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Wine: A Grape Guide.
What started out as a quick guide to grapes around the globe ended up being a 40+ page mini-book about wine and grape appreciation. Here is an outline of what I hope to accomplish with the guide, and below is a link to download the PDF. Enjoy. Who... produces the grape (or "varietal" as the wine world likes to call it). This will be a quick guide to the regions of the world that are famous for producing such and such grape. The U.S. pioneered "varietal" marketing. On the majority of bottles produced in the U.S. you will easily recognize Merlot as Merlot and Chardonnay as Chardonnay. Australia and Chile are doing the same. But in the Old World (France, Italy, Spain) it gets a little more difficult. The Old World names its wine by region. Locals in these countries know their cartography and have no problem recognizing the regions on the labels, but for us "New" World drinkers it is confusing and intimidating. For example, I went to a party put together by a friend and she told me she disliked Merlot. Detested it, she said. I arrived at the party, handed my host my obligatory bottle of wine and she asked me if I wanted to try this spectacular red wine from Bordeaux. "It is just fabulous" she exalted and ran to find the open bottle. She poured me a glass from the bottle that stated the Chateau that produced the wine was in St. Emilion. St. Emilion is located on the "right bank" of Bordeaux's Gironde River and is famous for its Merlot production. She told me that I would love it. And I told her she was drinking Merlot. What... we taste in wine is like what clothing we choose to wear. We each have our own sensory likes, dislikes and recognition; just like we each wear a different shirt for personal (style) reasons. What we hope to do here is list the "recognition" aromas and tastes that are most common to each grape as reported by the hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands (you get the point) of wine experts who are much more knowledgeable than me. Why... are these grapes important or memorable and in some cases why they match so well with certain foods. However, red or white, why you drink a certain wine is of your own subjectivity (taste); so, don't let anyone look down on you for drinking a red wine with fish. And by understanding "what" to expect from a certain grape, you can have fun mixing and matching your own palate likes and dislikes with the plate of food in front of you. And an interesting note, white wine tends to be more versatile when pairing with cheese. Next time you cut a cheese plate, uncork a Reisling. When...a grape was produced in such or such region that no matter if you pay $5 or $50 you will have a quality glass of wine. This is an easy way to overcome intimidation when confronted by a daunting wine list or an overwhelming selection in your local liquor store. If you know you like Chardonnay, but have 20 to choose from, you will be able to narrow the choices down by knowing that 2002 in California can't be beat. Here is a quick cheat sheet to lock in your brain:
Simple enough. Download the Grape Guide here:
click to download PDF.
Wine Post - February'06 Back to home...
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