One of my pet peeves over the last decade has been the over-ripe flavors we seem to be saddled with in so many red wines — and not only from California but also many areas of the world.

I was reared in wine during an era when red wines were totally dry and gained their food compatibility from a combination of elements that included lower alcohol levels than we see today, better flavors that speak to basic varietal characteristics, and a structural balance that normally comes from alcohols closer to 12 percent than 16 percent.

Today the over-ripe elements, higher alcohols, general softness and lack of sufficient acidity that are so prevalent in many red wines leave us all with a chewier, softer, almost-sweet red wine.

This is not a particularly interesting wine in more ways than one.

As a starter, it doesn’t work very well with food. Soft, almost unctuous red wines have little in common with the tart, crisp wines of our past that challenged the food, encouraged salivation, brought out flavors in what we were eating, and were cleansing to the palate.

Moreover, the red wines of today generally don’t have the stuffing or the textural integrity to age very well.

“Who cares about that?” say the newbies to this game. “People are drinking wine younger and younger. No one ages them any more.”

If that were so, why are wine cabinets and storage systems so popular? Do people invest hundreds and thousands of dollars in them just to lay down red wines for a few months before drinking them?

No, my suspicion is that a lot of people are putting red wines down for the traditional aging periods, such as 10 or 15 years, and have yet to realize that the wines are not aging well at all. Many collectors may well be disappointed with the results.

Drinking classic red wines such as Napa Valley cabernets when they are less than two years old reminds me of sipping alcoholic grape juice. To me, the stuff doesn’t taste at all like wine at that stage.

For a time in the late 1990s, when I began writing about this trend (it began about 1994), I suspected I was alone. The vast majority of high-image U.S. wine writers seemed perfectly content with this new style of red wine.

But there are plenty of people who remember the good ol’ days of the 1970s and early 1980s when balance was a lot more likely and when the wines aged nicely.

So I was particularly thrilled to see agreement in this area by my British compatriot Oz Clarke in his latest “Pocket Wine Book 2008” (Anova Books, $15). In the introduction, Clarke, a witty wine author and TV personality, intimates that he is wearying of the “wines that are overripe, overalcoholic, over-oaked and overbearing.”

He blames most those “who are slavishly following the Faux High Priest of superripeness. Some of the world’s most influential (wine) critics sadly are obsessed with superripe flavours” and many producers, seeking to gain a high score from these reviewers, make wines to please them, he wrote.

“One of the ways this ‘dead fruit’ flavour is created in wine is by willfully re-interpreting when might be called ‘full physiological ripeness’ in the grapes. What was taken as fully ripe a generation ago is now seen as underripe.

“But it’s not underripe if you regard wine as a reasonably adult pleasure that sometimes requires a little understanding and patience rather than merely an alcoholic concoction designed for instant gratification and inebriation.”

Is Clarke being a bit petulant here? I think not. I agree totally with his stance. But I wonder: Does Clarke think today’s ultra-ripe red wines are not for adults, but for those with adolescent tastes?

This new edition of the pocket guide to wine is filled with a greater number of Oz’s pointed assertions than editions of the past. Whether you agree with him or not, this is a fun read.

 Wine of the Week: 2006 Beringer Chardonnay, Napa Valley, Stanly Ranch ($20) — A fresher, more lively wine from wine maker Laurie Hook. The aroma has bright apple, citrus and delicate spice, and the wine’s balance is impeccable with less oak than in the past. Superb with grilled seafood dishes.

Dan Berger resides in Sonoma County. Berger publishes a weekly newsletter on wine and can be reached at danberger@VintageExperiences.com.