In our previous blog post, we highlighted wine vocabulary as one of the most important part of wine education and something we stress with our groups. Another key component of wine education is the ideal consumption time, or “drinking window.” When purchasing a wine (particularly if it is an expensive bottle), it’s good to know when you should drink it. But, is there truly an answer to this frequent question? Not really.
This is a question that we are asked constantly by the groups we take to the wine country. Depending on the knowledge level of group participants, we may hold a fun, hands-on wine education class at the start of the trip. We discuss the best time to drink a wine and encourage our groups to ask questions when making a purchase. The truth is – there isn’t one answer. It truly depends on the wine. Variables like the style of the wine maker and varietal all play a part in identifying the drinking window. So, before you do (or don’t) pop the cork, be sure to ask questions and learn more about the wine.
A recent article in the Wall Street Journal offers several tips to help readers figure out a wine’s prime drinking time. Read the full story here.
How do you identify a wine’s drinking window?