Dr. David Muhleman

The-Wine-Educator    WINE & SPIRITS EDUCATION AND CONSULTING SERVICES FOR THE CONSUMER AND THE PROFESSIONAL

Italy 2007

I just returned from three weeks of visiting the major wine regions in Northern Italy. And the first thing I can say is that 2007 has the potential for being a very good vintage.

Vintages are a function of weather. In years where the growing season is good, the winemakers get good grapes and can make good wine. In years where the weather is bad, and the grapes don't ripen well, the wine is not as good as it could be. So the better the weather, the better the fruit (grapes), the better the wine.

In the "old world" (France, Italy, Spain, Germany, etc) vintages are more important than in the "new world" (USA, South America, Australia, etc) because the weather seems to be more variable in Europe. The weather in Napa is very similar year after year, and it is only in exceptional years (good and bad) where the vintages become important. In Italy, 1995, 1997, and 2001 the weather during the growing season was particularly good and thus those are good vintages for most wine.

You need to remember just because the weather was good in one part of Italy, it may not have been good in ALL parts of Italy. There are years when the whole of Europe is plagued (or blessed) with exceptional weather. For example, in 2002 it rained throughout Europe and it was a particularly bad vintage. Many wineries did not make their "high end" wines in 2002 because the grapes were just not good enough. Likewise, in 2003, throughout Europe it was a very hot year which lead to very ripe grapes and wines that were fruity, but did not have the right combination of alcohol, sugar, and acid to age for a long time.

So if you like that style of wine; 2003 was a good year for you (drink them young). 1997 was a year were everything went right throughout Europe. Again, this is a broad statement, but "in general" 1997 was a good vintage for well rounded wines which will age well and produce good wines for many years. (1997 was also a good year for California wines, for the same reason).

2007 was a year where it got hot early in the Spring and the vines blossomed early, and the fruit (grapes) ripened early (and in many cases were picked early). The key to 2007 was that the growing season progressed normally; it just started early, peaked early, and harvested early. So the fruit was fully developed and fully ripe several weeks early, thus the winemakers and vineyard farmers throughout Europe harvested the wines early.

Besides having the weather for a good vintage, many of the winemakers are digging up and replacing their older vines. Vines planted 40 years ago were not as technologically advanced as the plants now are, and the new plants can produce more, and better, grapes than the older plants. Likewise, the science of wine making is getting better and winemakers are using better techniques proven to produce better wines.

Italy continues to be the largest wine producing country in the world, and it's many different regions produce very different grapes and very different wines. But regardless of the region or the grapes I saw a lot of effort going into improving the quality of Italian wines. Italy has been working hard for several years to replace the image of lackluster red wine in a bottle covered in a wicker basket, to producing world leaders in fine wines.

Most wine drinkers do not keep up on good vintages and poor vintages. Therefore my suggestion is the next time you are in your favorite wine retailer ask your wine expert. It's their job to know and to recommend wines that match what you are looking for; fresh and fruity or well balanced and meant to age.

My rule of thumb this month is "all wine improve with age - but not the same age." Most wines are released from the winery before they have reached their optimal flavor. Aging in the bottle will help the wines finish maturing and taste better.

Some wines fully mature in 4 weeks and some in 4 decades. It is known that more wine is ruined each year by storing it too long than any other reason. So knowing how long to store a wine and not storing a wine too long is an important lesson. As a Rule of Thumb, wines with high alcohol, high acid, or high sugar should be stored longer than wines low in those three elements. Thus wines like Ports and tokays can last 100 years and Beaujolais nouveau last only a few weeks.

I caution anyone storing wines for more than a year to check with your local wine expert before spending a lot of money to age wines, to make sure you know which wine, and for how long, each particular wine will need to reach it's best maturity.