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Wine is the fermented juice of grapes. Only one species of grape, Vitis vinifera,
is used for nearly all the wine made in the world. From this species as many as 4,000 varieties of grape have been developed.
These varieties differ from each other, though sometimes only slightly, in size, color, shape of the berry, juice composition,
ripening time, and resistance to disease. Of the 4,000 or more varieties, only about a dozen are commonly used for wine making
around the world. The chief varieties are: Riesling, Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Gewurztraminer, Sauvignon
Blanc, and Muscat.
Wine Classifications
The primary categories of wine are table wines, fortified wines, and sparkling wines. This classification
depends on the techniques of production, called vinification. WineMaking is called Enology (or oenology), from the Greek words
for wine and study. The term vintage signifies a single season's wine production, usually referring to the specific location
in which a particular wine is produced
Fermentation takes from ten to 30 days. During the process, temperature control is necessary
to promote yeast growth and to extract the flavors and colors from the skins (if skins are fermented). A severe change in
temperature can kill the yeast. The best temperature for yeast growth is about 77o F (25o C). In a vat of fermenting red wine,
skins and pulp may float to the top, forming a cap. This cap can cause heat to build up in the wine and inhibit color and
flavor extraction, problems that can be avoided by submerging the cap twice daily during fermentation. In large vats the fermenting
must is drawn off at the bottom and pumped back in over the cap.
After fermentation, the wine is racked (drawn off) to separate it from the lees--the sediment
of largely dead yeast cells. Some wines deposit their sediment quickly, but other wines remain cloudy for long periods. The
suspended particles must be removed by clarification in any one of several processes.
Wine is usually aged in wooden containers made of oak or redwood. The process allows oxygen
to enter and water and alcohol to escape. Acidity decreases, additional clarification takes place, and the components of the
wine form compounds that enhance flavor and aroma. The wood from the containers also contributes flavor. The wood-aging process
may last many months or several years, depending on the wine and the quality desired.
Before bottling, wine may require blending, filtration, and the addition of an antiseptic agent
to prevent microbe development. Some wines are aged in bottles before being sold. Red wines especially may profit from two
to twenty years of bottle aging.
Cabernet Sauvignon
Cabernet Sauvignon makes the most dependable candidate for aging, more often
improving into a truly great wine than any other single varietal. With age, it's distinctive black currant aroma can develop
bouquet nuances of cedar, violets, leather, or cigar box and its typically tannic edge may soften and smooth considerably.
It is the most widely planted and significant among the five dominant varieties
in the Medoc district of France's Bordeaux region, as well as the most successful red wine produced in California.
Cabernet sauvignon berries are small, spherical with black, thick and very tough
skin. This toughness makes the grapes fairly resistant to disease and spoilage and able to withstand some autumn rains with
little damage. It is a mid to late season ripener. These growth characteristics, along with its flavor appeal have made Cabernet
Sauvignon one of the most popular red wine varieties worldwide.
Pronounced cab-air-Nay So-veen-yawn. A grape varietal, used in the
production of robust red wines, originating in the Bordeaux region of France. Also grown in the United States, Australia,
Canada, Chile, New Zealand, and South Africa. One of the top red grape varietals, it is the offspring of Sauvignon Blanc and
Cabernet Franc, and a popular collector wine. The Cabernet Sauvignon is vinified as a 100% varietal and is blended with Cabernet
Franc, Malbec, Merlot, Petit Verdot, and Syrah varietals. Also known as: Bouche, Bouchet, Petit Cabernet, Petite Vidure, Sauvignon
Rouge, Uva Francese, and Vidure. Characteristics: Produce heavy, dry, full, robust, deep wine that may be bitter and/or musty.
Flavors of cherry, raspberry, blackberry, pepper, spice, chocolate, tea, oak, black currant, mint, cedar, tobacco, green pepper,
olive, wood, cedar, vanilla, and is typically high in tannins. Ageing: Remarkable ageing potential. Benefits from oak ageing,
average of 18 months to 10 years. Ageing will soften the heavy tannins. Serving temperature: Serve at a temperature of 60º-65º
F. Food pairings: Roasted meats, Creole (steak), heavy stews, beef, lamb, goose, duck breast, gyros, meat Tandoori, meat Tajines,
mussels, pasta, veal pâté, pork pâté, pheasant, pizza, brie, cheddar, chicken, salad with bitter greens, high seasoned tomato
sauce dishes, parsley, and chocolate.
Merlot
The Merlot grape is a close cousin to Cabernet Sauvignon in many respects. It
is lower in tannins and makes wines that mature faster and are softer in texture. Merlot is often blended with Cabernet
Sauvignon in order to soften the blend. At its best, Merlot makes a wine that is dry, rich in flavor
and smooth as it finishes in your throat. At its worst, Merlot makes wine that is dry but thin in taste and texture, and not
very pleasant to consume. Most of what you will come across are likely to be of pretty good quality. |
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Merlot is able to mature in regions that are cooler than those required for
Cabernet Sauvignon. Merlot is more susceptible to fungus and mold diseases and therefore a bit harder to grow.
Merlot varies widely in quality around the world depending on location and producer. This variety was first known for
its success in the Saint Emilion and Pomerol areas of Bordeaux Chateau
Petrus is the stellar example of fine Merlot. |
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Merlot usually has ripe berry components in the bouquet. It's wines tend to be soft,
fruity and smooth in texture. Select Merlots can have long aging potential but most are ready to consume in 4 to 8 years.
