What a shame that some folks (UC) feel that a very reasonable question
deserves condescension.
As many have said, "older does not necessarily equal better" even for
many red wines. But here are a couple practical suggestions for you:
* No wine should be aged unless you have appropriate aging conditions.
There are a lot of resources on the web you can access for buying or
building a wine cellar or cabinet. If you wish to pursue aged reds, it is a
wonderful thing to have a cellar full of appropriately aged wines.
* As others have pointed out, If you are buying the more common /
popular wines off the shelf, most (not all) have been vinified with the intent
of you drinking them now. So buy them and enjoy!
* If you WANT to age wine for the purpose of enjoying it at it's best,
search out those wines that have been vinified with that in mind. For
instance, I collect and cellar Bordeaux reds. Each year I buy a few cases
pre-arrival and then cellar them. How long depends on each wine - see
below.
* If you do cellar red wines, pay attention to winemaker and taster
notes; both their assessment of a wines maturation, and also the relative
tannins and acidity.
* If you are interested in white wines that develop some complexity over
time, search out those wines made with that intent - and they are few.
Again, pay attention to winemaker's and tasters assessments, and cellar
them properly. I buy a case or so of white Burgundy each year - and
cellar them for 2 years (typically) before drinking. Again, most
off-the-shelf white wines are not vinified with aging in mind.

Good luck - and don't be put off asking questions by the curmudgeonly
amongst these forums. They usually are just hiding their own profound
inadequacies.



Ramon F Herrera > wrote:
>
>Despite being completely partial to red wine, I have been known to
>enjoy a glass of white from time to time. It is my understanding that
>when it comes to red, normally, "the older, the better" rule applies.
>
>But what about white wine and age?
>
>-Ramon
>



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