Wine Start 51

A Rich, Creamy Master Class in Brie

At the Congress of Vienna in 1814-15, where European borders were being redrawn after 23 years of war with Napoleonic France, Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord was in no position to negotiate. With Napoléon's recent defeat, the French foreign minister wasn't even invited to the meeting between Austria, Great Britain, Russia and Prussia. Talleyrand found his way in, however, and brought a strategic weapon: wheels of Brie de Meaux. This bloomy-rind cow's milk cheese has been produced in the Brie region of northern France since the 8th century. At a feast hosted by Talleyrand, where several of each country's cheeses were presented, Brie was declared "the King of Cheeses." In the end, France lost no more territory than the 1814 Treaty of Paris had already determined, and Talleyrand was hailed as an exquisitely devious diplomat. "Brie is a tremendous cheese," says John Antonelli, who co-owns Antonelli's Cheese Shop in Austin, with his wife, Kendall. "I remember my first taste of Brie de Meaux very clearly. It was March of 2009, sitting on the bank of the Rhône River. I had purchased a wedge from Hervé Mons cheesemongers in the nearby market hall. The texture was incredibly smooth, and the aromas of mushroom and cauliflower were perfectly balanced." This isn't the bland, buttery, mass-produced cheese that has overstayed its welcome on cheese plates. True Brie de Meaux is one of only two Bries with a protected Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée (AOC), the other being Brie de Melun. Since 1987, these have been unavailable in the U.S. due to a ban on raw-milk cheese aged less than 60 days. What's the difference between Brie and Camembert? Camembert is another soft-ripened, bloomy-rind French cheese, first made in Normandy in 1791 when a visiting priest from Brie brought the recipe. Like Brie de Meaux, Camembert de Normandie is an appellation-designated, raw-milk Camembert unavailable in the U.S. The cheeses are similar, though Camembert is made in smaller wheels and is a bit more intense and earthy. Since then, Brie has come to represent a general style of cheese to many U.S. consumers: soft-ripened wheels with an edible, downy-white rind. Though most commercial, pasteurized offerings bear little resemblance to the great examples of French Brie, you can find delicious options that share their subtly complex, mushroomy, vegetal, tangy and nutty flavors. "I think there's a misconception that all Bries are created equal," says Kendall Antonelli. "It's important to try as many as you can so that you find the one that pleases your palate the most." So, what should you look for in a great brie? Given the wide range of options, the Antonellis stress that people should touch, sniff and taste their Brie, when possible, before they buy. "I think the sexiness of this cheese comes through in the texture that develops throughout the paste," says John. "It should be smooth, thick and mouth filling. Touch the cheese or ask your cheesemonger to describe the texture. You want it to be firm at the rind and soft, but not runny, on the inside." Kendall looks beyond texture. "For me, it's the flavor," she says. "I want strong aromas of broccoli to hit my olfactory. Smell or taste it to get a sense for where it is in the aging process." Wrapping Brie at Jasper Hills Farm / Photo courtesy Jasper Hills Farm Specific Brands of Brie to Look For "[Our] go-to French brie is Brie de Nangis from Fromagerie Rouzaire," says John. "Le Pommier makes an outstanding Brie, and Le Chatelain makes a lovely Brie for the U.S. market. But when folks come into our shop asking for a Brie, we can suggest a lot of bloomy-rind cheeses from the U.S. that fall in the same family. "If we're sticking to cow milk cheeses, then Blue Earth Brie from Alemar Cheese in Minnesota is a great bet. For those deep mushroomy, vegetal notes, our favorite recommendation is Harbison, a spruce-wrapped, brie-style disc from Vermont's Jasper Hill Farm. I've also had incredible Bries from Brush Creek Creamery in Idaho. They've won many awards for their cheeses, and I've always loved them." Jasper Hill Farm's Harbison Brie / Photo by Bob M. Montgomery, Should You Eat the Cheese Rind? "We've got a few sayings around the shop," says Kendall. " 'Leave no rind behind!' 