After bottling, still wines begin the reductive stage of ageing without or with very little oxygen. Many producers store high-quality, ageable red wines in particular, but also white wines, in the bottle for up to 12 months or even longer before marketing, which is why they are also referred to as bottle ageing or bottle finishing. A certain bottle ageing period is also prescribed by wine law for individual wines in many countries.
In contrast to ageing, which refers to all changes in a wine up to the "end of its life", bottle ageing tends to summarise only the positive changes up to the climax. However, there is no clear distinction between the two terms. The term " drinking maturity " is often used in connection with the peak of a wine, which refers to the optimum time for consumption. This state can already exist before the peak. However, the two terms can also be understood to be synonymous, as they are by no means to be understood in relation to a specific date and can extend over a longer period of time, i.e. several years.
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