What does the year written on a bottle of wine mean? Finding a bottle’s vintage is simple. Look for the year printed on the front. This number tells you when the grapes were harvested and made into wine. Why is it important? It signals a bottle’s quality. Understanding vintages lets you discern the quality of a wine even before trying it, indicating which years had good weather for growing delicious, balanced wines and which years had poor weather that affected the crop. For inexpensive everyday