'A rind is a terrible thing to waste!' Personally, we're fans of the rind, especially when the rind-to-paste ratio is small. It's awkward to cut away a rind from a small cheese. And folks are paying for that rind, too. That being said, we usually say to try it. If you enjoy it, eat it. If you don't, kindly discard it." Kendall does warn to not hollow a brie on a public cheese board. Rather, she says, "cut your wedge, plate it, then discard your own piece of rind." John points out that the way you handle the rind can depend on your setting. "[Rinds] vary depending on the maker, handling and age," he says. "So, I may generally love a rind, but don't enjoy it with what I'm drinking that day. Some rinds end up thicker than they're supposed to be. Those can be chewy and less desirable to eat." Brie should be served at room temperature. A lesser Brie can be baked in a puff-pastry crust or with fruit preserves on top. It can also be irresistible in a grilled-cheese sandwich. But a truly great Brie shouldn't be heated. It will lose some of those subtle textures and flavors. Three Brie Recipes to Try Hazelnut and Pineapple Baklava with Brie This dessert gets a savory twist as it's covered with pineapple syrup and served with a piece of creamy Brie. Potato Gratin with Brie and Gruyere Potato gratin is a classic go-to dish for holiday meals and comforting dinners. In this recipe, we use a mixture of Brie and Gruyère for cheesy goodness. Wild Mushroom Soup en Croute If you are a comfort food-lover, this wild mushroom soup is a dream come true. It gets added richness from Brie cheese and is topped with buttery pastry. Pairing Brie and wine / Getty Pairing Wine with Brie According to Ashley Broshious, beverage manager of Zero Restaurant & Bar in Charleston, South Carolina, when pairing Brie, select a wine that will help lift the fattiness of the cheese, either through acid, bubbles or tannins. "The best styles of wine with Brie are actually complete opposites. First, I love rosé Champagne with Brie and Brie-style cheeses. The bubbles are the perfect complement, and if you get a richer style Champagne, you don't even need any accoutrements for the cheese." Try: Louis Roederer 2013 Brut Rosé (Champagne) "If you are on a budget, try a rosé or blanc de noirs Crémant de Bordeaux," says Broshious. "Made from Merlot, Cabernet Franc and other red Bordeaux [varieties], it has the fruit and acid to balance the tangy, earthy notes in Brie and is an incredibly good value." Try: Celene NV Agate Ballarin Blanc de Noirs Brut (Crémant de Bordeaux) "My other go-to is always a younger, plush Bordeaux," Broshious continues. "A wine with a little oak shining through and ripe fruit is the perfect match for the creaminess of Brie." Try: Dourthe 2017 La Grande Cuvée (Bordeaux) Brie is relatively mild, so when it's one component of a larger dish, Broshious suggests pairing the wine with the other ingredients. "If the Brie is baked with fruit, I always pair an older Riesling with a touch of sweetness to complement the fruit," she says. "If I'm adding Brie to a salad with crisp vegetables and tangy dressing, you can't go wrong with a Sauvignon Blanc, especially Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé." Published on January 29, 2020 TOPICS:Cheese

