collection and was amazed at how well it has aged. (Mount Mary reds have a reputation of ageing well.)

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Mount Mary wines are stellar indeed! Bravo 👏🏼

[@diegogodinhorocha9448]

Another nice tasting, with a nice format, as well. I loved the coravin editing - it reminded me of the airport editing in "Snatch!". You need to put crazy sounds there... My experiences with aged wine vary from disappointing to heartbreaking, except for one 2007 Brunello that was able to deliver. I'm currently aging a Barolo (2018), a Chilean Cab (2020), a Portuguese Syrah (2015), Quinta do Vale Meão's Touriga Nacional (2020) and a Brunello from 2015. I'm hoping they give me something.

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Aged reds can be a crapshoot sometimes! I haven’t seen Snatch in a long time!

[@AShiga]

Aged wines FTW. The oldest one I've ever had was a 1952 Brazilian Bordeaux blend and it was drinkable which I found mindblowing. I've had many aged clarets here in the UK as those are relatively widely available. I'm talking 15-30 years old bottles at £20-35 range and I think it's easy to find well aged Clarets as long as they've been stored properly. For my taste and from my experience, great wines (which doesn't mean expensive) are at their best around 15yo.

[@drmatthewhorkey]

For dry wines I agree, 10-15 years old is a sweet spot

[@jacob9540]

Vintage variation is very important too. Some Bordeaux vintages feel like they’re already on their way out at 7-10 years old, whereas others still aren’t ready at 20+ years old.

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Vintage variation in some regions is VERY important indeed

[@robdielemans9189]

I'm more of an aged white wine (currently drinking a 2019 Komcho & Co Kisi Qvevri Amber Dry to much delight) kind of guy especially when, although rarely, they can escape the Bell curve. Some of them (especially cheap Riesling, Querbach is the best example of this) can deteriorate with age and then just flip the script where the oxidization adds to the taste with medicinal almost dry sherry flavours. For reds I have a case( minus one bottle) of Taurasi 2012 which still tastes way too young, next bottle I'll be trying in 2025 and determine whereabouts the top potentially lies. I adore these videos, they add substantially to my individual wine journey and give me tools and vocabulary to better enjoy and express myself when it comes to fermented grape juice. Thanks a lot!

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Thank you so so much

[@robdielemans9189]

@@drmatthewhorkey You're welcome, but also thank you so, so much, this year you've introduced me to Prokupac and so far that stuff is right up my alley and (still) affordable.

[@MichaelH-ck4hg]

In 2018 I opened up a 1986 Opus One that I bought in 1990. It was stored well and though it took a while to open up, it was amazing. I’m opening a 1964 Chateau Palmer this summer. It’s still full higher up in the neck, and hopefully it will be good. I won’t be surprised if it’s past its prime.

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Niccee!! Opus One does age well

[@KlausValk]

My dream for US wines is a 1971 or a 1973/1974 Heitz Cellars Margareth's vineyard. But the cost...! In Europe old and very old barolos can be found for fairly cheap!

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Ahhh Martha’s Vineyard is soooo good from Heitz!

[@certisko1]

My last aged wine, which suprised me was Pricum Valdemuz 2009 from Tierra de León from Spain. It was in super condition, fresh with a lot of red fruits on palate. Really nice.

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Ohhh I haven’t had that!

[@gustavomgomes]

I love aged wines ! But I find that the ones that are 10 years or more and are not a out of the world quality can be a little risky to buy . And on top of that, there is the crazy wines that age slowly and can age for decades . So , it’s a difficult game to play . Love the content ! Cheers !

[@drmatthewhorkey]

It is a funny game to play!

[@enthusiastic_amateur]

Both -- or perhaps rather all? New vs. old is not a competition about which is "better" but rather an expression of how wine changes over its lifespan. It is interesting and educational to drink the same wine young, mid-aged & old with the intent of finding common threads throughout. For example, the green stemminess that eventually presents as dried tomato leaves; the fresh oak/cedar that eventually becomes notes of leather, tobacco and forest floor; the ripe black plum that turns into dried black fruits. A few oldest wines for me: 1837 port (incredible tertiary fruit); 1923 Chateau Lagrange, St. Julien (lovely with tertiary perfumes and fruit for about 2 hours before drying out); 1937 G. Borgogno Barolo Riserva Speciale (light body but simply elegant tertiary flavors and great acid)

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Port often ages splendid indeed!

[@ymirvalsson5573]

Oldest wine I have had was a 1976 German riesling. Served with a variety of cheese. It brought me to tears…

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Wines that bring you to tears are magical indeed!

