I taste a lot of wine. I used to drink a lot of wine, but I’m a professional now and ‘taste’ sounds classier. With all I have experienced — the good, the bad and everything in between — I truly believe the worst bottle of wine is an unopened one.

There have been countless times I have stashed a bottle for a special occasion, only to have it fail to impress, or worse, be faulty in a way that was undetectable upon purchase. Wine is living, and like most living things, it’s temperamental. Most wines aren’t even meant to age — especially true if you are storing it improperly, which is easy to do in Hawaii’s tropical climate.

Expensive wines and dessert wines are two candidates commonly cited for cellaring, but the best indicator that a wine will improve with time is the intent of the winemaker. Usually, grapes destined to be made into wine with the intent to age are first identified as special rows within a vineyard. They can also be singled out after fermentation by tasting desirable characteristics in specific barrels and will usually be subjected to a higher percentage of new/expensive oak barrels, and/or more time in them.

Here are two of examples that showcase both an ability to age gracefully and the winemaker’s intent, created by a man who lived as if he wanted to leave this planet with no bottle left unopened or unshared. To the late Jim Clendenen: Mahalo for your contribution to the wine world and to Hawaii Regional Cuisine.

Au Bon Climat, Pinot Noir, Santa Barbara, California

All Au Bon Climat wines will retain freshness long after bottling, but you’ll want to open this one upon release. It is crafted with the intent of immediacy and is the least expensive pinot noir of the Au Bon Climat offerings — just please don’t call it an entry level. Having been made since 1982, this is one of the flag bearers for classic Central Coast Pinot Noir. Aromas of juicy strawberry balance the alluring spice of anise and clove.

Where it shines most is at the table; buy multiple bottles and experiment with time. In its youth, it can stand up to red meats, but as it ages it works better with salmon and lighter fare.

Under $25 at local fine wine shops.

Au Bon Climat, ‘Knox Alexander,’ Pinot Noir, Santa Maria Valley, California

This is a bottle that will surely benefit with some cellaring, but could probably outlive me. Named after the winemaker’s son, this triumphant tribute is a blend of the estate vines from two of the most famed vineyards in Santa Barbara — Bien Nacido and Le Bon Climat, a site that the late Jim Clendenen himself planted throughout the years.

It’s powerful and mouth drying with dark brooding fruit, savory herbs and a trace of spicy pipikaula.

I won’t blame you for opening it earlier than you should — I opened a 2014 last week.

Costs $55-60; special order via local wine shops.

Chris Ramelb is an award-winning sommelier, and director of education and restaurant sales manager of Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits of Hawaii. Watch him on the “Wine & …” podcast, and follow him on Instagram (@masterisksomm). Find his column every fourth Wednesday in Crave.