What does Fine Wine mean?
Fine wine is the term used to describe a small number of wines produced which are both rare and tend to be quite expensive.
Where does it come from?
These wines are from "Classic" wine-producing areas of Europe as well as New World producers.
The Classic areas of Europe are as follows:
- France
- Bordeaux
- Burgundy
- Champagne
- Rhone
- Portugal
- Italy
- Germany
- Spain
Examples of Fine Wines from the New World are:
- Penfolds Grange
- Clarendon Hills
- Wild Duck Creek Estate
- D'Arenberg Dead Arm
- Henschke
- Greenock Creek
Why is it so expensive?
Most fine wine is expensive because it is produced in limited quantities and it is made in a way that means it will mature (get better with age) over a long period. This means that it is traded by Fine Wine brokers over and over again. One case of fine wine may change ownership many times through its life before it is drunk by its final lucky owner.
Does it really taste that good?
This is a debate which is a cause of many a conversation on the wine market. The price of fine wine is obviously a factor of supply (often very limited and gets more limited as the wine gets drunk!) and demand (there are very eager buyers worldwide for these wines) and therefore is quite high compared with a normal bottle of wine in the supermarket or general suppliers.
The wines themselves are however usually made with extreme care and with no expense spared, many being made organically now days. This means that they are genuinely great wines which are designed to mature slowly and take on complexity and sophistication not found in most everyday wines.
As ever the only person who can answer this question is the person who drinks the wine - taste is a very personal thing and beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
What difference does the Vintage make?
Vintages are simply the year that the grapes were grown for that particular wine. In most of the European countries the weather is variable from year to year and this has an effect on the quality of the wine produced. Typically sunny hot weather makes for better wine, hence the pacific rim is now a huge benefactor in the fine wine market.
Certain wines (Port and Champagne) have what are called "Declared Vintages". This means that the weather in that particular year was good enough for all the producers to make a wine from just that year's grapes. In other years they will blend the grapes from other years and produce "Non-Vintage" wine.
How soon can I drink it?
Each wine from each vintage will mature differently and therefore there are no hard and fast rules. Generally though, white wine mature faster than reds; more alcoholic wines mature slower than lighter wines and the bigger the bottle the slower the maturation.
Can I invest in Fine Wine?
Anyone can invest in fine wine. There are some broad guidelines worth bearing in mind:
1. Like any investment the value of fine wine can go down as well as up.
2. Fine wine should be part of a balanced investment portfolio and only invest what you can afford to lose (or drink!)
3. Chose wines that have a thorough pedigree and provenance.
4. Buy only in 6’s or 12's in Original Wooden Cases.
Provenance of the wine!
All the fine wines from Nouveau World Wines are sourced through out wine regions across the new world market, namely Australia, Argentina, California, Chile, South Africa and New Zealand. Each vine yard comes with a good trading history in fine wine. The wines are mostly stored in reputable bonded warehouses in perfect storage conditions or stored at the original point of production within in the vine yard. Most wines are available in original wooden cases unless stated.
Useful Fine Wine Links
The following links should help you find out more about fine wine:
General Information
Decanter.com
Wine International.com
Erobertparker.com
Winespectator.com
Wine-pages.com
Wineanorak.com
Vintages
Wine-pages
Wine Lovers Page
South African Wines
Platter Wine Guide
