Kobe's new nickname has many fans agreeing, the 34-year-old basketball star does get better with age.

Bryant has apparently gotten tired of calling himself "Black Mamba" and has adopted something a bit different.

After leading the Los Angeles Lakers to a 99-98 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday with 34 points, the shooting guard got on Twitter to share his new nickname "Vino," with his followers.

The tweet read, "Omg. My man just gave me a new nickname and I love it! Ha #vino." Since then Bryant has used the hashtag "vino" in may of his updates.

"Vino" is the Italian and Spanish word for "wine." It suggests that, like a good wine, Bryant gets better with age.

And there is no arguing with that fact. He is off to one of the best seasons of his 17-year career, he is fast, focused, and dedicated to the game.

Vino is currently averaging 27.3 points, 5.5 rebounds and 5.6 assists per game and playing an average of 38 minutes. Defensively he is playing well also, averaging 1.3 steals per contest.

In Sunday's game against Atlanta Kobe drove past Josh Smith, a player nearly half his age, and threw down a stadium-rocking, on-handed dunk.

After the match-up, Smith talked about Bryant in an interview.

"He's been doing it for a long time, so you have to respect what he brings to the table," Smith said. "He's an assassin. He wants that moment. But from a defensive standpoint, I love taking a challenge like that and try to step up and try to make it tough for him. It was kind of like a tug-of-war match. We were going back and forth, and they made one more play than we did to win the game. I live for moments like this."

The new moniker also plays homage to Kobe's upbringing in Italy.

Fans should not be confused by the alcoholic new nickname, however. Kobe is still the same guy who has always preferred late nights working out rather than hitting the club scene.

Bryant previously assigned himself the nickname of "Black Mamba", saying he wanted his basketball skills to mimic the namesake snake's ability to "strike with 99% accuracy at maximum speed, in rapid succession."