It’s a common question for wine shoppers everywhere: If the label says “reserve,” is the wine inside actually better? And does it justify paying a higher cost?
Many of the classic wine-producing countries of Europe make this answer easy. Regulations stipulate a range of specific and highly detailed rules regarding use of the word reserve, or reserva and riserva in Spain and Italy, respectively. However, in the United States and other non-EU territories, things can get much murkier and it can be hard to separate truly special bottles from marketing jargon.
Common reserve wines in Spain and Italy
In Spain's Rioja region, red wines labeled Reserva must be aged for a minimum of three years, including at least one in oak barrels, before they can be sold. Wine with the Gran Reserva designation must be aged for at least five years prior to hitting shelves, two of which, at a minimum, have to be in oak. These reserve designations are meant to be in contrast to Rioja's broader Crianza classification, which only must aged for two years split between barrel and bottle.
Wines from Tuscany’s Chianti region may be labeled as either Chianti Classico or Chianti Classico Riserva. Here, the Riserva designation indicates that the wine has been aged for at least two years in barrels, during which three months must be spent refining in the bottle before being sold. Chianti Classico can also be labeled as Gran Selezione, which indicates that the grapes are entirely estate-grown, and that the wine has been aged for 30 months in oak, three of which must also be spent in bottle. Gran Selezione also requires wines to pass muster with a group of tasters who determine whether it’s worthy of the label.
It’s all a bit confusing, of course, but at least there are specific rules that need to be followed.
You Can Buy Better Italian Wine If You Know What This Acronym on the Bottle Stands For
Reserve wines in the United States
On this side of the Atlantic, and in many other parts of the so-called New World of wine, that’s not the case — which is where the confusion often results.
For many larger brands, the determining factor for a reserve wine is grape sourcing. It’s not uncommon to find a producer that offers a California Cabernet Sauvignon alongside a “reserve” Cabernet that’s labeled as having come from a more specific part of the state, such as Paso Robles or North Coast, as is the case with Josh Cellars.
It’s also not uncommon to find that reserve-labeled wines have seen more time in oak barrels, or are made in a more concentrated style. However, it's important to note that in the U.S. actual regulations governing the use of "reserve" on a label are nonexistent, meaning it's generally just used at the producer's discretion.
How to Read a New World Wine Label
There are other variables to the reserve equation. Taylor Family Vineyards, for example, a top producer in Napa Valley’s Stags Leap District, has released a Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon and a Stags Leap District Estate Reserve Cab from the same vintage.
What sets these two examples apart?
“Our use of the [word] ‘reserve’ on our label originated with our Estate Cabernet, primarily to denote the specific source of the fruit within our SLD vineyard,” says Sandy Taylor, president of her family’s estate, and the sixth generation of it in Napa Valley. “When we established our brand back in 2002, it quickly became evident that our hillside grapes needed a clear distinction from those grown in deeper soils. The hillside vines face considerable challenges, thriving in rocky soils that yield only a limited number of clusters and very small berries. Both our winemaker, Gustavo Brambila, and ourselves firmly believe that where the fruit is situated within the vineyard makes a significant difference.”
“The Napa Valley Cabernet…represents the archetypal Napa Cabernet, typically cultivated on the valley floor,” she adds. “It's intended to possess a pleasing tannin structure, a robust body, a rich mouthfeel, and a slightly more fruit-forward profile compared to our single-vineyard AVA Cabernets, such as our Diamond Mountain and Atlas Peak Cabernet. Typically, there is no Stags Leap District Cabernet in our Napa Cabernet blend.” That estate fruit stands on its own in the Reserve.
Simon Family Estate, another producer in Napa Valley, uses a somewhat different calculus to determine their use of the word “reserve.” Their 2019 Estate Cab, for example, is based on fruit from the appellations of St. Helena, Oakville, and Coombsville. The wine is aged in 70% new French oak for 18 months, and is intended to be enjoyed both in its youth while also having the potential to age. Their 2019 Reserve Cab, on the other hand, leans more heavily on St. Helena and Oakville, sees 21 months in 100% new French oak, and is built to age longer.
Reserve wine as a marketing ploy
Some brands that use the term “reserve” more or less as a marketing strategy, with little difference in terms of the flavor and aroma of the wine itself. So how are you to know when a reserve wine is actually worth spending extra money on?
The key to differentiating between reserve and non-reserve wines is to know the rules that dictate the grapes and aging processes in European reserve wines, or for so-called New World producers, how the individual producer defines it.
Not all reserve wines are the same. Some are little more than attempts to extract a bit more money from the consumer. Others, like the unique Gran Selezione bottlings from Barone Ricasoli, or the reserve Cabernet Sauvignon from Taylor Family Vineyards and Simon Family Estate, offer the fascinating opportunity to explore geological and geographical differences from one particular place to another, and how different winemaking or aging techniques impact it all. In those cases, the spend may be worth it.
Just don’t assume that “reserve” translates to “better,” because it doesn’t. Like any wine, some have a place in any collection or at the table, depending on what you enjoy most — no matter what the label says.