[@lancemurray6216]

The best aged wine I had was a 1959 Grand Cru from Burgundy to celebrate my Masters degree. It was pale in color, but the taste was so ethereal and delicate. I was even happy to taste the sediment at the bottom of the glass ;)

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Ohhhh nice! What producer??

[@lancemurray6216]

Sorry, it was 35 years ago, and I do not remember the producer or the Grand Cru. But I still remember the taste. I actually bought it from a wine store, and I was worried it would not be good .. or it was corked. But, it was fantastic.

[@joe-zp7ge]

great take on wine aging. is their a book out their that could let the public know if and when to age certain grapes?. their are so many varieties of grapes and the question of aging makes it complicated.

[@drmatthewhorkey]

It is too generic to say which grapes age because it depends on the quality of the fruit and the skill of the producer...

[@jlynn1304]

I just finished off a bottle of 2008 Bosconia Reserva Rioja last night and it was wonderful. The acid and tannins were still extremely lively and could go for many more years. The next oldest wine I have is a 2012 Washington Merlot. Hopefully it's not past its prime when I open it.

[@drmatthewhorkey]

The Bosconia always offers insane QPR

[@andrewbennett6089]

The oldest red wine I've ever tried was a 2010 Bodegas Carrau Tannat from Canelones, Uruguay, drunk in March 2022. Paired with Argentinian steak and chorizo with chimichurri, fried green plantains, and later on chivito (Uruguayan steak sandwich). Leather, dark berries, and juniper mostly, although maybe it had faded a bit - I forgot a lot of the other flavors because I wasn't as focused on getting exhaustive tasting notes. I want to give Tannat another attempt. The actual oldest wines I've had were two icewines. 1993 Wagner Vineyards Ravat Blanc (i.e. Vignoles) - found this in my grandmother's house when she moved into assisted living around Thanksgiving 2022, and drank at Christmas dinner 2022. It was very oxidized and felt like a Madeira, but still had plenty of fruit - caramelized fig jam, apricot, honey, raisins, peach. Delicious with mince pie, pizzelles and ice cream, and bustrengo (Sammarinese fruitcake). This experience inspired a family tradition to drink icewine at Christmas dinner with dessert. 2005 Château Changyu Golden Icewine Valley Vidal - an Asian market had these in stock among a lot of other highly aged wines. Most of them are so dead they look hideous - cheap producers and kept for well over a decade in bad storage. But icewine had a good chance of still being great, and it was, for our Christmas 2023 (actually in January 2024 due to COVID in the family). Particularly with Danish apple pudding and some Spanish nougats I bought in Spain last summer. Apricot, fig, burnt caramel, date syrup, walnut, hazelnut, honey, lemon curd, pineapple upside down cake. The big surprise is it's from China - Liaoning province, famous for icewine due to the frigid continental climate bordering North Korea and not far from Russia and Mongolia either.

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Icewines and many other sweets can be just stellar with age!

[@alexandrehenri-bhargava2741]

I drink a lot of our Okanagan wines (BC, Canada) which are high acid and high abv. They age exceptionally well. I cracked an amazing ‘13 merlot the other night that was still super fruity and fresh

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Ohhhh nice! I gotta make it out there. I love BC

[@rickwezenaar]

I like how enthousiastic you are about wine ;) especially wines which are not mainstream. very good, sir ! ;) I refuse to buy into the coravin system. It is too pricey and I love to drink the whole bottle with friends ;) ;)

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Drink away!!!

[@robwoods5192]

I haven't been a wine fan for long enough to have put away many for a long time. The oldest are probably a Renato Ratti Marcenasco Barolo 2015 and a 2014 Stag's Leap Artemis. I might crack the Artemis open for my birthday this year.

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Ohhh enjoy it!!

[@andrewcarson9981]

Hi Matthew. Great video! Any opinions on age-ability of wines under screwcaps. I’ve heard that they age differently to cork. i.e the fruit characteristics don’t evolve much and sit at odds with some tertiary characteristics.

[@drmatthewhorkey]

There are studies on this but I am pro screw caps, I've tasted some lovely Aussie and Kiwi aged wines under stelvin

[@hazardo4378]

Oldest wine I've tried was a Madera from 1895 it was still drinkable but on the day I prefered a 1967 port which was also opened for my late grandfather's 80th. RIP John ♥

[@drmatthewhorkey]

RIP, was the 1895 a Port too??

[@hazardo4378]

@@drmatthewhorkeyThe Madeira (as I should have called it) was also sweet tawny fortified desert wine. It's Portuguese, but I don't know if I'd describe it as port.

