Corey Pierce

There’s a certain romance associated with old wine. Books and movies have long tapped into it to create mystique and interest in their characters. When James Bond orders the ’53 Dom Pérignon in Goldfinger, it adds another level to his sophistication — he knows something that we do not. But what do you really know about aging wine? Does it actually make it better? Should all wines be aged? There are a lot of questions surrounding the subject, and if you want to create an effective wine cellar of your own — one that will improve as it ages and give you the kind of pleasure and reward that young wines do not — then you’ll need some answers.

The first and most important thing to know is whether or not you really like old wine. This can be tough to figure out, especially if you don’t have access to any. Buying older wines from a wine shop can be difficult and expensive. However, if you’re taking the leap of building a cellar, let’s suppose that you actually do like the stuff, or at least you think you do.

Old wine is very different from young wine in many ways. In mature bottles, the youthful, vibrant fruit has all but disappeared, and in its place are pungent aromas of decomposed earth and complex spices, followed by a soft, silky palate where flavours have melded together and are less easy to define. That is, of course, if everything goes according to plan.

How do you know if that bottle of Aussie shiraz you pulled of the shelf is ready for the basement or the table? The first clue will be the price, but that’s only the beginning, many more factors contribute to the longevity of a wine. In order for a wine to age, it needs to have some basic components in balance, namely acidity and tannic structure. Wine can age based on many different attributes, but pedigree is usually your best clue. That means the winery has been around for a while and people have actually enjoyed older bottles of its wine. When you’re travelling through the Okanagan and the vintner tells you his wine will age effortlessly for 15 years, you may have some valid trepidation if the winery has only been around for four or five years. How can he really know?

There are few wines under $30 that are set to make the long haul, but they do exist, and finding them is essential if you want to create your cellar on-the-cheap. When most people set out to collect wine, they tend to focus on the classics: Bordeaux, Brunello, Barolo, Burgundy, California Cabernet, port, etc. However, we’re working on the cheap here, and those wines are anything but. We’ll have to get off the main street and hit the back roads if we’re going to discover something worth aging that won’t crush your budget.

The Old World is chock full of great value. France, Italy or Germany can all hook you up with some terrific buys. In France, look to the Loire Valley for whites; Vouvray is still way undervalued and can stick it out for as long as you care to wait. It doesn’t end there. France’s southwest is a forgotten hotbed for value; check out Madiran or Cahors instead of Bordeaux, these may taste like roofing-tar now, but in 10 years they’ll be singing a new tune. And don’t forget our old friend, the terribly misunderstood Beaujolais. Wines from this region’s top crus can age for decades. I like Gigondas as an alternative to the more expensive Châteauneuf-du-Pape, but also look out for Vacqueyras and Lirac — the best here can age very effectively.

Italy is full of value in most regions, but in the south the buys are screaming. Aglianico from just about any southern region will shock you with its incredible aging potential. These are crazy-cheap and age just like great Tuscans at less than half the price. Examples of gaglioppo and negroamaro can also be incredible and well worth their price. You’ll need to look a little harder for these, however.

If you like Riesling, you don’t have to look very far to find a great buy, as there is an abundance of top wines for little more than a song. Any wine lover should have a cash of Riesling in their basement — if only for the fact that it’s your best spent wine dollar. Hey, if you don’t like it now, just wait 20 years and your taste may change.

Here’s a list of some surefire bets for creating your very own bargain basement:

2007 Selve Aglianico Sannio, Italy, $24.95 (8 to 12 years)

2007 Taurino Salice Salentino, Italy, $17.95 (6 to 10 years)

2007 Chateau Pierre Bise Anjou-Gamay, France, $29 (5 to 7 years)

2007 Wittmann Riesling Troken, Germany, $24 (8 to 10 years)

2004 Librandi Duca Sanfelice Riserva, Italy, $21.95 (5 to 10 years)

2007 Robert Weil Rheingau Riesling, Germany, $30 (10 to 13 years)

2006 Jean Marc Burgaud Beaujolais Morgon, France, $23.95 (8 to 12 years)