Packaging and labeling are the calling card of any product and product, including wine. The information they carry and to which the buyer sometimes does not pay special attention can tell a lot about what is inside. So, for example, the harvest year of the grapes from which the wine is made allows us to draw preliminary conclusions about the quality of the latter and identify the existing marriage.
Instructions
Step 1
When planning to buy quality wine, please note that an indication of the harvest year is the same necessary information as the name of the wine and its manufacturer, aging, category, etc. Usually, the harvest year is indicated on the label on the neck of the bottle and, supplemented by the inscription on the label "natural wine", is a guarantee that in front of you, in fact, natural wine, and not made from a powder concentrate.
Step 2
Compare the vintage and the type of wine. In terms of aging, all wines are divided into young, un aged, aged (up to 1, 5 years), vintage (up to 3 years) and collection (with a long and very long, sometimes tens or even hundreds of years of aging). Thus, the formula "the older the wine, the better it is" does not always work. For most white wines, the optimal aging period, during which their properties reach the highest rates, is 2-3 years, red wines are stored from 2 to 10 years. So if you are buying wine and the difference between the date of harvest and today is more than three years, inquire if this variety is included in the collection. If yes, then the questions, of course, disappear, if not, then it is better to refuse such wine. The same is true for the rest of the categories - check the one for which you choose, with an indication of the harvest year.
Step 3
Compare the year and place of the crop. The quality of the wine is highly dependent on the weather conditions in which the grapes ripened. Taking into account the weather in a particular wine region, the years are unsuccessful, successful and outstanding, also called vintages. In all wine-making countries, special vintages cards are issued and updated annually, reflecting the assessments of wines according to this criterion. It will not be difficult for you to turn to such a source for information and will be very useful. Even high-grade and expensive wines in bad years for grapes can disappoint with their properties.
