WINEMAG.COM | 23OLD REGIONS, NEW TRICKS
Many consumers now crave a different
experience, and winemakers around
the world have taken notice. Even in
regions famous for serious wines—
such as Bordeaux, Napa or Tuscany—
some producers have shifted away
from overly extracted and high-
alcohol bottlings, focusing on lighter
wines that spend little or no time in
barrel. Energetic and juicy, these are
ready to go with a true expression of
fruit. Vanessa Rea, wine director at
the Eastern Standard in Boston, says
Hobo Wine Co. 2018 Camp Cabernet
Sauvignon falls into this category,
and Gottesfeld likes Ampeleia 2018
Unlitro Rosso Toscana.
“Most regions now have producers
that are...making super fresh and
lighter-than-usual reds that have
not always been appreciated,”
says Josiah Baldivino, sommelier
and owner of wine shop Bay Grape
and Italian restaurant Mama in
Oakland, California. He’s excited
about the vibrant Mountain Tides
Wine Co. Carbonic Petite Sirah
from California; a fresh bottling of
Ulacia Estate Rosé from Getariako
Txakolina; and Le Sot de l’Ange
2018 Malolactix Rouge from France.
FOOD AT THE FOREFRONT
These brighter, fresher styles of
current vintage wines pair well with
the veggie-centric food movement
that’s similarly on the rise.
“Perhaps the trend [of young
wines] is a natural outgrowth of
the glou-glou trend,” says Michael
Warner, co-founder/CEO of DCanter,
a wine boutique in Washington, D.C.
“But there is also a lot of appeal
in easy-drinking wines that don’t
necessitate a hearty food pairing.”
One of his most popular bottles is a
Giunta Malbec Nouveau from New
Zealand’s Hawkes Bay that, according
to Warner, “is a lot of fun and has
quickly gained a small following.”
Beyond Gamay and Cabernet
Franc, seek out younger wines made
from grapes like Mondeuse, Mission,
Cinsault or Schiava (also known as
Trollinger or Vernatsch). You can
also look to regions like California’s
North Coast. There, Rea says you can
find “a smattering of more youthful
producers looking for balance.”
Still, nothing will likely rival the
allure of some aged wines. “There
are definitely certain wines that
blossom to this unfakeable state of
amazingness if you just store the
bottle properly for a couple of years,”
says Baldivino.
But that doesn’t mean bottles
can’t be just as delicious when they’re
younger and livelier. There’s no need
for ageism in the wine world. There’s
room enough for all to exist.