I opened up 1991 Magill Estate Shiraz V Henshcke Mount Edlestone Shiraz 1989
Both were pretty good, the Mount Edlestone still had more fruit to offer though out of the two.
I'm still fairly new to drinking well aged wines, but what I seem to always find is that they rarely have any length to them, maybe 3 to 5 seconds only They can be very silky and smooth to drink but is this typical of what happens to good wines as they age?
I can't remember every opening a wine over 15 years that still had a big nose and palate remaining, even though I have some good ones in the cellar
Lochness Dave wrote:I opened up 1991 Magill Estate Shiraz V Henshcke Mount Edlestone Shiraz 1989
Both were pretty good, the Mount Edlestone still had more fruit to offer though out of the two. I'm still fairly new to drinking well aged wines, but what I seem to always find is that they rarely have any length to them, maybe 3 to 5 seconds only They can be very silky and smooth to drink but is this typical of what happens to good wines as they age?
I can't remember every opening a wine over 15 years that still had a big nose and palate remaining, even though I have some good ones in the cellar
David.....
Hi,
Older red wines lose primary up front flavours and in doing so they can diminish in 'size'. Silky and smooth to drink are fine descriptors to me. Length on the finish is another matter. I find that some can linger for ages.
I think the optimum age for a bottle of wine is a personal preference perhaps to the same extent as to which wines one prefers in the first place! Don't worry if you don't like aged wine. Besides, tastes change over the years as well
cheers
Carl
Bartenders are supposed to have people skills. Or was it people are supposed to have bartending skills?
Lochness Dave wrote:I opened up 1991 Magill Estate Shiraz V Henshcke Mount Edlestone Shiraz 1989
Both were pretty good, the Mount Edlestone still had more fruit to offer though out of the two. I'm still fairly new to drinking well aged wines, but what I seem to always find is that they rarely have any length to them, maybe 3 to 5 seconds only They can be very silky and smooth to drink but is this typical of what happens to good wines as they age?
I can't remember every opening a wine over 15 years that still had a big nose and palate remaining, even though I have some good ones in the cellar
David.....
As stated the primary fruit does dissipate in older wines and IMO they become more refined and as you said smooth. It is my experience that the wine does loose the power but gains finesse and a greater number of subtle flavours in the wine come out.
As for the length this varies between wines. I had a 1986 Penfolds bin 389 a little while ago that had a minute to 90 seconds on the finish-just sensational.
I am what is called, in computer forum parlance, a "newbie" when it comes to really aged wines, but I had a relevant experience of some older wines recently at our NZ Stonyridge vertical. It was interesting to me that the older wines (i.e 89 and 90) took quite some time to open up, but when they did it was remarkable how much they changed in glass: over time their secondary aromas became much more pungent, and it seemed to me they became more persistant in the finish. So I wonder, for how long did you decant/breathe these wines?
dazza1968 wrote:Hello Dave , Do you decant your wines?
With older wines you decant for less time , and new wines alot longer
Older wines are unique and a bit a lottery but when you get a good one WOW Its heaven in a bottle
Regards Dazza
When I open up the bottle very carefully I pour it through a wine strainer into a decanter and then wash the bottle and pour it carefully back in, I like to pour a nice wine from it's original bottle.
In my experience it definitely depends on the wine. Just recently had two wines from 1991 and both had outstanding length (Cape Mentelle cab/sav and Seppelt Great western Shiraz). Also agree with decanting, old wines sometimes loose a bit when kept aired too long. Again really depends on the wine.
Its heaven in a bottle 
