How Long to Hold a Bottle of Good Riesling? At Heron Hill and Elsewhere, the Search for Answers Goes On

By Evan Dawson, Managing Editor

When is the ideal time to open a well-made Finger Lakes riesling?

It seems like a silly question, doesn't it? The answer is often, and appropriately, "Whenever you feel like it."

And start with this: There's no Finger Lakes riesling that will be so closed as to be unready if you open it young. Even the 2010 rieslings coming off the bottling lines this spring will be fine in short order.

But the best wine tells an extended story, one that unfolds in multiple acts. A great riesling in its youth is all nervy, adolescent energy. In its second act, the story evolves to something more complex and measured, perhaps richer and more rounded. The denouement brings a new kind of intensity, one that simultaneously echoes its youthful core while delivering wisdom and fullness. 

If you've not had the pleasure of enjoying mature riesling yet, trust me when I tell you it's an experience worth pursuing.

But how long to wait? Ask ten Finger Lakes winemakers, and you'll hear a wide range in responses. Most often, but certainly not always, I'm told the safe bet is to open the wine at age three. As long as you've stored the bottle properly, that ensures that you'll still capture those primary notes while getting an early glimpse into where the wine might go.

But it's the first intermission, and you'll miss the rest of the show.

It's important to acknowledge with New York wines -- not simply Finger Lakes riesling, but Long Island merlot and other varieties grown across this state -- that we don't have a large enough track record to know. Not yet. For years, even the finest New York producers were not building a library. And the dirty little secret is that some winery owners will confess to not-quite-ideal storage conditions for some wines they did hold.

There is more of a focus than ever on observing aging trends in Finger Lakes rieslings. Any consumer can be part of the exploration. One bottle always puts pressure on the owner to find the "right window" for drinking. Yes, it's more expensive, but when you find a truly special riesling, buying a case can be immensely rewarding. Opening one bottle every year for a dozen years is a fascinating process to watch unfold. Detailed notes help recall the prior incarnations.

Better yet, there are more opportunities than ever to hook up with Finger Lakes producers that are offering vertical tastings of rieslings to the public.

Earlier this month, Heron Hill Winery offered a vertical tasting of its Ingle Vineyard Riesling dating back to 2002. Here are some notes from that tasting.

• 2002: Mature and classy, turned over to significant petrol
• 2003: Stunningly fresh, this wine shows tremendous cut and energy, with no petrol whatsoever. It has added mouthfeel with time, but the fruit is still primary. While the 2002 is in its final act, this wine is arguably just seeing the start of act two.
• 2004: A bit one-dimensional in its petrol character, with perhaps more weight than younger versions
• 2005: Not poured; the winery decided it has not aged as they prefer
• 2006: Complex, with nice juiciness to balance the steely edge that often comes from this vineyard
• 2007: Difficult vintage shows in the petrol and advanced age; not one to hold for too long
• 2008: Just a baby, with all of the elements for a dazzling life ahead 

Comments

[antoinette di ciaccio]

This is a fun read. I have had my own "experiment" going for a bit. TO be clear, though, are you applying these thoughts to all rieslings - dry to dessert style?

[Knile]

Did they say anything else about the 2005, or can somebody else suggest what it is--or might be like? Does saying that it's not how they prefer imply that the others in this tasting did exactly what they'd hope?

[Evan Dawson]

Antoinette - Great point and question. My guess is that a well made Riesling will age nicely no matter the RS, but I'd also guess that a dry Riesling will have a different evolution than a semi-dry, and a dessert style, etc. There is some expectation that richer, sweeter rieslings have longer lives. I tend to hold more semi-dry and late harvest rieslngs, but I certainly hold dry bottlings, too.

[Evan Dawson]

Knile - I'll let Heron Hill jump on here to answer that question. I know they felt that the other six wines were in line with expectations, but that doesn't mean they agree with all of my notes on the wines.

[Michael Sutterby]

Back in either 1992 or 1993, while I was working at Glenora we put together a vertical tasting of Glenora Rieslings for Wine and Spirits magazine. I no longer have a copy of the article, but I remember that the standout wine at the time was the 1982 Select Late Harvest. It was amazing the depth that the sweet wine developed over the 10 years it had been in the bottle. However all of the wines tasted that day all the way back to I think the 1978 vintage were showing remarkable youth and vibrance. In 1998 I had an opportunity to try another bottle of that 1982 and while the character had defiantly changed, it was still going strong.