Merlot is usually bottled in a Bordeaux bottle. |
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Merlot is enjoying a surge in popularity and additional acreage is being planted in many
major producing regions. It came to California in the mid-1860s and has become one of the most popular wines since its
surge in popularity in the 1990s. |
Merlot should be served slightly below room temperature. When alcohol reaches 74 degrees
F., it is likely to cause an unpleasant sharpness in the taste. Cooling the bottle for 15 or 20 minutes (but not much longer)
in a refrigerator can be a good way to reach the desired serving temperature. |
Pinot Noir
Pinot Noir is one of the oldest grape varieties to be cultivated for the purpose
of making wine. Ancient Romans knew this grape as Helvenacia Minor and vinified it as early as the first century AD. Recognized
worldwide as a great wine grape, pinot noir has many alias and is grown in Algeria, Argentina, Australia, Austria (called
Blauburgunder or Spätburgunder), Brazil, Canada, Czechoslovakia, England, France, Germany (Spätburgunder), Greece, Hungary,
Italy (Pinot Nero), Mexico, New Zealand, Switzerland (Clevner, labeled "Dole" when blended with Gamay Noir), the United States,
and Yugoslavia (Burgundac).
The reputation that gets pinot noir so much attention, however, is owed to the
wines of Burgundy (Bourgogne), France. For most of wine history, this two-mile-wide, thirty-mile-long stretch of hills,
called the Côte d'Or ("Slope of Gold"), is the only region to achieve consistent success from the pinot noir vine.
Chardonnay
The Chardonnay grape variety is a classic
white wine grape grown all around the world. The original fame of Chardonnay comes from it's success
in the Burgundy and Champagne regions of France. .
Chardonnay takes oak well, and many higher priced Chardonnays are typically fermented and/or aged in oak barrels.
When Chardonnay is aged in oak barrels, it may pick up vanilla overtones in its aromas and flavor.
Chardonnay also
ages well in the bottle, though it will not age as long as many red wines. It likes slightly cooler climates (warm days/cool
nights) and develops less acidity than Sauvignon Blanc. Some producers put their Chardonnay (or
some of it) through malolactic fermentation which reduces crispness and brings out a rich, buttery taste. This usually shortens
the life of the wine as far as aging is concerned. |
Wines made from the Chardonnay grape
are usually served chilled. Chardonnay matches very well with chicken and with dishes that are served with a lot of butter
or a cream sauce. |
Sauvignon Blanc (pronounced SO-vin-yawn
BLONK)
As with chardonnay, the purest expression of the sauvignon blanc grape is found in
France, in the Loire Valley (Sancerre and Pouilly-Fume) and Bordeaux. However, it also make superb wines in New Zealand, California
(where it is sometimes called fumé blanc), Australia, South Africa, and Chile. In Bordeaux, it is blended with the semillon
grape to produce both fine dry wines (Graves) and the great sweet wines of Sauterne and Barsac. 
The most salient characteristic of sauvignon blanc is its distinctive, penetrating
aroma, which can evoke scents of grapefruit, lime, green melon, gooseberry, passion fruit, freshly mown grass, and bell pepper.
Grown in cooler climates and in fertile soils promoting excessive vine growth, herbaceous smells and flavors can dominate
the character of the wine, while in warmer regions, the melon, citrus and passion fruit aromas and flavors emerge.
Most producers ferment and age their sauvignon blancs in stainless steel to accentuate the wine’s crisp, zesty, bracing qualities, while a few barrel-ferment the wine.
Malolactic fermentation is rare, and barrel-aging usually is limited to a few months’ duration.
Sauvignon blanc is a very versatile food wine that can complement everything from
shellfish and Caesar salad to fried chicken and aged Jarlsberg cheese.
Wine Glasses
Wine glasses have been used since ancient times.
Pliny (23–79 A.D.) wrote about gold and silver
drinking vessels being abandoned in favor of glass, and they were frequently priced as high as the precious metal versions.
Bonifacio Veronese’s sixteenth-century ‘Last Supper’ includes modern style wine glasses with a stem and
foot.
The oldest surviving European wine glasses with a stem and foot are fifteenth-century enameled goblets (a goblet is a
glass holding more than four ounces of liquid).
Near the end of the sixteenth-century in Germany sophisticated engraved decoration was applied to covered wine glasses.
The earliest surviving English wine glasses are diamond-engraved glasses that were produced near the end of the sixteenth-century
by Verzelini. Plain straight stems gained popularity around 1740, with air twist stems being introduced about the same time.
Ten years later a twist incised on the exterior of the stem became popular.
Quality crystal wine glasses were being produced in France near the end of the eighteenth-century.
Cordial glasses in the eighteenth-century had bowls of the same shapes that were typical for wine glasses, but they were
much smaller, holding about one ounce.
Toast masters glasses were made with a thicker bottom and walls so that they would hold less. A toast master had to drain
every glass and still be able to remain standing till all toasts were completed.
Wine glasses during the nineteenth century were often produced in sets with a dozen each of port and sherry, burgundy
and claret, champagne glasses and liqueur glasses.
More recently, in the 1950s, Riedel Crystal and other stemware manufacturers have refined wine glass design to the point of having a unique size and shape for almost
every wine variation.
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