The world of White Wines
- Chenin Blanc: from France or South Africa. Tastes appley. Dry,
off-dry or sweet.
- Edelzwicker: Alsace wine made from a blend of different grapes.
Usually fairly neutral. Dry.
- Fume Blanc: a frequently used name for Sauvignon Blanc from
California or Australia that has been aged in oak.
- Gewurztraminer: from Alsace. Tastes very spicy. Dry, off-dry or
sweet.
- Gruner Veltliner: from Australia. Dry or off-dry. Tastes faintly
peppery.
Jurancon: sweet, medium or dry white from south-west France. Tastes
honeyed.
- Muller-Thurgau: from Germany. Tastes of potpourri. Dry or
off-dry.
- Muscadet: made in France's Loire Valley. Tastes neutral. Dry.
Overpriced.
- Pinot Blanc: from Alsace. Tastes nutty, creamy. Dry or off-dry.
- Pinot Gris: from Alsace. also from northern Italy and from
Germany. Tastes spicy, earthly. Dry, off-dry or sweet.
- Pouilly Fume: Sauvignon Blanc from the village of Pouilly,
near Sancerre. Tastes grassy, gooseberryish. Dry.
- Semillon: from Australia. Lemony, buttery, often oaky. Dry, can
be sweet.
- Torrontes: from Argentina. Orangey, and aromatic. Off-dry or
sweet.
- Viognier: from France or Australia. Used to be rare, now more
common. Tastes of apricots. Dry.
Cabernet Sauvignon
This grape is the red equivalent of Chardonnay. It is special in
its ability to adapt easily to different climates and conditions, and
still come up smiling.
Cabernet Sauvignon is often made as a varietals, or single grape
wine, in different parts of the world.
- Berry Nice - Cabernet Sauvignon has an easily-recognizable taste of
blackcurrants, but if you taste it more closely, you'll find
distinctive hints of cedar wood, plums, tobacco or mint according to
how it is made and where.
- Inexpensive Cabernet Sauvignon are released when they are ready
to drink; there is no need to age them further. Expensive ones from
the New world can also usually be drunk straight away.
Claret
It is simply the English term for any red wine from Bordeaux. Chateau
Latour is claret; so is the inexpensive red Bordeaux from any
supermarket, but it is always red. The colour is deep, dark red.
Claret is made from a range of many different grapes of which the
main ones are Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot. There are
also a couple of lesser varieties used to make claret.
Burgundy and Beaujolais
Bordeaux is one of the France's largest wine areas; Burgundy is one
of her smallest. This is one of the reason why red Burgundy is more
expensive than red Bordeaux.
Red Burgundy is made from the Pinot Noir grape which is one of the most
difficult of all to grow successfully. This grape produces wines that
are supple and silky, and taste of strawberries, plums and well-hung
game.
Beaujolais is the name of a region to the south of Burgundy - their
wine is called Gamay. Gamay makes wonderfully juicy wine, tasting of
plums and bubblegum.
The best Beaujolais come from ten so-called cru villages. They have
more pretensions to seriousness, and can age for a few years, that's why
they're expensive.
Is the most commonly-seen red wine from Franc's
Rhone Valley. It's a typically Mediterranean red: soft. earthy and with
plenty of raspberry fruit. Some can be drunk immediately and some are at
their best young and fresh.
Chianti
Chianti is the Italian red that used to come in those straw-covered
flasks; the flask, when empty, were then turned into lampbases or
candlestick holders.
The quality of Chianti has risen substantially in recent years, and
it's a wine that's worth taking seriously. The full flavour of Chianti
is quite hard to pin down, but it does have a certain cherries' taste
with a tea-like twist that is quite typically Italian.
Rioja
Is the most famous table wine of Spain. It has oaky, smoky flavour
and its soft fruit. It is made from several grapes the style depends on
which grape dominates. There is also white Rioja, which is quite fresh
and crisp.
Classifications:
- Sin crianza: without ageing.
- Crianza: with at least a year's ageing
- Reserva: with at least three years ageing
- Gran Reserva: at least five years ageing
- The wines are ready to drink when they are sold.
Lambrusco
The best Lambrusco should have a bitter cherry bite to it, as well as
being young, fresh and slightly frizzy. There's white Lambrusco as well,
which is likewise best dry.
Shiraz
Is one of the great red grapes. It's the same grape the French call
syrah and grow in Rhone Valley, where it makes deep-coloured wines full
of the flavours of tar and herbs and blackberries. But there are
different versions of Shiraz, you'll find it out in the label.
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