German Riesling: The perfect companion for cuisines around the globe

Cultivated around the world, Riesling is a gifted ambassador when it comes to interpreting the terroir and tastes of the places it is grown. Its roots, however, lay in Germany, where Riesling's first recorded mention was found in a castle cellar log dated March 13, 1435. Over a half century since Riesling's "birthday", Germany endures as the global benchmark for the variety. "It's German Riesling that sets expectations for what the variety can produce," says Kathleen Thomas, the wine training manager for the international Hakkasan Group. Only in Germany does Riesling produce such a dazzling kaleidoscope of wine styles. In a singular, steadfast grape, Riesling expresses the diversity of German terroir - everywhere from the jagged slate slopes of the cool-climate Mosel to the loamy, sun-drenched hills of the Pfalz. German Riesling falls anywhere from bone dry to unctuously sweet. In alcohol, it can clock a sprightly 7% abv or a surprisingly powerful 15% abv. It ranges from feather light to luscious in texture and can be produced in both still and sparkling styles. German Riesling is both fruit-forward and earth-driven and always electric. Its diversity and versatility make it a favorite for wine lovers, particularly for sommeliers tasked with an increasingly global restaurant scene. Marissa Copeland, wine director of Junoon, a modern Indian restaurant in New York City, appreciates German Riesling for the dexterity of texture it offers. Whether something delicate and spry, like a Riesling Sekt [sparkling wine], or something drier and fuller bodied, "I can find the weight, texture and acid I want by going to different areas and makers," she says. On the tasting menu at Junoon, Copeland pairs Sekt with seared hamachi dressed in a cucumber vinaigrette and gelée made from Limca, a lemon-lime soda popular in India. With a zesty fruit profile that offers "more apple on the nose than Champagne," she explains, "Sekt is perfect for the dish." At Boulud Sud in Miami, Mediterranean-inspired cuisine plays well with lighter bodied, off-dry and high-acid German Rieslings, says head sommelier Daniel Chaviano. "Shrimp al ajillo," is Chaviano's "go-to pairing." The delicate sweetness and bracing acidity of German Riesling helps to "mellow the garlic spice and cut through the oil." German Riesling boasts a superpower ability to harmonize with a panoply of flavors, especially fiery, headily spiced cuisine from regions of Asia often dismissed as incongruous with wine. Wines with high alcohol, big tannins or prominent oak tones can amplify the burn of chili peppers. But sprightly, lower-alcohol examples of German Riesling, both dry and sweet, integrate seamlessly with spice. For Thomas, Hakkasan's Cantonese cuisine can be particularly tricky to pair with wine due to its profoundly layered flavor profiles. "It's a phenomenal challenge," she says, "when a single dish is not only spicy, but accented by so many different aromatics, herbs and flavors." Photo by Meg Baggott / Food Styling by Katherine Rosen A classic Riesling pairing at Hakkasan is the sanpei chicken claypot, a dish that melds chicken in a glaze of soy sauce, vinegar, sugar and chili. "The heat can sneak up on you," she says, "but a lower-alcohol German Riesling with a little bit of residual sugar helps to tame the heat." From Nordic cooking to Korean and Japanese food traditions, the tangy, umami-rich flavors of fermentation and preservation are backbones to many global cuisines. German Riesling pairs "extremely well with Korean flavors," says Jhonel Faelnar, the wine director for Atomix and Atoboy, a duo of Korean-inspired restaurants in New York City. According to Faelnar, many key dishes at the two restaurants "are constructed with acidity and flavors of fermentation at the forefront. Flavors of doenjang [a fermented soy-bean paste], ganjang [soy sauce] and gochujang [a fermented red pepper paste] all bring out a savory quality in an otherwise more tropical, fruit-driven Riesling," he remarks. Flavors of fermentation and preservation also feature prominently at The Bachelor Farmer in Minneapolis, a restaurant that explores the seasonally driven cuisine of the North, says wine director Amy Waller. Waller uses German wines, particularly dry Riesling, to highlight unexpected nuances in even the humblest of foods, like preserved turnip greens. Its "racy acidity and lively style" also makes German Riesling a perfect fit with the restaurant's whole-animal butchery program, which strives to utilize all parts of animals without waste. "We do a dish with pork fat, whipped to a buttery consistency and served on toast," she describes, "and I pair it with German Riesling almost every time." "Its purity of fruit and bright acidity cuts through the fat and just leaves you wanting another bite, and another sip, and another bite," Waller explains. The Bachelor Farmer, Minneapolis/Photo Credit Liz Banfield The perfect sip with almost any cuisine, German Riesling stands out for its inimitable verve and versatility. "German Riesling puts on the ultimate runway show," Thomas says. "It wears a different outfit every time," she explains, "but never loses its distinct personality."

