Wine 2016
4 products
What makes wine 2016 something truly special?
The year is widely regarded as one of the absolute finest vintages of the 21st century, and if you enjoy a wine 2016, you will experience a very special balance between structure and freshness. Worldwide, the growing season was blessed with stable, warm days entirely without violent heatwaves. This gave the grapes time to ripen at a calm and even pace over a long period. This created the perfect meeting between a high level of natural acidity and deep, concentrated fruit. The result is wines that appear incredibly well-defined in taste, without ever feeling heavy or too rich in alcohol.
The long time on the vines and the life-giving, cool nights in late summer shaped smaller grapes, where the ratio between skin and juice was high. This has given the wines formidable potential to develop in the cellar and created tannins that feel silky-soft and inviting rather than drying on the palate. Across the major, tradition-rich wine countries, this favourable weather resulted in classic bottles that beautifully unite concentrated power with impressive elegance in the aromas.
Explore our wines from 2016 by region
A journey through this remarkable year reveals how the friendly climate created spectacular results across very different geographical terroirs and wine styles. We also offer classic vintages such as wine 2006 from selected regions.
Bordeaux and other French classics
In the heart of Bordeaux, the vintage stands as a modern classic. On the left bank, a long, dry summer followed by perfectly timed rainfall in the middle of September created the ideal conditions for the Cabernet Sauvignon grapes. This gives you wines with an incredibly soft tannin structure and expressive notes of blackcurrant and cedarwood. If you move to the right bank, the moisture-retaining clay and limestone soil managed to protect the vines perfectly against the summer drought. This yielded Merlot-based wines that offer a lush fruit profile accompanied by a surprising freshness. In Burgundy, spring did indeed bring frost, but a subsequent warm summer ensured that the surviving grapes achieved an intense concentration and a classic elegance that make them ideal for life’s special moments.
Italian wine regions from 2016
The boot-shaped country experienced a fantastic growing season, and especially in the historic areas of Piedmont and Tuscany, the year is highlighted as an absolute reference point for Barolo and Brunello di Montalcino respectively. A long, cool season with large temperature swings between the warm days and the cool nights allowed the Nebbiolo and Sangiovese grapes to preserve their recognisable aromas and high acidity. In the glass, this translates into wines with a radiant freshness, floral aromatic notes and a massive, yet incredibly beautifully integrated tannin structure. These wines are gaining recognition all over the world for their pronounced harmony and a potential to age beautifully in the cellar that easily extends over several decades.
Spanish and overseas alternatives
In the Spanish landscape, a cold and wet spring, followed by a warm summer and cool autumn nights, created perfect conditions for large quantities of high quality in both Rioja and Ribera del Duero. If you pour these wines into the glass, you will notice a moderate alcohol level, lively acidity and a very pure, harmonious fruit profile. Turning our gaze toward overseas skies, the winegrowers in California’s Napa Valley and Sonoma could rejoice in a stable and mild growing season completely free from damaging heatwaves. This has brought to life wines with alluring colour depth, an incredibly fine balance between sugar and acidity, as well as a noticeable freshness that beautifully lifts the rich and concentrated fruit notes.
What you should consider when choosing a wine 2016
When you need to find exactly the bottle that will add splendour to your evening, there are a number of exciting elements in the wine’s structure and grape composition that shape your final taste experience.
- Ageing potential: Because the grapes achieved such perfect ripeness, many of the wines, not least the great European classics, are made to develop with grace in the wine cellar for over 20 to 30 years.
- Tannin structure: The year’s dry periods produced small grapes with thick skins, which has created a dense, yet incredibly soft and velvety sensation in the mouth that never feels bitter or aggressive.
- Natural acidity: The cool nights of late summer helped preserve a lively and fresh acidity in the grapes. This beautifully protects the wine against oxidation and keeps it nicely balanced as the years pass.
- Purity of the fruit: Since the season was free of extreme heatwaves, the wines offer a very precise and unadulterated fruit profile, where you completely avoid overripe or cooked nuances.
- Drinkability: Many of these bottles are currently in an exciting transitional phase. Here, the fresh primary fruit is beginning to be joined by deep, secondary notes such as leather, tobacco and dried spices, creating a very captivating taste experience.
Preparation and serving of your mature wine
To get the absolute best out of a wine that has matured beautifully over several years, it requires a little loving preparation. The following steps ensure that the complex aromas and delicate structure are released in the best possible way when the wine reaches the glass.
- Standing the bottle upright: Since older wines most often develop a little natural sediment over time, you should stand the bottle upright for 24 to 48 hours before it is to be enjoyed. Gravity naturally pulls colour pigments and tannins down to the bottom, so the wine appears clear and completely free from bitterness when served.
- Temperature control: The right serving temperature is crucial for preserving the wine’s harmony. Full-bodied and mature red wines show their best at 15 to 18 degrees. A normal room temperature of over 20 degrees will typically make the wine seem flat and let the alcohol overpower the fine, delicate fruit notes.
- Careful decanting: To gently separate the clear wine from the sediment, you can pour it into a carafe. If you shine a light a little below the bottleneck while pouring, you can easily see when the dark sediment approaches the opening, so you can stop at the right time.
- Aromatisation and aeration: A calm meeting with oxygen helps soften the firm tannins and lets the wine’s closed aromas come to life. Since older wines, however, are a little more fragile when it comes to oxygenation, it is a good idea to use a narrow carafe. This prevents the fruit notes from oxidising too quickly, so you preserve the full experience.
Historical bottles stored under optimal conditions
At Bottles With History, a deep respect for the wine’s origin and journey is the foundation of everything we do. All our older vintages and special releases, including wine from 1996, are consistently kept under the most optimal conditions, where both temperature and humidity are closely monitored. This careful and professional handling from purchase to the moment the bottle arrives with you guarantees that the contents retain their high quality and full, beautiful potential. When dealing with mature wine, proper storage is simply essential to preserve the delicate flavour nuances. Therefore, you can always trust that the wine has had the best possible conditions to mature harmoniously toward the evening when it is to be enjoyed.
Safe and fast delivery from Bottles With History
To make your experience as pleasant and smooth as possible, Bottles With History ensures safe next-day delivery of all orders. Special and fragile bottles are packed with the utmost care, so they always arrive with you in perfect condition without suffering the slightest damage on the journey. To make it even more inviting to expand your personal collection, you always get free shipping on purchases over 500 kr. Our passion for giving you warm and attentive customer service is also reflected in our TrustScore of 4.6 out of 5. It testifies to the sense of security and trust that is at the very core of shopping with us.
