Can Cheap Wine Really Age 30 Years? This Rhône Red Did — Urban Pour Tastings

1995 Domaine de la Mordorée Lirac Rouge wine bottle

A while back, I did two blog posts on how older, less expensive wines can be expected to age. In both cases, I was very pleasantly surprised. The whites were a 1994 Tiefenbrunner Pinot Grigio from Italy’s Alto Adige appellation and a 1987 William Hill Chardonnay from Napa Valley. How Old is Too Old for White Wines? The second and more recent post was about a 1989 Los Vascos Cabernet Sauvignon from the Colchagua region in Chile. Can Cheap Wine Age Well? A 37-Year-Old Cabernet Sauvignon Says, Yes.

All three wines were made by very good producers. But working against them, in my mind at least, was obviously the extensive bottle age on each by the time they were opened, 32 years for the PG and nearly 40 for the red and Chardonnay. Pinot Grigio, unless it’s from Alsace (where it is known as Pinot Gris) isn’t particularly thought of as long-lived. And while Cabs can certainly age for decades, one that cost about $12 all those years ago wouldn’t be considered one of the age-worthy versions. The Chardonnay was also a surprise. Yes, Napa Chards can age but keep in mind that this was in the midst of California’s (and much of the world’s) you-can-never-have-too-much-oak era. Oak tannins can extend a wine’s life but not so much when the wine is otherwise out of balance as many Chardonnays were back then.

When Inexpensive Wines Defy Expectations

They were all more than enjoyable, although I think the Cab best resembled itself after so many years. The PG, while very interesting and still worth drinking, was more of a curiosity. It actually acted more like an Alsace PG (oily richness and stone fruit) with a lot of age than a Pinot Grigio which is vibrant and citric. The Chardonnay presented like a Burgundy with a great deal of bottle age and it even possessed some nice acidity. Who would have guessed?

Meet the 1995 Domaine de la Mordorée Lirac Rouge

Continuing with this thought experiment, let me introduce the next wine from my mother-in-law’s haphazardly accumulated wine collection: 1995 Domaine de la Mordorée Lirac Rouge. I’m not sure exactly how much the bottle was when it was purchased or gifted to my in laws but a search today suggests that the basic AOC version, which is the bottle that I opened, goes for around $30 now, which seems high to me. But if that’s the case, then in 1996 or 1997 dollars, it would have been about $14. So, it would have been considered a decent Tuesday night red but certainly nothing special.

Wine inventory note describing the 1995 Domaine de la Mordorée Lirac and its aging potential

As you can see by the note I typed up for the inventory I did for my mother in law probably sometime in 1999, it was a 50/50 blend of syrah and grenache, and I expected that would be earthy, peppery and red fruited as wines from this part of the Rhône (adjacent to Tavel, Rosé central, and not far from Avignon) can be.

1995 Domaine de la Mordorée Lirac Rouge bottle beside a glass of red wine

Nearly 30 Years Later, the Surprise

Astonishingly, when I opened it nearly 30 years later, it showed immediate meaty aromas of red currant and leather. The flavor profile was equally as well defined: dried red fruit, smoked meat and anise. Even more astonishingly, I left it open for the better part of a week and none of this had noticeably faded away!

I guess age is only a number after all.

What experiences have you had with bottles with lots of age on them? You would expect that a well-aged Classified Bordeaux as well as many other more expensive bottles should be able to take the passing of time. Have you been disappointed in a bottle like that? I guess it’s fair to say that if you can get 30 or 40 years out of a very modestly priced bottle, that should never be a disappointment!