The Surprisingly Short History of French Wine Classification

Designed to regulate which wines are grown where and how, France's Appellation d'Origine Protégée (AOP) system seems ancestral and long-established, like a Duke Ellington song or the Golden Rule. In reality, the system debuted in 1937 in response to some very 20th-century problems. "There were basically two reasons France created the system of controlled appellations: phylloxera and fraud," says Michele Thomas, the assistant manager of Greene Grape Wine & Spirits in Brooklyn, New York. For the uninitiated, phylloxera is a vineyard pest that destroyed half of France's vines by 1895. Production plummeted, so enterprising scammers sold faux French wine to thirsty consumers. These were not quality knockoffs. "Thin wines were mixed with things like sugar, sulfuric acid and even plaster," says Thomas. "Products imported from Algeria were sold as Burgundy, wines were made from raisins and grape pressings, and imports were sold as Chablis. It was pandemonium." In 1889, eager to preserve its reputation and reestablish a soupçon of order, France passed a law to codify the standards of its wine. Additional decrees further refined production, most famously in the Southern Rhône where, starting in 1923, attorney-viticulturalist Baron Le Roy promoted best practices for making Châteauneuf-du-Pape. In 1937, France introduced its AOP system, then called Appellations d'Origine Contrôlées (AOC), and never looked back. "The French took to drawing up Appellations d'Origine Contrôlées (AOCs) like ducks to water," wrote Hugh Johnson and Jancis Robinson in their encyclopedic World Atlas of Wine (Mitchell Beazley, 8th Edition, 2019). By 2008, when the European Union created the continent-wide classification system Protected Designation of Origin (PDO), France had more than 350 carefully regulated AOPs. Of course, France wasn't the first or only country to codify the production and place of certain wines. Douro Valley Port and Hungarian Tokaji launched protections in the 18th century. In Chianti Classico in Tuscany, "it was as early as 1444 that a local regulation was introduced to tell growers when they were allowed to start harvesting," wrote Johnson and Robinson. Still, there were a number of reasons French AOPs took off in the 20th century. As the industrial economy evolved, the designation gave consumers confidence that what they were purchasing was both genuine and of high quality. In turn, this allowed winemakers to charge more. Other wine-producing countries took note. "Especially in the years after World War II, countries saw the prestige that the AOC system brought to the French wine industry (not to mention the profits) and were like, 'That works. We should totally do that, too,' " says Thomas. If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, French wine has long been the belle of the ball. Published on March 23, 2020 TOPICS:Wine and Ratings

Does Alcohol Evaporate from Cooking Wine?

How much alcohol remains after a dish is cooked? You might be surprised... PINTEREST FACEBOOK TWITTER EMAIL Related To: Wine Recipes Renee Comet There's nothing like hanging out with friends and family at a summer picnic and grabbing a hot, beer-boiled bratwurst right off the grill. The alcohol-saturated meat is tender and moist, and yes, thanks, you'll have seconds. Cooking food in alcohol or adding it to food is, of course, nothing new. Wine, spirits and beer are commonly used to add a burst of flavor and aroma. Think coq au vin, lager-spiked turkey chili, or pork brined in rum before cooking. Then there are specializes wines often thought of more for cooking than drinking — marsalas and the like. And just about everyone, including many professional chefs and backyard grillers, believes that all the alcohol added to a meal during the cooking process evaporates (or dissipates), leaving behind only a faint aroma and subtle taste. Are they right? Is your Bud-soaked brat "innocent" when it comes off the grill, or will you get a buzz from eating five of them? (Actually, after that many brats, a buzz might be the least of your worries.) Myth buster Sorry to spoil the party, but here's the real deal: Simply heating alcohol, or any other cooking liquid, does not make it evaporate as quickly as a child's allowance in a candy store. The longer you cook, the more alcohol cooks out, but you have to cook food for about 3 hours to fully erase all traces of alcohol. A study from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Nutrient Data lab confirmed this and added that food baked or simmered in alcohol for 15 minutes still retains 40 percent of the alcohol. After an hour of cooking, 25 percent of the alcohol remains, and even after two and a half hours there's still 5 percent of it. In fact, some cooking methods are less effective at removing alcohol than simply letting food stand out overnight uncovered. Consider a Brandy Alexander pie made with 3 tablespoons of brandy and 1/4 cup of creme de cacao. According to data from the Washington Post, the pie retains 85 percent of the alcohol in these ingredients. Main dishes follow the same scenario. In scalloped oysters, for example, with 1/4 cup dry sherry poured over the works and then baked for 25 minutes, 45 percent of the alcohol remains. How about a chicken dish prepared and simmered with 1/2 cup of Burgundy for 15 minutes? Forty percent of the alcohol in the wine remains. A pot roast made with a cup of Burgundy and roasted for more than 2 hours, however, retains only 5 percent. Influencing factors The extent to which alcohol evaporates during cooking depends on two main things: heat and surface area. Hotter temps will burn off more alcohol, and a bigger pan with more surface area will produce the same result. As a reference, here's a helpful rule of thumb: After 30 minutes of cooking, alcohol content decreases by 10 percent with each successive half-hour of cooking, up to 2 hours. That means it takes 30 minutes to boil alcohol down to 35 percent and you can lower that to 25 percent with an hour of cooking. Two hours gets you down to 10 percent. Another tip: It's always a very good habit to cook with the same kind of high-quality wine that you'd choose to pour into a glass. A wine's flavor intensifies during the cooking process, so if you're making a sauce spiked with an old bottle of Thunderbird, the result will reflect it. Incorporate a quality wine instead and enjoy its flavor all the way through the meal. Ready to decant? Interested in cooking with wine? This Classic Chicken in Red Wine uses 2 1/2 cups of wine, simmering the chicken in a wine-stock sauce for 40 minutes before cooking it down to thicken for an additional 10 minutes. These garlicky White Wine Mussels steam in a broth made with a cup of something nice and dry. Bottle-of-Red Wine Sauce is no misnomer: the meaty chuck-laced sauce calls for an entire bottle of robust red, simmered for 90 minutes, then cooked down for another hour. Remember, too, that any remaining alcohol in a dish can be a big deal — or even dangerous — for anyone who doesn't drink. Plan and cook accordingly.

