Disgracefully not ageing
Disgracefully not ageing
It is widely believed that our red wines are incapable of surviving.
South African wine drinkers are patriotic - almost to a fault - when it comes to believing in the absolute quality of what is produced in the Cape's cellars.
However, they verge on treason when it comes to recognising the virtues of our older wines. The Butcher Shop's Alan Pick won't list anything with real bottle age because, he says, his customers don't trust them, and this view is typical enough.
It is not the first time in history that ignorance of what is good has led consumers to make poor choices. As long as it is widely believed that our red wines are incapable of surviving - let alone improving with - the passage of time, punters will choose the safety of freshness over the charms of maturity.
In fact, the current generation of wine enthusiasts has probably had so little experience of older wines that it might indeed not find any pleasure in their secondary and tertiary characters - the real reason for cellaring them in the first place.
While most wines improve after a couple of years in bottle, only a few really transform (in the positive sense) with age.
It is worth distinguishing between these two concepts: age-ability is survival (hopefully with the rough edges smoothed away) while age-worthiness is the propensity to emerge after several years in bottle more complex, as well as more refined.
To an extent, age-worthiness is a result of choice of cultivar. However, once the right variety has been selected, the maturation potential is determined by terroir, specific harvest conditions, method of vinification and quality of storage.
Given these factors, is it any surprise that we don't always find our wines as age-worthy as some of their international counterparts?
Chardonnays planted on lime-rich soils in cooler sites are likely to do better than those sourced from warm inland vineyards. Cabernet from the most appropriate terroir will not only outlive most Shiraz but it will better reward the enthusiast who has stored it properly for many years.
This is equally true for the classical appellations of both varieties. Great Bordeaux - predominantly Cabernet - ages through five decades without difficulty. The oldest bottle I've sampled was an 1806 Château Lafite, still very much alive - though more perfume than texture.
The greatest Rhône Shirazes have a shorter lifespan. No doubt there are 50- to 80-year-old bottles in perfect condition, but they are far less common - as a percentage of the total production - than the age-worthy Cabernets of the Médoc.
(For those who think that the Barossa should be included in this calculation, the same judgement holds true: I've tasted Grange back to the very first vintage and while some of the earliest wines are still extraordinary after 50 years, it's a safe bet that even in perfect storage their days are drawing to a close).
The true charm of Cabernet is not really the simple blackcurrant fruit which is all some wine lovers ever get to know. It is what happens when a perfect bottle, from a perfect site, arrives at the place it was always meant to reach.
Its features don't sound nearly as appealing to the ear as they are to the palate. Violets, evanescent cassis, truffles and even graphite are fine, but forest floor and fungal, mushroomy notes are a harder sell.
South African Cabernet Sauvignon is by far the most important victim of the cult of instant gratification which has transformed fine wine into just another fast-moving consumer commodity.
The old-timers recognised that the variety had the most to offer those willing to age the best bottles. It's not difficult to preserve this knowledge - but it does require a few well-stored old bottles.
Michael Fridjhon is a leading wine writer and consultant with extensive international judging experience.
