South Australia’s top winemakers share what makes for a cellar-worthy wine – and their top cellaring picks for 2024.
Michael Fragos, chief winemaker for South Australian vineyard, Chapel Hill, has been crowned McLaren Vale’s Bushing Monarch thrice – he produced the best wine in show in 1997, 1999 and 2010. He’s won a few more awards, all to say he knows a thing or two about the wine business – and which drops make a good investment via cellaring.
“There is a thriving secondary market for trading aged wines, such as through Langton’s,” Fragos says. “Well-cellared bottles of collectible wines are always in demand and can fetch a healthy return.”
It’s likely no surprise Penfolds Grange topped the list for 2023 as the most-collected wine, unchanged from 2022, according to Wine Ark. Penfolds St Henri and Bin 389 rounded out the top 3 for the most-collected wine – and Penfolds was the most popular wine brand with seven entries all up. South Australian wines were the most-collected overall, with 25 entries, and shiraz was the most-collected variety, with 14 entries.
When making cellar-worthy wines, fruit selection is key, Fragos says, because grapes are the primary source of flavour. There’s also a difference in process: “Crafting wines that will age well requires careful consideration of the balance between flavour, tannin, oak, acidity, and structure,” Fragos says.
“This was a strong consideration with our latest Chapel Hill icon release – The Devil Shiraz. To make this wine, every stage in the vineyard and winery were carefully considered, as getting the balance right at the time of bottling is the key to creating a wine that will improve over the ensuing years.”
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Which style of wines work well to cellar?
Mitchell Taylor, a third-generation winemaker and managing director for Taylors Wines (also in South Australia) says, “Not all wines were made to cellar – some are designed to be enjoyed soon after release.”
Wines that typically age well include:
- Red wines: Full-bodied red wines with high tannin content and good acidity.
- White wines: Certain white wines with high acidity and/or a level of sweetness, like Rieslings from the Clare Valley.
- Fortified wines: Wines like Australian Tawny and Apera can develop complex flavours through cellaring.
“In general, wines with a good balance of acidity, tannins and fruit concentration are better suited for aging,” he says.
How to cellar wines for the best result
When cellaring wines, Taylor says you should consider four key factors:
- Location: Store wines in a cool, dark place away from direct sunlight and vibrations.
- Temperature: Maintain a consistent temperature, ideally between 12-15°C. Try to avoid temperature fluctuations. Storing wine on top of your fridge is probably not good over the long term.
- Humidity: Humidity is not a concern with screwcap but if you have corks you need to be aware of the humidity so your corks don’t dry out.
- Position: Wines under screwcap can be stored standing up, but wines under cork need to be stored laying down to keep the cork from drying out.
Once you have your space set up, Fragos also suggests a few housekeeping rules to keep tabs on your cellared wines.
“Once you have your space set up, make sure you sort and label your wines,” he says. “I recommend sorting by variety and from there, labelling each bottle with its ideal drinking window. With this method, you’ll know which wines to grab when the occasion presents itself, and you will avoid the common pitfall of cellaring the wines past their optimal drinking window.
If you can’t cellar your wines at home, Fragos says you can always opt for an external cellaring company and complement that with a small wine fridge at home for easy access.
Wines to cellar in 2024
- Chapel Hill The Devil 2020
- Krondorf 121 Settlers Shiraz 2020
- Howard Park Abercombie Sauvignon 2022
- Lowe Zinfandel 2021
- House of Arras Brut Elite
- Chateau Tanunda 100 Year Old Vine Shiraz 2020
- Taylors 2024 Family Flagship Collection, including The Pioneer Shiraz 2018 and The Visionary Cabernet Sauvignon 2018.
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