Whether crafted from the slopes of Tuscany, the sun-soaked valleys of Chile, or the unique terroirs of South Australia, these age-worthy reds embody the art of patience and craftsmanship.
In the world of fine wine, age-worthy reds hold a special allure. Designed to develop complexity and character as they gracefully evolve in the cellar over time, these wines can offer the connoisseur a remarkably different symphony of aromas and flavour – when opened at their peak – that time can bring to your glass.
We had the amazing opportunity to taste some fantastic drops in recent time, and these four — Tempos Vega Sicilia Valbuena 5° 2018, Penfolds Grange 2020, Bibi Graetz Colore 2021, and the Don Melchor Cabernet Sauvignon 2021 — stood out as testament to the regions, varietals, and winemakers that have shaped their identity. And just as importantly, their striking age-worthiness.
If you’re looking for wines to cellar, these are timeless examples that offer exceptional expressions of their origins and an incredible potential for evolution.
Tempos Vega Sicilia Valbuena 5° 2018
Ribera del Duero’s Bodegas Vega Sicilia is largely regarded as one of the most eminent wine estates from Spain that sits among the best in the world. The winery recently celebrated a milestone 160th anniversary – yes, it’s been making wine since 1864 – and over those years have been making wine that’s synonymous with prestige, heritage and tradition. Its flagship Unico line, in particular, is regarded as one of Spain’s greatest wines and are always highly sought-after.
While the Unico is what thrust them into world renown, it is Vega Sicilia’s Valbuena 5° range that presents the winery’s most precise expression of Tinto Fino, or what we all know as Tempranillo. Tempranillo is, after all, the signature varietal of Ribera del Duero and beloved for its dark fruit and tobacco flavours, and Valbuena 5° builds on that with just a splash of Merlot for balance. Its latest release, the Tempos Vega Sicilia Valbuena 5° 2018 follows that signature approach for a balanced and elegant red. Here you’ll find the expected flavours of blackberry and plum, along with scintillating notes of spice, tobacco and dusty cocoa, but it’s the incredibly firm tannins, unrestrained power, and steely acidity of this wine that more than hints at its cellar-worthiness.
Distributed by Monopole, the Tempos Vega Sicilia Valbuena 5° 2018 is available from Vintage Fine Wines at a recommended retail price of S$320.
Penfolds Grange 2020
Penfolds, one of Australia’s leading winemakers, needs little introduction. The South Australia-based producer is best known for Penfolds Grange, the brainchild of its late chief winemaker Max Schubert, and is arguably considered Australia’s most celebrated wine. Ironically this pinnacle expression of Penfolds was almost never made if Schubert hadn’t defied orders to continue working on his personal wine experiment; first released in 1951, the Penfolds Grange would over the years win global acclaim and today is held up as a shining symbol of Australian wine excellence.
Its latest vintage, the Penfolds Grange 2020, was released earlier this year as part of its sprawling 2024 collection. Like its predecessors, this release by long-serving chief winemaker Peter Gago comprises mostly Shiraz (97%) from Penfolds’ very best parcels across South Australia – with just the lightest touch of Cabernet Sauvignon – that demonstrate the varietal’s incredible synergy with the terroir of the region.
The result is a wine that suggests much on the nose and delivers even more on the palate – liquorice, aniseed, ripe black plum, maraschino cherry, intertwined with mocha and a touch of oak for an intensely rich yet seductively silky sip. And all this before aging. This easily occupies a pride of place in the cellar of any serious collector.
The Penfolds Grange 2020 is available at fine wine retailers 1855 The Bottle Shop, One Cellar, Crystal Wines and Moomba at a recommended retail price of S$1,000.
Bibi Graetz Colore 2021
One of the most celebrated names in Italian wine, cult winemaker Bibi Graetz ironically earned his reputation for an entirely unconventional approach to making wine. For one, Graetz wasn’t born into wine; he’s an artist by training. But his fascination with Tuscany’s old vineyards and traditional grape varieties led him to embark on a winemaking journey in 2000, and he’s never looked back since.
Graetz combines a creative approach to winemaking that emphasises minimal intervention while celebrating heritage, crafting wines from indigenous varietals such as Sangiovese, Colorino, and Canaiolo, particularly from ancient vineyards. His flagship red wine, the Colore, is often lauded as one of the best Super Tuscans money can buy.
While Graetz generally makes the Colore from Sangiovese and sometimes with some Canaiolo and Colorino for more complexity and structure, the Bibi Graetze Colore 2021 is made entirely from Sangiovese that have sourced from vineyards aged between 80 to 100 years old. The rusticity and generosity of these old vines are clearly evident in the wine, offering an explosion of complex floral notes immediately on the nose, while a seductive mineral backbone hints at its potential to age and evolve. A fabulous precise expression of old Sangiovese.
The Bibi Graetz Colore 2021 is available from Angra Wine & Spirits at a recommended retail price of S$395.
Don Melchor Cabernet Sauvignon 2021
Don Melchor is possible one of Chile’s most recognisable wines, and for good reason. This ultra-premium flagship line of Santiago, Chile-based Concha y Toro – one of the world’s largest wine producers – is named after the company’s founder and is frequently described as Chile’s equivalent of a First Growth wine. And like the many Bordeaux producers it draws inspiration from, Don Melchor makes just one wine – a Cabernet Sauvignon, with very tiny proportions of Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Merlot in certain vintages. The inaugural Don Melchor vintage was released in 1987, and uses Cabernet Sauvignon grown in its own vineyard in D.O. Puente Alto within Maipo Valley right at the foothills of the Andes mountains.
The latest release, the Don Melchor Cabernet Sauvignon 2021, continues that fine tradition. This vintage, put together by winemaker Enrique Tirado, comprises 93% Cabernet Sauvignon, rounded out with 4% Cabernet Franc and the remaining 3% being Merlot. The wine has an incredibly expressive bouquet ranging from ripe red fruit and crushed berries to violets and dried flowers, transitioning to a mouth-filling yet elegant palate and ends off in a luscious, sensual finish.
Here is a quintessential Bordeaux-style blend that can challenge with the best of its peers, along with the style’s fantastic ageability. This exact release was just named ‘Wine of the Year’ by reputable wine publication Wine Spectator, so we suspect you’ll want this your cellar.
The Don Melchor Cabernet Sauvignon 2021 is available from One Cellar and Vivino Wine Shop at a recommended retail price of S$245.
[Main photo credit: Depositphotos.com]
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