Wines are such funny things.
I bought some seemingly old, over the hill Italian wines (2000, 2001) at the Auric sale recently. Opened them last week and gave them an hour or so to breathe in the bottle, tasting along the way. Eew, all dry and without fruit or much flavours. So I corked them back and stuffed them in the fridge. Told myself never to buy wines way past their peak, even though they are heavily discounted. I drank one of them over the week, pouring myself a glass every few days. By today this wine, a Carmignano (Sangio + bit of Cabernet from near Florence), was so lovely and developed I couldn't believe it. Nice spices, dried fruits on the nose. Soft texture, dry but balanced on the palate, with a long finish. I also tried another bottle today, corked up since the first try, a 2001 Barbera without significant oak, and it was still pleasantly drinkable with ample fruit to spare. Really interesting experience for me, how much aeration, serving temperature etc. small details affect the final drinking.
