Aging of wine that is aged is rarely aged for long; it is estimated that 90% of wine is meant to be consumed within a year of production, and 99% of wine within 5 years. The Ancient Greeks and Romans were aware of the potential of aged wines. In Greece, early examples of dried "straw wines" were noted for their ability to age due to their high sugar contents. These wines were stored in sealed earthenware amphorae and kept for many years. In Rome, the most sought after wines—Falernian and Surrentine—were prized for their ability to age for decades. In the Book of
The Old Woman and the Wine-jar The Old Woman and the Wine-jar The old woman and the wine jar is one of Aesop's Fables and is numbered 493 in the Perry Index. It has been applied to situations where an influence for good is lasting, such as the effect of education. The story appears in the form of a short anecdote in the collection of Phaedrus and concerns an old woman who comes across an empty wine jar, the lingering smell of which she appreciatively sniffs and praises, saying 'Oh sweet spirits, I do declare, how excellent you must once have been to have left behind