The Differences Between Wine and Whiskey Barrels, Explained

If you've ever toured a rickhouse at a Bourbon distillery, you've probably noticed that the barrels inside look weather-worn and rugged. It's a stark contrast to wine cellars, where pristine barrels are usually kept in temperature-controlled conditions. Meant to impart flavor and complexity, wine and whiskey barrels generally serve the same function. However, producers employ markedly different techniques throughout their processes. From stave drying to toast levels and char, many factors contribute to what kind of flavor barrels impart. It's a process coopers have refined for more than a century. "[Barrels are] our most precious resource in terms of it's the thing that we're making that's the hardest, that costs us the most and that we put the most heart and soul into," says Pia Carusone, co-owner of Republic Restoratives distillery in Washington, D.C. The lines between wine and whiskey barrels occasionally blur, but the distinct differences mean a great deal for your drink. Rachel Gardner (left) and Pia Carusone (right), cofounders of Republic Restoratives, sampling their whiskey / Photo by Rachel Naft Appearance Wine and whiskey barrels have a few striking differences in appearance. Wine barrels tend to appear more polished, with a sanded exterior, fewer imperfections and corrosion-resistant galvanized steel hoops. "You're typically using the best of the oak [for wine]," says Chris Hansen, general manager at Seguin Moreau Cooperage in Napa, California. "You don't want defects or a lot of discoloration because wineries want the barrels to look pristine and perfect." That attention to a wine barrel's appearance doesn't end after barrel reaches the winery. "We like to have [the barrels] look pristine when people [come to] Napa Valley on tours, but also it's really important for any sort of microbial [contamination]," says Shawna Miller, winemaker at Luna Vineyards in Napa Valley. Luna has about 1,000 barrels on site. "We try to treat the winery like a surgical room," says Miller. "If I looked down and saw a leaky barrel, I would lose it. It would be like an infected wound to me." Barrels at Luna Vineyards in Napa Valley / Photo courtesy Luna Vineyards Whiskey producers, by contrast, allow for slight imperfections like knot holes in staves, the wood planks that form a barrel's sides. Though these slight imperfections may lead to occasional leaks, coopers are able to patch the barrels. "The sugars in the whiskey allow for a more open grain without leaking," says Tony LeBlanc, president of Silver Oak Winery, which owns The Oak Cooperage in Higbee, Missouri. "Because wine is [drier], it requires a much tighter grain with no sap, knots or [other imperfections], or it will leak." The Oak Cooperage makes barrels primarily for wineries, but LeBlanc says that staves that don't make the cut for wine barrels will be repurposed for distilleries. Whiskey barrels make up about 8% of its total production. "We literally make a wine barrel for the whiskey industry, if they're interested in it," says LeBlanc. How Wine Affects Your Whiskey Whiskey barrels are also usually held together with dark steel hoops, which LeBlanc says is primarily an aesthetic decision by coopers. You can find barrels of all sizes, though the standard for spirits is 53 gallons. Wine barrel sizes tend to vary based on what wine they hold. Miller uses Brittany and Bordeaux barrels primarily, which hold 59.4 and 60 gallons, respectively. Barrel being toasted at The Oak Cooperage in Higbee, Missouri / Photo courtesy The Oak Seasoning Staves Prior to being shaped, staves must be dried to a moisture content of around 12%. This process, called seasoning, smooths out acrid, green characteristics and develops more favorable aromatics and flavors. For wine barrels, staves are stacked outdoors on pallets to dry, often for two or more years. "Natural seasoning and exposure to rain, [snow] and elements will wash more harsher tannins and flavors out of the wood until it reaches a moisture content that you can make a barrel [from]," says Hansen. Bound staves at Seguin Moreau Cooperage in Napa, California, prior to being shaped / Photo courtesy Seguin Moreau Staves for whiskey barrels, in contrast, are typically kiln-dried. The process takes significantly less time, which allows for more expedient barrel