With my imminent move to Melbourne I have been confronted with the sorry state of affairs called Australian Customs. They are stubbornly sticking to their guns (i.e., stupid policy) and threatening to charge such an outrageous tariff on my wine cellar that I will either leave most of it in New Zealand or have a big drink up.

To that end I have been inviting friends over to help empty a few bottles, and it got me pondering what my girlfriend calls ‘old wine’. The concept of ageing wine has always fascinated me – that something made by man with natural ingredients could go into a bottle and emerge 15, 20, 25+ years later and actually be better - way better in some cases.

In the past month I have been fortunate enough to consume a few old cellar soldiers that substantially confirm and re-enforce my fascination. I have been sampling some 1986 Bordeaux (Leoville Las Cases, Gruaud Larose, Margaux, Pichon Lalande, Meyney) a vintage that was a blockbuster in terms of the wine’s power, depth & intensity. Drinking these wines young was brutal – akin to rolling balls of sand or sawdust around in your mouth, it just about stripped the enamel off your teeth. But to sip them now (though still in their youth twenty-three years on) is a most pleasurable tasting experience. The tough and stringent tannins have made a significant retreat, and the dominant quality in all the wines is the marvellous emergence of such very sweet, unctuous, concentrated fruit. A quality or character that I do not think can be achieved or experienced except through careful ageing. Old wine is (and will become more of) a rare commodity as wine makers shift their styles to one of early consumption, 98% of all wine is consumed within a year of its release and the fact that many folks just do not have the patience to wait that long.

So, if you are in anyway passionate about wine, look for opportunities (e.g., friends’ cellars, wine tastings, museum & cellar door releases) to drink some older drops and I can almost guarantee you will be rewarded. Listed below are a couple of great youngsters that will more than satiate your red palate…

Torzi Matthews Schist Rock Shiraz Eden Valley Barossa 2008
This wine, without doubt or hesitation, is one of if not the best, affordable Shiraz I have had this year. This is juice with serious class – a wonderful viscous mouthful of pure Shiraz concentration and fruit that seems to stay in your mouth for minutes. The 2007 vintage of this wine won Campbell Mattinson’s Big Red Wine Book’s Bargain Shiraz of the Year & No 1 Top 100 Red Wines Under $20 award and he calls this vintage “easily one of the year’s stars.” So hurry up, as there is not much of this around! $17

Yelland & Papps Greenock Shiraz Barossa 2006
Yelland & Papps is a husband-wife collaboration that was founded in 2005 and sources their grapes from very high quality vineyards in the Greenock area of the Barossa. Production is tiny – a total of 450 cases a year – but the quality is outstanding and worth the extra search effort to latch on to a bottle (they also make a stunning Cabernet Sauvignon and very well reviewed Old Vine Grenache). Seems most of the wine world loves this wine – Australian wine critic James Halliday tags it with 94 points and calls it a “fragrant and lively medium-bodied wine, the black fruit flavours juicy and fresh; a silky mouthfeel and finish.” $32.

+ 1

+ 1