Aging - As a wine ages, it will lose some of its fruity characteristics and color. In addition, its tannins will subside, but its acidity will remain intact. Tannins, acid and alcohol are all preservatives and play an important role in the aging of wine. When evaluating ageability of a wine, it is either ready to drink, in need of more time, or past its prime.
A wine is usually considered "ready to drink" when all its major tasting components are in balance, according to your individual preferences. It often needs more time when its tannins overpower its fruity characteristics. And it can be past its prime if it has lost a meaningful amount of color and fruit, leaving the taste of alcohol as its most dominant characteristic.
Cost - This is another attribute that's important to consider. The good news - there are lots of really great wines out there, from all regions of the world, that retail for less than $30 a bottle. Once you know what characteristics you prefer, you can begin to build a go-to list of affordable wines. More good news...many North Fork wines are at that price point as well!
Food & Wine Pairing - When considering which wines to consume with food, the cardinal rule is that the wine should never clash with or overpower your food. Zraly's general rule: "The sturdier or fuller in flavor the food, the more full-bodied the wine should be. For foods that are milder the best wines to use would be medium or light bodied". For example, think about a fillet of white fish and a NY strip steak. Would the same wine bring out the best in these foods? Probably not.
My Two Cents
Since a lot that I've just shared with you is just some basic facts, I wanted to put my own personal spin on it all...
The range in climate, soil, grape varieties, aging style and production techniques give way to an endless assortment of wines, each creating a different sensory experience for you the consumer. Moreover, since wine is a living substance that continues to develop in its bottle, your experience with it on one day will be different from your experience with that very same wine if it were to be opened at any other time.
What I find so neat is that in today's world of mass production and standardization, where else can you find so many options at such an accessible price? With that in mind, it's helpful for you to go through your own self-discovery process to identify which wines you enjoy most. As my clever friend Ellyn said recently "Life's too short to be drinking wines you don't like". I couldn't agree more.
As you start to determine what characteristics you seek in a wine, it's fun to share your thoughts with other wine drinkers. To that end, I give you a glimpse into my own evolving list of preferences that have come from my tasting experiences.
Whites: I have a high tolerance for acid, and enjoy the vibrant "activity" it creates in my mouth. I prefer very little or no residual sugar, and I typically seek crisp, refreshing fruits such as citrus, green apple and pineapple.
Reds: I also seek reds with a little acid to add some complexity, and enjoy red fruits such as strawberry and cherry. My tolerance for tannins is somewhat low, so I typically stay away from young, big red wines. I enjoy a lot of length, and have a particular weakness for wines with a creamy tasting finish.
How does this translate into varietal/regional preferences? I tend to go for dry Rieslings, New Zealand Sauvignon Blancs, un-oaked Chardonnays, Zinfandels, North Fork and Washington Merlots, and rather uncharacteristically, French Rhone Valley Syrahs (where I tend to find those creamy finishes). And, when I can get lucky, a powerful red that's been aged properly, making it much lighter on tannins.
Meanwhile, my boyfriend, and tasting partner in crime, typically chooses the same type of whites that I do. But with reds, he has a higher tolerance for tannins and tends to favor wines with dark "stewed fruits" (think raisins and plums), as well as wines with a peppery or earthy profile. Accordingly, he often leans towards big California Cabernets, earthy Pinot Noirs, and Cabernet Francs from regions like the North Fork.
Next Steps for You
As you drink a wine, think about all the elements I discussed. And if you've never done so, don't be afraid to jot down some tasting notes. To get a better sense of what tasting notes look like, use a resource like the website Cellar Tracker, where oenophiles share their thoughts on a broad spectrum of wines.
Now that you're equipped with all of this wine knowledge, I leave you with this Mark Twain quote from Kevin Zraly's book. "There are no standards of taste in wine...each man's own taste is the standard, and a majority vote cannot decide for him or in any slightest degree affect the supremacy of his own standard".
The fun thing about wine is that there's no right answer, because it's so subjective. Everyone experiences nuances in the color, bouquet and palate differently. Only you can work to identify what you like, and once you do so, you'll have lots of fun selecting the varietals and regions that suit your taste. Cheers to that!
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