production. Now, though, coopers and craft distillers are blurring this line. "It's much different now than it used to be because there's many distilleries, especially the craft ones, looking for some natural seasoning of their oak, maybe six months, 12 months, 18 months," says Hansen. Why Ultra-Aged Spirits are Ripping You Off Carusone opts for natural wood seasoning for her Rodham Rye and Borough Bourbon. The barrels are sourced from Seguin Moreau. "We don't specify [stave seasoning] to them, but they provide a standard that we're comfortable with," she says. "That's the number one reason we're working with them. The cottage industries that have grown up around wine are very reliable, time-tested." Carusone says that it's harder to find smaller, reliable cooperages that specialize in spirits barrels. They tend to work with "large, legacy distilleries in Kentucky and Tennessee, and they don't even answer the phone from companies like ours." The toasting floor at Seguin Moreau Cooperage / Photo courtesy Seguin Moreau Toasting and Charring After wood is sufficiently seasoned, the next step is to toast or char the barrel. This step is similar to roasting marshmallows. You can brown the barrel slowly over a low-intensity fire, or set the wood ablaze and wait for the flame to fizzle out. Both have an effect on flavor, and they can be done to varying levels specified by the winery or distillery. To slowly brown, or "toast" the wood, is the preferred method for wine barrels, often done over an oakwood fire. This technique lends a bit of golden color and allows for subtle, nuanced flavor exchange. "We want to get all of the new flavors out of [a barrel] when they're fresh and new and lightly toasted," says Miller. "The first year, I would say we get 85% of [the] flavor out of them, but they will still give a little bit for the next two years. After that, we use them for neutrals and then we sell them [for reuse]." How Does Oak Really Affect Wine? To char a barrel involves direct contact between fire and wood, which leaves a blackened surface often sought for whiskey barrels. In fact, a new, charred American oak barrel is a legal requirement for Bourbon. Char creates a textured surface that alters the makeup of the oak, which filters out unwanted compounds in the distillate and imparts sweet caramel and vanilla notes. The blasts of fire are achieved typically with gas, rather than a wood flame. Arguably, the char is the most important element for whiskey aging. About 50-60% of flavor in whiskey, whether it's Bourbon or Scotch, comes from the barrel. "[Charring] begins to break down the layers of the wood in such a way that it allows the whiskey to come into surface contact and actually sees the process of aging as temperatures rise and fall," says Caruson. "But it also acts as a natural filtration. When you have a layer of char on the inside of the barrel, you literally have a natural filtration system with the whiskey." Because of the flavor intensity that charring imparts, LeBlanc says it would be "too dominant" for wine. Wineries have found this to be the case through trial and error. Barrel samples being taken at Luna Vineyards / Photo courtesy Luna Vineyards "When the wine business started in the U.S., a lot of wineries wanted to use barrels from the U.S., but they didn't have very good results [with whiskey barrels] because there's too much char on the inside," says Hansen. "So, they looked at how the French barrels were being made were for wine in Europe." Some, like The Oak Cooperage and Seguin Moreau, offer a blend of toasting and charring for whiskey barrels. LeBlanc says they've made standard practice of using both methods in tandem. Hansen says the practice started to gain popularity within the last decade or so. "The two can create a little bit more complexity, smooth the tannins out a little bit, and give you a little more vanilla," he says. Carusone uses these barrels to age Republic Restorative's Borough Bourbon. "We think it adds to a faster extraction of vanillin and a deeper, richer flavor," she says. "And this is all so dependent on time. If we had all the time in the world, we might make different decisions, but we're a small business, so we don't. We are looking to make terrific whiskey as fast as possible, but that doesn't mean we're looking to cut corners." Published on March 25, 2020 TOPICS:WInemaking

