Old Vines - is the Past the Future?
My 3 pence on whether the age of a vine equates to quality in your glass and my top recommendations from a very special tasting.
There is an age-old problem in the wine industry: it’s unnecessarily complicated.
Shock horror, right?
An example of this is the term 'old vines.’
The theory makes sense:
Old vines are widely known to produce less fruit but better fruit so this should lead to better wines that are clearly defined as a category, to us the consumer.
However, this is not the case.
First of all, there is no legal or generally agreed-upon definition for an old vine. So any Tony, Donald or Henry can put 'old vine' or similar words on their label. (You only have to Google “old vine wine” to see this point).
Then there is the second issue: does ‘old vine’ actually mean better wine? Well, from my time in the industry, there is unfortunately no clear evidence of this either (you can read plenty of articles swaying either way).
So, where does that leave us? Should we ignore anything labelled 'old vine'?
Well, no. I don’t think so.
While the age of the vines doesn’t necessarily guarantee increased quality, it can be an indicator of better quality.
There is also a wider perspective to consider. Preserving old vines can be vital for biodiversity, adapting to climate change and providing many other benefits in the vineyard and beyond.
Finally, there is a romance and sentimentality behind this category. If you ever go to a vineyard with a vigneron you will generally see their whole soul lift when they introduce you to their old vines.
Old vines have seen a lot and like your grandparents deserve respect.
As you have probably heard me say on numerous occasions, wine is about experience and all these factors add value (if you know about them).
So here is the good news.
The Old Vine Conference is a non-profit organisation founded in 2021 by some of the industry’s leading figures to create a clear new category based on these wines.
The concept is great, a step in the right direction.
Hopefully, this group will help create a clearer definition of this category in years to come so when you do see ‘old vines’ on a label it will mean something to us all.
The even better news is that I recently attended the Old Vine Conference’s tasting at 67 Pall Mall which has allowed me to pass on my top picks to you, below:
My ‘Old Vine’ Recommendations:
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