White wines for storing

[osjohng]

Any suggestions which whites might be good to buy now and store for inhanced taste later? lso how long ?

[Jerry D Mead]

Give us a little more help here...what kind of whites to you like in general? Dry? Sweet? Semi-sweet? Fruity? Austere?

Are you looking to age for a little while or a long while.

Are there budgetary concerns?

JDM

[osjohng]

Sorry.. To be specific I have a 1998 Riesling. I prefer dry, sweet/semi. I am not intereted in aging desert wines. Aging 3-7 years would be a range that would keep my interest. Price range would be anything below $40. I realize it is very general, but I am new to this and am just looking for suggestions.

Thankx

[Thomas]

Perhaps if there were less than thousands of wine producers and hundreds of thousands of wines, we pros would have an easier time with such questions.

A 1998 Riesling from where?

In general, a well-made Riesling can live relatively long in the bottle, and develop beautifully too. How long and how beautiful depends on whose wine, what year, how stored, and, not the least, one's taste preferences.

[osjohng]

It is a 1998 Long Island resling. I live on Long Island NY. I would be interested in aging it until it has the smoothest taste. ie. less bitter
Also in the under $40 range what might be a good choice for a 3 -7 year aging, again to reach the smoothest taste. I had a 1990 chardonnay, I forget the manufacturer, but the only way I can think of to describe it was very smooth.

Thankx

[Thomas]

Long Island Rieslings never impress me. I live in the Finger Lakes, where Riesling is king.

I suppose when you say bitter you mean acidic, for if the wine is truly bitter, age might not help it at all. Aged wines seem smoother because the changes with time tend to soften the perception of acid and meld the wine's many components.

Riesling is normally a high acid grape, so time is its friend. How many years it takes for any particular wine to develop is a subject I do not believe anyone can truly pin down.