Photo Credit: Divya Thakur on Flickr Remember your freshman year in college when you’d crash the fraternity parties and there’d always be one of those large plastic garbage cans full of red wine with chunks of fruit floating in it? That little sting of brandy lurking just behind the fruitiness of every cupful? Remember you [...]
Picture by: Ian Britton – FreeFoto.com If you’ve ever wondered about the fascination people have with red wine, it’s kind of like someone’s fascination with cigars or food. It’s a luxury item that quickly develops into a love of and an appreciation for. Even better is that red wine has been attributed to certain health [...]
photo credit: Precept Wine Brands When it comes to learning about wine, newcomers often are confused about the different types of wine and how to distinguish them from one another. Not to worry though, your pallet will adjust over time and you will eventually be able to tell a Merlot from a Cabernet Sauvignon without [...]
Rosé, Not Necessarily A Wine For Beginners My girlfriend’s daughter is three years old and she loves the color pink. She also wants to be a princess, a mermaid, and oh yes, let’s not forget the quintessential princess mermaid. Her room is pink. Her shoes are pink. She has pink pants, pink shirts and pink [...]
Learn About Gamay Your formal name is Gamay Noir à Jus Blanc, or Black Gamay with White Juice. Some have confused your varietal, Beaujolais, as a grape of that wine. But nothing could be more misconstrued. For you, Gamay, are Beaujolais! Fruit forward and very light-bodied, you are candy sweetness in a bottle. And every [...]
Learn About Sangiovese You have been replaced Sangiovese. With better vines of Sangiovese! And then you have been replaced once again by more variants. You are a finicky and demanding grape, Sangiovese and due to your various plantings in various microclimates you take on the characteristics of your surroundings and practically reinvent yourself in every [...]
Learn About Shiraz/Syrah You go by the alias, Syrah, and are a very berry red wine, Shiraz. In a grand gesture of style you will express layers of sappy fruit with lots of spice, herb and smoke. Supple, you hit hard and detonate on the palate in your ready-to-drink red wine persona. But after some [...]
Learn About Zinfandel You’re a full-bodied, jammy red wine, Zinfandel. Dry. You are mouthwatering raspberry fruit with high pepper notes. Let me go on. You are cassis, licorice and graphite. You are dusky brambles and bay leaves. You are whiskey in a wine package. You are a hot red wine, Zinfandel, and this is accentuated [...]
Learn About Pinot Noir While you are an easy red wine to love, Pinot Noir, you are a difficult bastard in the vineyard. You are the epitome of fussy, having a bad reputation of not being consistent in all areas of production and because you are a low yielding wine grape, supply and demand causes [...]
Learn About Merlot Fruit-forward and easy drinking, you make a great wine for beginners, Merlot. Your low acidity makes you soft on the palate. But that’s not to say you can’t be bold and jammy, complex or tannic for that matter. Though your tannin levels are never overpowering. You’ve got lots of dark fruits and [...]
Learn About Cabernet Sauvignon You are a tremendous red wine, Cabernet Sauvignon. A real wine lover’s red wine. You have all the right angles and acid in a big red wine and can make an expert wine drinker salivate at your rich tannins. When you are fruit-forward and young, you might even make a great [...]
Learn About Muscat There’s a white wine that you remind me of, Muscat, with your searing acidity. Your need for a little residual sugar to balance this austerity stirs a little something in me too. Ah, yes, Riesling. But you are a heartier wine grape, Muscat, than Riesling. An ancient grape. If a vine’s age [...]
Learn About Viognier You seem to be in a perpetual state of identity crisis, Viognier. Your wines sway from the fruit-driven, clean, crisp feeling stainless steel aging offers and barrel aging, what with the weight and complexity it confers while masking your fruit. But as a wine for beginners, your indecision confuses anyone who chances [...]
Learn About Gewürztraminer You are not an easy to love grape, Gewürztraminer. Because your wines tend to run hot and heavy with high alcohol and extract, you need taming with a little spice to counterbalance these extremes. The meek are ill-advised to tread your grounds. Quantify that with a love of anchovies and you’ll get [...]
Learn About Pinot Grigio You are also called Pinot Gris and are not known for complexity in your wine, Pinot Grigio. Yet you can certainly be one of character and distinction. One easily recognizable trait is your crisp acidity. You are mineral-driven and have a low extract profile yet under the right circumstances you can [...]
Learn About Chenin Blanc You are a mélange of personality, Chenin Blanc, making it difficult to pinpoint your disposition with ease. Bone-dry or exceptionally sweet. Still and sometimes sparkling. There are times when you can be a simple, straightforward wine with subtle fruit. And others where you are a flavor bomb with aromas not even [...]
Learn About Riesling Sleek and tangy could describe your wine style, Riesling, if it wasn’t for your whimsical nature. You also have been described as a delicate and fruity wine, but that seems more than a little contradictory to someone who finds a high impact viscosity steeped in the honey notes of your dessert varietals. [...]
Learn About Sauvignon Blanc Sauvignon Blanc, you are different wines in different places and thus are rightly called a chameleon. Your wine style is as varied as the soil you’re grown in, making you a true barometer of the landscape. You have left Oregano, Thyme and Tarragon trails in the gravels of Bordeaux and ripe [...]
Learn About Chardonnay Wine Hello, Chardonnay. There’s no question that you are in the spotlight of the white wine world. You can be a light, apple-y thing at times, some might even call you flinty. But in your big and full-bodied wine moments no one can deny your caramel, butterscotch or vanilla notes. This full-bodied [...]
An Introduction To Wine Varieties So far we’ve discovered how your senses understand wine, looked at wine tasting for beginners, discussed wine faults and off-odors in wine; we’ve done everything but talk about wine itself. So let’s talk about wine. Specifically, let’s talk about wine grapes, wine varieties and wine varietals. Last time, I mentioned [...]
Follow Us On Twitter
We're Also On Facebook
