Split between age and youth

Hidden not too deeply beneath the surface of the great wine debate of New World versus Old World, France versus Australia, is an almost unspoken question. It is one that has obsessed man since Narcissus fell in love at the lakeside: do we prize maturity or crave youth?

Many ancient western tales are concerned with man's quest for an everlasting fountain of youth, not the placid lake of wisdom. By contrast, the tales ...