Look at the vintage and you will know what a good vintage is.

Wine year refers to the year of grape harvest, which can greatly affect the flavor and quality of wine, mainly because the vines are affected by the weather during the growing season. The grape growing season in the northern hemisphere (North America and Europe) is from April to August, while that in the southern hemisphere (Argentina, New Zealand, etc.) is from April to August. ) is 10 to April of the following year (the wine year is set in the following year).

Vintage-free wine is a mixture of wines for many years and is generally known for its stable quality. Champagne is a common vintage-free wine, usually marked with the words "N.V.".

2. Factors affecting the quality of one year

If the year only reflects the weather conditions of a producing area in that year, what determines the quality of the year? In essence, the key factor that determines the quality of a year is sunshine. Sunny weather can make grapes fully mature and reach the best maturity. If there are too many rainy days in a producing area, grapes will not be fully mature, and they will be more prone to decay or disease, and the quality of grapes will also deteriorate. On the other hand, if a producing area is too hot (above 33℃ most days) and sunny, the grapes will be dried into raisins before they are fully ripe, which will make the wine taste too strong or the tannins too bitter.

By knowing the weather of a year, you can estimate the quality of that year:

Spring: Frost in spring is common in Burgundy and new york. New buds may freeze to death before flowering, and hail will destroy buds and buds, eventually reducing the yield of grapes, and sometimes even failing to harvest grains. However, these factors do not necessarily reduce the quality of wine unless they seriously affect the length of grape growth period.

Summer: In Virginia and Germany, humid weather in summer can lead to fungal diseases, which can destroy grapes. On the contrary, in California and Argentina, drought and unusually hot weather will stop the growth of vines until the weather gets cold. These factors may reduce the quality of grapes.

Autumn: The rain in the harvest season will make the grapes swell, thus losing their rich flavor or rotting. A cold climate will slow down the ripening of grapes. The sinister weather during the harvest season will seriously reduce the quality of this year's wine.

By the way, different varieties of grapes like different climates. For example, Riesling grows well in cool and sunny areas at night; The maturity of Cabernet Sauvignon needs dry, hot and sunny weather.

3. The importance of this year

In producing areas with changeable climate, one year is the most important. Sometimes, the weather in many wine producing areas in northern Europe (France, Germany, northern Italy) is difficult to predict. The vintage of the following places needs special attention: Bordeaux, Burgundy and Champagne in France; Piedmont, Veneto and Lombardy in northern Italy; Rioja and Riasbaixas); In northern Spain; Some producing areas in Chile, Germany, New Zealand and Austria.

When wine collectors buy wine, the year is especially important. Grapes produced in good years have good maturity and moderate tannins and acidity (both of which can play an antiseptic role). High-end wines from Bordeaux, Burgundy, Piedmont, Spain, Australia, California and South America will perform better after aging. Similarly, for the best white wine in Burgundy and the top Riesling in Germany, the age of the wine is closely related to the aging potential.

Although the year is very important for some producing areas and wines, there are exceptions. The climate in some producing areas is predictable, the weather conditions are relatively stable and sunny, and the weather changes little every year. Wines produced in warm climates are generally stable in style every year (such as central Spain, Portugal, Argentina, Australia, California and southern Italy), so the year is not so important.

Breweries with large production scale generally strictly control alcohol content, PH value and residual sugar. In order to minimize the impact of the year. Therefore, generally speaking, the wine quality of larger winemakers is relatively stable every year, and the influence of year on wine is not so significant.

4. Why buy good vintage wine?

Affordable and vintage wines are well worth buying. The better the quality of grapes used for wine-making, the less the demand for wine-making technology. 20 14 is the first-class year of Italian wine, so the wines from Sicily and Sardinia this year are of great value. It is worth noting that one year may not be a good year for red wine, but it may be a good year for white wine, because the cooler climate than other years gives wine clearer acidity and more dynamic taste.