The idea of vintage in the broader scope generally relates to time of origin. This term obviously stems the jargon of wine production (see Webster 1913 below).

However, this term is being used more and more to reference a period or era, similar to the phrase 'classic', such as vintage clothing, or vintage software.

The demarcations of era are a bit nebulous, for example:

• Vintage Anime (including 8th Man, Astro Boy, Prince Planet) is generally the late 50s and 60s.
• Vintage Books is a publisher that specializes in books that have gone out of print.
• Vintage Clothing usually refers to garb form the 1960s and 70s.
• Vintage Dance is considered any social dance from 1800 to 50 years ago!
• Vintage Gaming, or sometimes Classic Gaming, includes Pong, MULE, Paradroid, anything on the Atari 2600, all from the late 1970s and 80s.
• Vintage Software is generally anything that isn't new but not completely obsolete.
• Vintage television includes all the black and white titles from the advent of television through the dominance of Color TV.

In music, "Vintage" qualifies an instrument designed a way that has become obsolete or that attempts to imitate such instruments...

For example, some electric guitars are produced after retro guidelines and labelled as "Vintage".

The "Vintage" label is often overused/hyped and should be approached the same way as "DeLuxe".

Vint"age (?; 48), n. [Corrupted by influence of vintner, vintry, from OE. vindage, vendage, for vendange, OF. vendenge, F. vendange, from L. vindemia; vinum wine, grapes + demere to take off; de + emere, originally, to take. See Wine, Redeem, and cf. Vindemial.]

1.

The produce of the vine for one season, in grapes or in wine; as, the vintage is abundant; the vintage of 1840.

2.

The act or time of gathering the crop of grapes, or making the wine for a season.

Vintage spring, a wine fount. -- Vintage time, the time of gathering grapes and making wine.

Milton.

© Webster 1913.