What are the best red wines to cellar for 18-plus years?

When I was born, my parents bought a dozen bottles of Penfolds, which they kept until I was old enough to enjoy them. Now in my 30s, with a son of my own, what should I buy to continue the tradition?

—W.K., Sydenham, NSW

Laying down a wine for a newborn child to enjoy deep into the future is a fine tradition, but it comes with risks. The child may grow up to be teetotal – or with a taste for prosecco, which doesn’t age at all well.

You’re evidently a model example: in your 30s and still enjoying the last bottles from your parents’ stash. They prudently chose a red from Penfolds, most of which age extremely well – and for decades.

The first question is: do you prefer to buy your son’s birth-year vintage – in which case, you might have to wait a few years – or do you prefer the current release? Is the bairn a newborn or a toddler?

The field is wide: most full-bodied reds will still be good after 18 years if you’ve kept them in a reasonably cool place and, if cork-sealed, lying down.

We’re talking cabernet sauvignon (take a look at Taltarni Old Vine Cabernet Sauvignon 2020 and Bowen Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 2022), shiraz (Grant Burge Filsell Shiraz 2021 and Wynns Coonawarra Estate Black Label Shiraz 2022 are both noteworthy), cabernet shiraz blends, blends of such varieties as grenache, shiraz, mataro, tempranillo, touriga and so on. If in doubt, check with your trusted wine retailer.

Without knowing your price limit, it’s hard to know where to stop, but red Bordeaux is one of the world’s greatest ageing wines; so are Italy’s Barolo and Barbaresco, Chianti Classico, Amarone and Brunello di Montalcino, Spain’s Rioja and Ribera del Duero, to name a few.

Perhaps the most reliable long-term ageing wine is vintage port; Portugal is its home, but it won’t come cheap. Local examples from the Barossa (Peter Lehmann, Rockford, Kalleske), Rutherglen (Stanton & Killeen, Pfeiffer, Chambers) and McLaren Vale (D’Arenberg) will keep well, too. The great Portuguese port vintages will keep happily for 50 years.

A fun idea is to buy a dozen and drink one every second year, and enjoy the way the taste evolves over the next two-and-a-half decades.

Got a drinks question for Huon Hooke? thefullbottle@goodweekend.com.au