In general the areas Rieslings hold up very well to age. I have found that like all aged wines though, not everyone immediately appreciates the change in character of the wines. Aged Rieslings are something of an acquired taste for some, but for those that understand them they are a wonderful experience.

[Evan Dawson]

Michael - Awesome story; thanks for stopping in to share it.

I think you're right: aged riesling is an acquired taste for those who are only accustomed to primary, youthful riesling. But the same can be said for Bordeaux or so many other wines.

[Peter Bell / Fox Run]

It (almost) goes without saying that tasters have to tolerate an ever greater standard deviation in quality as wines are aged; that is, individual bottles are more and more likely to be different from each other as they get older.

Today we tasted the 2005 Tierce Riesling under two different closures: the standard Stelvins and a bark cork. They were almost not recognizable as the same wine. A confounding variable here was that the corks were used in bottles at the very end of the bottling run, when oxygen pickup tends to spike.

And two other points: 1) 2005 Rieslings from the Finger Lakes had a tendency to crash fairly early in their lives, which may be why Heron Hill pulled theirs from the tasting; and 2) I think I will go to my grave feeling that dry Rieslings just don't hold their interest as reliably with age compared to sweeter ones.

[mark grimaldi]

Evan - remember when we had the 02 Ingle Vineyard I brought by Luce Hawkins this winter? Whats a pleasant surprise that was.

[Howie]

we tasted 2000-2010 dry riesling from Lucas recently and there was a wide range of flavors going on. For some reason the dry style just doesn't seem to age as well. the 2001 had some wonderful flavors, but the 2009 and 2010 really have great potential. no doubt the techniques have got better, from vineyard to storage and enclosures. also i have noticed a significant difference between the lakes especially during the cooler vintages.
Mike- I have some old Hazlitt bottles that are tasting awesome right now 1998 cab sauv and cab franc and this 2001 Menage is just delicious.
I find it interesting that nobody talks about Gewürztraminer, another very nice grape that grows well in the cooler climate of the finger lakes. I have some older bottles that have held up really well over the years.

[Michael Sutterby]

Howie,

I haven't had a bottle of the Menage in years. I only made the one vintage, and really always meant for it to hit it's prime after 5 years or so, nice to hear it is holding up. The 1998s were a nice vintage, I have to admit it though I think the 1999 vintage wines were much better.

Gewürztraminer is one that never seems to get much buzz about laying down. I think that it is such a cult wine in general that a very small number of them get saved.

[Paul Z]

re: 2005 Tierce, how was it? You only mention the closures but not what the wines tasted like. I'm only asking because we have two bottles of the '06 that I'm starting to get curious about.

[Tambi Schweizer]

Here at Heron Hill this is our second year of the Ingle Vineyard Vertical Riesling for '02 to '07, last year we served the 2005 as well. It was very bright, with fantastic acidity and seemed to be one of the favorite of the wines that we served last year, unfortunately we only saved 3 cases of that wine and we sold out of that particular vintage. Due to the success of the Vertical we are on limited supply of wines. We have also saved a few Riesling Reserves from older vintages that we have yet to release. Let’s hope that all the producers in the Finger Lakes start or continue to work on their cellars and save me a few bottles to try!
I know personally, I have just cleaned out my cellar and am starting on some 2002 (when I first started really drinking/buying wine) and am really enjoying tasting these wines. I have gotten burned on a few bottles, but for the most part....I LOVE them!

[jim silver]

I'm not willing to go as far and say that sweeter rieslings will develop better in the long term, rather I think that balance determines the viability of the vintage.

http://www.lenndevours.com/2010/07/peconic-bay-winery-10vintage-riesling-vertical-a-strong-argument-for-diversity.html

In the 10-year vertical of our Rieslings conducted twice last year, our bone dry style didn't get in the way of successful aging (with only one vintage showing "atypical aging." Key to aging Riesling must be a very low pH.

All that said, I do feel that for extraordinary aging potential, say beyond 20+ years, residual sugar is bound to leave a better impression when that old bottle gets tasted.

[Peter Bell / Fox Run]

Paul Z,

The 2005 Tierce was still delicious, but 2006 was a much more successful year for Rieslings in the Finger Lakes. As you can tell, I tend to like dry Rieslings on the young side, when their tension and raciness are at the forefront, so if it were me I'd crack open that 2006 pretty soon.