This one is for a special occasion, however, I am getting 3 1995 Conde de Valdemar Gran Reservas, so we can see what happens with that :)

Thanks greg,

That is how I normally approach my wines, but I wasn't sure if with something like this if I should change that up.

Also Greg, are you hinting I should stock up on some 2001s and 2004s for long term cellaring ;)

One point worth mentioning, in regards specifically to older wines, is the difference between decanting for clarity and for oxygenation.

I drink a fair amount of old wine. I almost always double decant these wines.

By that I mean i decant the wine into a clean decanter to remove the sediment in the bottle, then return the wine to the bottle once the debris has been rinsed from it.

Too many wines get compromised by sediment. It changes the texture of the wine, and muddies the flavors. So while I am with GregT for the most part I still do suggest decanting for older wines.

Rioja can throw some sediment but the traditional ones see so much time in wood that they frequently drop much of their dry solids during the aging process and are less prone to developing significant sediment in the bottle.

For context - Greg DP drinks wines that are older than half of the people posting on this board!

Actually I agree with him. The thing about most of the Rioja wines that bear the Reserva or Gran Reserva label is that they have usually spent a fair bit of time aging in large barrels or tanks. So while the minimum is 2 years of barrel aging for a GR, usually they do more than that. And as part of the aging, they may be racked a few times. So you tend to have less sediment with those wines than you might with something else.

But yeah, as a rule, if you have an older wine you don't know, I'd also advise storing it upright for a few hours or even a day or so before opening. Shaking up all the sediment is rarely a help.

All that said, the definition of "old" depends on the wine itself. Some grapes seem to have a faster aging curve than others, and the winemaker also has a lot to do with it. For a wine like a Beaujolais, even a cru, a wine with fifteen years on it is pretty mature. For something like a major Barolo, ask Greg but those from the mid 90s that I've had are still really young and not nearly as good as they'll be. For classic Tempranillo, meaning made in the crianza/reserva/GR style, it's a little different. The idea is that the winery releases them when they're ready to drink. If you elect to keep them beyond that on your own, that's fine. But they don't need more aging when they come to the market. (Unlike Bordeaux, where the wineries force you to age the wine yourself.)

Thus, in your case, from experience, I think that the bottle funk will blow off in a couple of minutes after you pour it in the glass and it will be ready to go. But just in case, stand it up for a while and pour carefully.

As far as stocking up - if you want to get some, it's hard to beat the 2001 and 2004 vintages as a general rule. Some producers didn't do well as always, but I put my own money on those. And 2005 too, although when I recently tasted a number of the 2005s vs 2004s, they were not nearly as enjoyable. 2004 is a richer more approachable vintage. The 2005s are sometimes tighter and more acidic seeming. Don't know if that's the "official' word, but it's been the case on numerous occasions. So I think both would be excellent to cellar, although the 2005 actually needs it whereas the 2004 is a little like the 1995 - good now or whenever.

I have some friends who call the 94, 95, 96 vintages the "golden trio". What I can tell you is that from some producers, 1981 or 1982 or 1989 are just excellent today and I have no reason to think that the mid 90s wines won't be just as good or long-lasting. And for some producers, the wines from the 1970s are great too.

I have some at home from 1968 and 1973 and they're just fine - mature and should be finished sometime soon. Oldest Valdemar I've had was only 20 years though, so I can't say a lot about that other than point out the year, grape, and style. They're not necessarily the first rank producer, but in good vintages are just fine. It was one of the first wines I used to buy years ago.

GregDP, am not sure (nor in agreement) on the need for decanting, much less double decanting for well aged bottles. Are you trying that much harder to cut out any hint of sediment? Can you always get all the debris out of the bottle? How much liquid do you end up losing? Or are you merely talking about a 15 yr. old Barolo?

I tend to not decant anything these days. Not even ancient vintage ports. I just leave them standing for two to three days before opening, and am careful during that and the pouring processes not to shake the bottle around. I view decanting, even when done meticulously, as a means of inducing bottleshock, which I don't want for my oldest bottles (though rapid artificial aging of a 2005 is another subject). I do like the sight of a mature wine in a Baccarat captain's decanter, yet I also like the sensation of pouring from a bottle with history, so I just get by with my views of the wine in glass. And I have enough experience by now to know when I'll be entering sediment territory, and thus when to stop the pour.