Which Wines Are Best for Celebrations?
People have been using wine to celebrate special occasions and to make toasts for thousands of years. From the ancient Greeks, Egyptians and Romans, to even further back with our Neolithic ancestors, wine has had an appeal that has endured throughout most of human history in one form or another.
The oldest known example of wine making to produce a drink that we would recognise today dates back to Neolithic settlements in Iran. Carbon dating has placed this example of ancient wine making as taking place around 5000 BCE - meaning wine making in a recognisable form has been taking place for at least 7000 years!
With such a long history, it is no wonder that wine has had such a marked impact on society through the ages. Something that is interesting to note before we continue is that for many years and in certain parts of the world, wine and beers were usually a safer to drink than plain water as the fermentation process rids the drink of many of the harmful pathogens that were common in drinking water throughout history and even up until the 19th Century.
These days, there are certainly people who will tell you that their wine is a necessity rather than a luxury, but not many people are drinking wine to avoid risky water sources in the 21st Century. We are lucky enough to have wine as something to be enjoyed, a treat for the weekend perhaps, or even that glass of red with your dinner.
Having said this, wine has a special place in our lives as something we use to celebrate the good times and commiserate during the bad times. Generally speaking the wines we choose for special occasions differ from our everyday vintages because special moments call for something a little more refined. Whether you are a lover of red, white or rosé there is an elevated, celebration worthy wine out there for you.
Fine wines for good times
When assessing a wine, there are so many factors that go into its flavour, bouquet, colour and overall quality and drinking experience that it can be difficult to pinpoint exactly what makes a wine ‘fine’ or not. As taste preferences are so intensely personal to each of us, one of the best ways to classify a wine as fine is if it can be allowed to age inside the bottle and will actually improve with age rather than losing its vibrancy and uniqueness.
Non-fine wines are best enjoyed young - fine wines can generally be stored in your cellar and under the right conditions they will continue to get better and better with age. Having said this, this is not the only condition that makes a wine fine, whether it is red, white or sparkling wine - there are so many factors that make a wine stand out as superior to your more everyday types of wine.
Another reason for the ‘fine wine’ classification of some vintages is the provenance of the wine itself. In previous decades, fine wines were mainly sourced from the oldest, most well-known wineries in Italy and France, though newcomers to the market from places such as New Zealand and Argentina. The rise of these New World wines has made it trickier to classify fine wines according to traditional standards, but has opened the market up to some truly special, groundbreaking vintages.
One of the most important aspects of wine making is the makers’ reputation. If a winery has a long history of producing reliably superior wines and has fostered a reputation over the years then it is much more likely that their wines will be granted the title of ‘fine’. Furthermore, the rarity of a vintage will also have a bearing on whether a wine is considered fine or not. Small batches or wines made from challenging, unusual or rare grapes are more likely to fall into the category of fine wines.
Whether a wine is considered fine or not, the most important factor when choosing a special bottle for a celebration is that you choose one you will enjoy. You can easily spend big bucks on an impressive label or rare vintage, but if it’s not to your tastes then you will be missing out on the experience. A sommelier will be able to help you out by making sure every special, celebratory bottle will be one that you can savour according to your taste preferences.