Seven Red and White Wine Types

Wine types are based on the type of grape used in the winemaking process, although wine labels sometime refer to the region in which the grape was grown rather than the grape itself.

France is big on naming their wines after the grape growing region, and wine drinkers don't much care which grapes are in the bottle, as long as the wine came from somewhere like Alsace, Bordeaux, and Champagne. That tendency is largely based on the fact that wine drinkers count on getting a wonderful tasting bottle of wine if it comes from a certain region.

However, the taste of wine depends very much on the grape or grapes used in the winemaking.

Leading Red Wine Types

Cabernet Sauvignon (ca-ber-NAY so-vin-yawn) is the name of the wine, as well as the grape, which is famous for being one of the world's finest red varietals.

Characteristics - Deep red in color, Cabernet is a beautiful medium to full-bodied, dry wine. It has a hearty, complex flavor evoking thoughts of black currants and blackberries. Traditionally, the wine is aged in oak, which gives it an oaky, vanilla flavor. It has a particularly smooth, fine finish. Higher quality Cabernet ages very well for decades.

While perfect all by itself, Cabernet is frequently blended with the red wine types of Merlot, Shiraz, and Sangiovese.

Growing Regions - Cabernet grape vines are very durable and adapt well to a variety of climates. This grape is grown in wine-making regions all over the world, including, Australia, Chile, France, Canada, and northern California.

Merlot (Mer-LO) has become increasingly popular over the last 10-15 years. Due to its mellow taste and low acidity it is a good choice for those new to drinking red wine. Merlot is the name of the wine and the grape.

Characteristics - Merlot is considered a bit softer and less tannic than other red wine types, like Cabernet. However, it's still a complex wine, with rich, chewy flavors of plum and blackberry and hints of cherry and orange. Merlot is not suited for extended aging and is typically consumed immediately.

Merlot is an outstanding grape in a stand-alone wine, as well as when blended with other grapes, particularly Cabernet.

Growing Regions - The Merlot grape plant is grown in Italy, Australia, Chile, Romania, Washington State and California.

Shiraz (shih-RAZ) and Syrah (Sih-rah) are names for the same grape, with Syrah being used by European vintners. (It shouldn't be confused with the Petit Sirah, a completely different grape.)

Characteristics - One of the darkest reds, Shiraz can be made as a fruity, sweet wine with plumy flavors or a dry peppery wine with notes of blackberries, licorice, and chocolate. Hints of toffee come from the wine's aging in oak barrels.

Shirazcan be consumed immediately or aged up to 5 years.

Shirazis frequently blended with Grenache and Cabernet grapes to make some fine wines.

Growing Regions - While the Shiraz grape most likely originated in the Rhone Valley of France where it has been used as a blend with other wines, it is Australia's most widely grown grape and has thus become known as an "Australian" wine. However, Shiraz is also made in South Africa, as well as in some U.S. wineries.

Shirazgrapes cultivated in warmer temperatures tend to have softer plum flavors, while cooler climates give the grape spicy or peppery qualities.

Malbec (MAHL-beck), a black grape, thrives best in the hot dry summers found in Argentina and Chile.

Characteristics - Malbec grapes make a mid-bodied, rustic red wine, dry, with high acidity. Due to its acidity, it is most often blended with other wines.

Growing Regions - Malbec is Argentina's most popular grape variety and is widely grown there. It is also grown in Chile, Australia, and northern California.

Pinot Noir (Pee-no na-wahr) is a delicious red wine made from a variety of black grapes that were originally grown in France's Burgundy region. Some connoisseurs believe that these grapes make some of the finest wines in the world.

Characteristics - Pinot Noir is a challenging grape to grow, but with the right conditions, it produces an outstanding, complex wine. The wine is light to moderate in body, fresh, and delicate. It comes in an array of colors, from purplish-red to cherry-red, even turning brown during aging. It's an earthy wine with varying aromas and flavors rich in worn leather, tea-leaves, oak, vanilla, and jammy, such as strawberry, raspberry, and plum.

Many Pinot Noirs are meant to be immediately consumed, but a good quality Pinot Noir can age for over 10 years.

How to Go Wine Tasting at Wineries?

Wine tasting is one of the things that tourists love to do, especially when in places that are famous for their exquisite wineries like California, Oregon, New York, Washington, Australia, France, Canada, Italy or Chile. Here are some tips and certain things that you must keep in mind while wine tasting, in order for you to enjoy and make your vacation as memorable as possible.

1. Do some research on the winery you plan to visit. Look at their website, and check to see if the wines they offer are not out of your price range, especially if you desire to go to one of the famous and luxury wineries. However, if you are on a tight budget, you better just stick to visiting one of the smaller vineyards, like the family-owned ones.

2. If you have an appointment, make an effort to show up on time. Some wineries won't wait, and will close their doors on late arrivals.

3. Consider hiring a driver and instruct him to stay sober, to be on the safe side. You may get drunk, especially when visiting numerous wineries and tasting several drinks.

4. Ask if there is a tasting fee. If there is, ask again if it can be waived by making a purchase. A small winery rarely charges a tasting fee, while medium and large-sized wineries do. However, a medium-sized winery may waive the tasting fee, while large-sized ones most likely do not.