[@tomchung1004c]

Speaking of aging, I have set up 800 bottle cellar last year and it is pretty much full now. It is one of those "modern" cellar with one side entirely made of glass wall and door. I really like it but I wasn't sure of cellaring for long term. To compensate more loss of temperature due to glass wall, we did get a more over sized wine compressor. Basically got the most heavy duty Whisperkool unit. It is set to 55 degrees. Based on measurements, I see that one far end of the cellar "air" temp swings from 57~59 about 16 times in 24 hr period. So that is 2 degree fluctions many times. I am told that evethough the air temp fluctuates, the liquid temp doesn't fluctuate that much so I should be okay(by Whisperkool). Is this a safe environment for long term storage? Like 10+ years?

[@drmatthewhorkey]

I doubt 2 degrees flux is that bad. Sounds like an impressive setup!

[@mickeylee2624]

In our wine prehistoric era, my dining companion splurged on a Dom Perignon so that we could open it for a special celebration. After procrastinating for over 17 years, its price has gone up so much (~4.5x) that it feels TOO expensive for even a truly special occasion!

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Yes but Champagne is Champagne!! Time to enjoy

[@eddiechase305]

for older wines (30 plus years old), is there a need to decant or should you jump right in?

[@drmatthewhorkey]

I like jumping right in!

[@pedroguimaraes5054]

Nice theme! I love to collect and i love my wine properly aged...which can mean a diferent thing to each one of us. For me i usually drink my ageworthy wines with 10 to 15 years some with 20 years. I changed a bit my ageing plan (used to be longer) due to opening expensive bottles going downhill ferociously...which if you only have 2 or 3 botttles sucks big time. Also i like the mix between some fruit and terciary complexities. Best white aged - bouchard pere et fils montrachet 1967 Best red aged (lately) - Sidonio de Sousa Bairrada Garrafeira 2000 (incredible). I do love sangiovese but i have to say that my biggest disapointments with aging red wine has been with Brunello (worst than Chianti Riserva or chianti gran selezione). Besides the usual suspects Bairrada/Baga is one of the best wines to age and be amazed.....really!

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Niccee to mention Sidonio di Sousa!! I love him and Bairrada!

[@pedroguimaraes5054]

@@drmatthewhorkey When a Bairrada top wines tasting??? Pleaseeeee

Hey Matthew, do you do collabs? Very interesting video by the way, I share the experience, of the bad experience I had with aged, dry reds have also been my worst

[@drmatthewhorkey]

There are plenty of collabs with other KZbinrs and IGers on past videos

[@hacksawbob3310]

You seem to bounce between the Gabriel Glas Stand Art and the Rovsya Burgundy glass quite frequently. Is this due to sponsorship or is it due to the varietals you're tasting in the video? Any rules of thumb on which glass to use? I don't want to go to the extreme of varietal-specific glasses, but a few to cover the gamut would be OK...

[@drmatthewhorkey]

That and Riedel glasses. No sponsorships (but I’m trying to get one!) all the glasses I use on the channel I REALLY like

[@andrewkarl5174]

ChehAlam, better luck next time

[@drmatthewhorkey]

😬

[@jeremyquantrill4137]

I'm buying lots of old, like 1960s/1970s, Bordeaux wines at the moment...try a 1975 Chateau Canon and a 1978 Feytit Guillot, these are the best i've had so far....maybe an aged Bordeaux wine video would be good...

[@drmatthewhorkey]

If people could get me the samples than yes it would be

[@ronav8s]

I would be curious to know how (or whether) some of those open up after an hour or so in the glass.

[@drmatthewhorkey]

I find that really aged wines tend to fall apart quickly in the glass. These weren’t that old but I don’t see many improving a ton

[@SmartDave60]

Can wines age well in a screw cap?

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Absolutely

[@AndrewSmith-rh9kt]

Personally I don't think most stuff lasts as long as people like to think. There's lots of spoilt bottles of what was excellent wine in people's cellars.

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Agreed!!

[@georgigeorgiev-ei4or]

Aged red bordeaux wine for me.

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Good choice

[@Ruirspirul]

you think Burgundy is overrated? yes but nowhere near as overrated as aged wines😅

[@drmatthewhorkey]

LOL

[@ongcheonghock]

Most disappointing aged wine was a 1955 La Tache from DRC. It was awful!! was never a good wine. The whole group had very pained expressions on our faces trying to find something good to say about the wine but could not! Michael Broadbent in his tome said that he had never tasted any DRC wines from 1955, 56, no wonder! Just goes to show that it is no point ageing a wine if it isn't good!

[@drmatthewhorkey]

Those are the bummer experiences!