Take some of the guesswork out
of choosing wines

THE PROLIFERATION of wines from across the globe that are flooding Australian bottle shops is a sign of our maturing palate as a wine drinking nation. Sipping a Pouilly Fume or sampling an Italian sangiovese is becoming commonplace in the CBD of state capital cities and chic pockets around the country. Imports have risen dramatically in recent years, much to the distress of local winemakers.

However, the surge of imports has also exposed the need for higher levels of education to enjoy these wines. In too many instances I've noticed imported wines languishing on shelves well out of date and past their best, waiting for an unsuspecting customer to leap into the unknown and try a bottle. Sadly, they will ultimately be disappointed, never to try that style or brand again. Determining what is current drinking is a vital skill in purchasing wines.

Each country, including Australia and New Zealand, has its ‘drink now' styles. Each year we wait for the new vintage of Marlborough sauvignon blanc to hit the shelves. This is definitely a drink-early style, with up-front fruit and fresh, crisp, zesty acidity on the palate. Australian sauvignon blanc from regions such as Orange and the Adelaide Hills has improved out of sight. These wines should be drunk within one to three years. A clear sign that they have passed their best is when the fresh, crisp palate disappears and the aromas go from fresh gooseberry or crunchy green capsicum into tinned asparagus or an unattractive vegetal smell. Reserve-style sauvignon blancs with some oak maturation can age longer and are underrated, quality-driven wines.

Pinot grigio, either from northern Italy or our own shores and a prolific seller, should also be drunk young. That goes for all Italian white wines, with a few exceptions such as the glorious soave from Peiropan (La Rocca), which sees oak maturation and is priced in the premium range. Australia's best pinot gris and grigios come from the Mornington Peninsula. Rose is another very popular style but the rule is definitely to drink the freshest wines available.

With red wines, French Beaujolais is one of the classic drink-early styles. The top 10 cru village wines include names such as Brouilly and Moulin a Vent, which produce some of the longest-living Beaujolais, but these can last only four or five years on average. Otherwise, all Beaujolais should be consumed within one to two years after release.

In Italy, Chianti is not simply Chianti - there are nine different wines that could bear the name, with or without a sub-regional name. The main ones are labelled either Chianti, Chianti Classico, Chianti Rufino and Chianti Sensesi. Those simply labelled Chianti are the ones that should be consumed in their youth, while Classico and Rufino are best drunk between three and five years old. The Reserva labelled wines have good cellaring potential. Vapolicella or Valpolicella Classico, from the Veneto region in north-eastern Italy, is another one to drink quickly. The Ripasso styles can age a little longer and the premium-priced Amarone have no problem in lasting 10 or more years.

Australia has seen an increase in the number of tempranillos from Spain. The word to watch for here is ‘joven', which indicates a young wine with normally no oak maturation and meant to be consumed young. In general, if a red wine has had only a couple of months in oak then, again, it is designed for immediate consumption.

Oxidised white wines pick up a bruised apple aroma and that can further develop into sherry-like aromas. The colour deepens and you can sometimes pick the oxidised wine in a line-up on a bottle shop shelf. Red wines can be identified by a duller, cooked fruit aroma. The term ‘maderised' is commonly used.

Price is often a reliable indicator of the ageing ability of wine, with a few exceptions such as Australia's excellent Hunter Valley semillon and dry rieslings. If you buy a Spanish Rioja or Ribera Del Duero for $15 and it's a 2005 - already five years old - don't expect it to taste very fresh or in mint condition. The key is to buy the most current vintage of these wines. Ask your retailer which wines they have just received and when they were imported.

In the current market, with plenty of wine on the market from home and abroad, the winner is the consumer. Retailers are stocking wines originally destined for export markets, although there is a danger of older Australian wines coming onto the market as tanks are emptied. Australian screw cap wines do preserve the aromas and flavours better than cork, which is still often used on imported wines. They also travel less to reach the shops. Our wines display higher fruit concentrations, alcohol and tannins that help preserve them and improve their reliability.