5. Make conversation with the tasting room employees. They are usually very friendly. Let them know what you thought about the wine and inform them on the kind of wines you like. Once you have informed them, they will recommend some wines for you that they think you'd like. Employees have a fairly good knowledge about wine and they will be more than happy to share it with you.

6. You must maintain good etiquette. If you did not like the taste of the wine, you may spit it into the spit bucket. None of the employees will get offended because they are aware of the spit bucket, so that you can spit the drink out after tasting it. Just make sure that you dispose of it properly, and not in an immature way.

7. Listen to the employees' recommendations. They would often suggest that you eat either a piece of chocolate or cracker with toppings or spread to eat with the wine, because it will bring out even more the wine's flavour and make the experience more fun. It is also good to eat something or drink water in between drinks so that the flavours of the different wines you taste won't mix together, thus you will not know the true taste of the next drink you take a sip of.

8. The winemaking business is a very competitive industry, so if you are on a budget, or looking for wine of a better value, you can find these at the smaller, family-owned wineries.

9. If you are paying a wine tasting fee, then you don't have to purchase a bottle if you don't want to. However, it is polite that you buy at least one, to show that you enjoyed the tasting and appreciated the service. If you are not paying a tasting fee, show some etiquette and buy at least one bottle.

10. Purchase the wine that you liked the best. If your budget allows, you may buy another one that you enjoyed. However, if you plan on visiting other wineries, you might just have to settle on buying just one bottle per winery.

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The Basics of Wine Selection and Storage

Wine is a very popular alcoholic drink that is ever present on tables during festivities, celebrations, and other special occasions. This is made from the fermentation of grapes although technically, other fruits or plants can also be fermented to make wines. Different types of grapes and fermentation processes are used to make different types of wine. Basically, red wine is made by fermenting grapes with their skin on while white wine is made from grapes that are fermented sans the skin.

Wines have varied prices depending on the kind of grapes used and the fermentation and aging process they have undergone. The finest wines can cost thousands of dollars but of course, there are also affordable wines that are of good quality.

If you know the type or brand of wines that your guests prefer, it is always safe to choose them but if you are not familiar with their preference, select wines based on their price and quality. Inform the store personnel of your budget so he or she can show you the wines that are within your price range. Wine stores usually allow their customers to sample their wines and to be successful in buying wines with excellent quality, you need to consider the following: color, aroma, body, taste, and aftertaste.

Color

The age and maturity of a wine is indicated by its color. And, a wine that is old and mature has a better taste and fuller flavor compared to the young ones. Young white wines are very clear and pale while the older ones are clear with a golden hue. Be careful not to choose young white wines that are gold in color because they have been oxidized during bottling, which is an indication of poor quality. For the red wines, the young ones are those that are purple in color and the old ones are brick red or amber in color.

Aroma

You can determine the flavor of the wine based on its aroma which is usually associated with different fruits and spices. Wine connoisseurs agree that the best wines are those that have a complex set of aromas.

Body

Wines can be light, medium, or full-bodied depending on the viscosity, consistency, thickness, and texture. When serving wines during a formal dinner, it is customary to serve the light ones first and save the full-bodied ones for the main course.

Taste and Aftertaste

Wines are composed of tannins, alcohol, acidic molecules, and different flavors and in a good wine, all these should be balanced. However, wines such as Barolo and Rutherlen Muscat are designed to have components that are out of balance with each other. For the aftertaste, it is said that wines with a longer finish are made from the best grapes and most meticulous fermentation and aging processes, and they therefore have premium quality.

How To Make Sure You Are Buying Vegetarian Wine?

Wait... vegetarian wine? But isn't all wine made of grapes? It indeed is, but it can go through processing steps that involve animal products. In winemaking, the troublesome ingredients come into play during the finishing, also called fining or clarifying phase.

The ingredients that may be used and will make the drink not suitable for vegetarians are for example isinglass (which is made from fish bladders), gelatin (which comes from cow bones) and animal albumin (which sometimes consists of dried blood powder). Though none of these fining agents stay in the finished product, most vegetarians and vegans will try their best to drink beverages where no animal products have been used during the making process.

Luckily for them and me, there are vegetarian wine options available. Not all wines go through fining at all, and even if they do, there are vegetarian finishing options which are used, like bentonite clay.

It can be frustrating for vegetarians and vegans to know that there is no obligation on the part of winemakers to declare the use of animal by-products in the winemaking process. In fact, the only real way of knowing if a wine is vegetarian is to look at what is written on the label of the bottle, or the specifications on the website you are buying the bottle from. If it says vegetarian or vegan on the site or the label, it probably is.

If there are no such markings on the label or the website, you can be pretty sure the wine is non-vegetarian - isinglass is still the number one fining agent used in winemaking.

The only exceptions are wines which are labeled as unfiltered. This is in fact not a very rare label, because some wine connoisseurs prefer wine to be unfiltered because of the special character of these wines.

Most good shops for buying wine on line will write in the product description if the wine is vegetarian or vegan. Not all bigger shops on line are interested in offering vegetarian wines, though. It can be beneficial to look in smaller on line wine stores instead.

Especially shops specialized in organic wines have been known to have a wide range of vegetarian and vegan wines in their selection, and these are usually very well labeled, too. You could try your local wine shop to see what they have, but you'll be likely to find the best selection of vegetarian wines on line.