Why does wine increase in value the older it gets, and...........?!

Why does wine increase in value the older it gets, and...........?

is there a limit to how old wine becomes before the value starts to decline?

I really like your question!

Red wines are aged in Europe mostly using the cask method--they stay in the casks for awhile before being bottled. Some years the grapes are better than others due to weather situations and other factors. The wine in the casks must be carefully monitored and taken care of--then the bottled wines are "put down" in racks for awhile to further the aging process--all of this is done to improve the taste and smell of the wine--some reds are better to drink when they are young and others take a long time to age in the bottle.

In the US a lot of red wine is chemically aged to get it out to the consumer sooner and maximize the profit of the winery.

White wines are consumed young because they do not age like red wines do. Champagnes are sparkling wines and are treated in an entirely different and painstaking manner--which includes riddling--which means turning each bottle a quarter of a turn or more at certain intervals as well as recorking--and is labor intensive .

Some grapes are finer than others--there is no argument there--and these are the ones usually chosen for the best treatment.

There are red wines in existence that are worth thousands of dollars and are over 100 years old--some people actually have a sense of taste that can appreciate that particular wine when opened but the problem with old wines is that the corks get old also, and air can get into the wine. Some have even had the corks replaced but it has to be done by someone trained for this specific task. Air, improper storage temperature and light are real enemies of wine--that's why many wineries in Europe have wine cellars that stay a certain temperature or are temperature controlled, they are very dim and the humidity is monitored. Some of them have been making wine for centuries. US wineries have cellars as well but they are much more modern in many respects-- the bottom line is that wine is labor intensive to produce, the grapes are sensitive to all sorts of weather, mold and pests--and it takes awhile to baby sit the wine before it gets to market--all the while, the wineries expenses, insurance, labor and other costs go on. That's why some wineries in the States try to hurry the process by chemically aging their wines.

Some years, a wonderful grape will come along and it will make a great wine--but if there is only a small harvest of it
then it will only yield a certain amount of wine--once it's gone there won't be anymore--that is a wine that will grow in value--not only because it's a great wine but because it is scarce and irreplaceable.

The answer to when a wine begins to decline is subjective because there are so many variables that can contribute to the process--and it depends on the quality of the wine and its care as to when that happens.