How to Pair Brie with Wine

No food has one single, perfect wine pairing. Rather, different pours will highlight different qualities of the comestible in question. And the more complex the food, the more ways there are to experiment. Brie is a soft ripened cheese that's classified as a bloomy rind, from the historic Brie district of France (in present-day Île-de-France, the region immediately surrounding Paris). It can be made from cow or sheep milk, but the former is more common. It's mild, but still plenty layered, boasting nuttiness, sweetness, creaminess and more, and the wine you choose to drink with it can make all the difference in the flavors you perceive. How to Build a Cheese Board Like a Pro Creaminess With a fairly high fat content, Brie's primary character is rich and gooey. Chardonnay has plenty of body to match that creamy sensation. Plus, its bright acidity will cleanse the palate to keep the richness from becoming too overwhelming. Nuttiness The nutty notes in this cheese are fairly delicate; think almonds and pine nuts, rather than toasted walnuts or pecans. A lightly oaked Chenin Blanc will have similarly subtle nutty notes, as well as apple characteristics that contrast and highlight nuttiness. Earthiness Brie's got a mushroom-like hint of earthy funk that will be more prominent in aged offerings. An Old World Pinot Noir is the perfect option to match that funk, as it's also light-bodied enough that it won't overpower the cheese. Sweetness Like fresh-churned butter, Brie can have a delicately sweet flavor. A slightly off-dry Riesling will really highlight that fresh dairy sweetness, while still maintaining plenty of acidity to keep the pairing out of cloying territory. Tanginess Beaujolais has lots of bright, fresh red fruit notes. The inherent tartness in those will bring out the tang of this cheese, which is a good idea if you want to downplay Brie's creaminess. Published on March 28, 2019 TOPICS:Wine and Food Pairings

5 Days and 2,500 Years Under the Sea: Ancient Underwater Winemaking Technique Revived

One of the most prized wines of ancient Rome was made with a very unusual step. An Italian winemaker heard it hadn't been recreated in millennia: "I'll do it" Basket (to) case: The Ansonica grapes in their baskets, soaking in the Mediterranean before vinification. (Courtesy of Roberto Ridi) By Shawn Zylberberg Feb 24, 2020 What kind of wine were Roman big-timers—from Pliny the Elder to Julius Caesar himself—knocking back, back in the day? It was strong, it was sweet and it just might have been ... salty. A team of researchers recently presented evidence that some of the most praised and prized wines of antiquity were made from grapes submerged in baskets in the Mediterranean before crush, a 2,500-year-old technique for flavoring and washing the grapes. Winemaker Antonio Arrighi got word and decided, if it was good enough for Caesar, it was good enough for him to spare a few bunches for an experiment. "At the end of a conference where [lead researcher] Attilio Scienza spoke about this old Greek wine, I approached him," Arrighi told Unfiltered about the project's genesis. "He told me that nobody has tried to repeat this experiment in 2,500 years, and I told him, 'I'll do it on Elba island', and our adventure started." Scienza, who recently helped revive Leonardo da Vinci's lost vineyard, was on board to advise. Photos courtesy of the Stefano Muti and Roberto Ridi The submerged-grape wine from the Greek island of Chios, especially, was famed in antiquity, distributed from the eastern Aegean to the elite in Rome, Marseille and beyond. The sea bath was no lark: Soaking the grapes removed the waxy bloom that develops on their skins, which allowed them to sun-dry more quickly before crush. Drying grapes was and is a technique used to concentrate sugars and flavors, but the quicker drying time helped preserve fresh flavors and aromas in the wine. Arrighi and Scienza used Ansonica grapes, a white thought to descend from ancient Greek varieties. Its tough skin keeps most of the salt and water out of the grape. Off(shore) they went: The grapes were submerged in wicker baskets for five days, 10 meters below the surface. Arrighi kept the flame for the old school by then drying them on cane trays and fermenting on the skins in terracotta jars similar to the amphorae of the Greeks and Romans. After (land-)aging for a year, the inaugural 2018 vintage, called Nesos, debuted with just 40 bottles. The "vino marino" has twice the phenolics of regular white wine. Only one bottle will be sold, auctioned for charity, but requests from collectors and curious drinkers kept the experiment going: The 2019 Nesos vintage will be available in Italy and internationally. But will our palates be ready? "The wine appearance is rusty yellow, slightly veiled and robust," said Arrighi. "And the smell suggests ripe white fruit, enamel, varnish and almond, while revealing a persistent, complex and prolonged taste, extremely sapid." (We did predict this would be a year of unusual wine flavors ...) The experiment was also filmed and turned into a documentary by filmmaker Stefano Muti, who plans to release it online. The winemaking presented certain challenges for filming, too. "As this was not a classic way of making wine, it was difficult to understand how long the various phases would last," Muti told Unfiltered. "And therefore we had to always be ready to shoot." Following an experiment some thought crazy, Arrighi is ready to declare old new again: "I was the only one who believed in this," he said. "I opened a door and other winemakers will follow it."

How to Build a Cheese Board Like a Pro

The cheese board is where I like to hover at parties. A well-thought slate of dairy goodness can promote conversation and introduce guests to new flavors and unique sensations. A great cheese selection is also an easy way to please a crowd without the hassle of cooking. But what's the best way to build a cheese board? Is it better for cheeses to contrast or complement each other? What accoutrements (nuts, jams, fruits, etc.) pair best with different styles of cheese? How should you guide guests from entry-level cheeses to more challenging options? We've assembled a simple guide on how to assemble three perfect cheese boards: an easy-to-build crowd-pleaser for beginners, a slightly more challenging spread for intermediate palates, and a collection of stinky, complex curds for advanced aficionados. Pears, apricots and apples go great with softer cheeses, while flinty, harder cheeses benefit from the sweetness of jam, compote or jellies. Sourcing the goods A good cheesemonger is a beautiful thing, and the best source for cheese is always a counter where it's cut fresh and wrapped in front of you (I recommend French Cheese Board and Murray's in New York City). Many varieties of cheese are inoculated with molds and need to breathe to continue the aging process. Pre-cut cheese can be substituted in a pinch, but avoid any with visible condensation or that seems to bulge out of its plastic. Harder, less-fatty cheeses like Parmigiano-Reggiano are an exception. Budget one ounce of each type of cheese for each guest per hour. Increase that amount if it's the only snack you'll offer, or lower it if other food will be served. Three curated cheese boards Each of these platters features four cheese types—goat, cow, sheep and blue—in an array of ages and treatments. Left to right: Humboldt Fog, Champlain Valley Triple Cream, Manchego, Point Reyes Blue / Photo by Meg Baggott, styling by Jenn de la Vega The beginner cheese board The beginner plate features cheeses that are easier to find in stores and will please a wider variety of palates. • Humboldt Fog: With rind like brie and paste like familiar chèvre logs, this Californian delight has an iconic line of edible vegetable ash down the middle. • Champlain Valley Triple Cream: Fluffy and with aromas of fresh dough, this cheese boasts a luxurious 70% butterfat content. • Manchego: Swap out your standard Cheddar block for this Spanish sheep-milk snack. • Point Reyes Blue: A creamy and salty starter blue that doesn't sting. If you can get your teeth through it safely and it tastes good, then you can eat the rind. Wine pairing for the beginner board: Central Coast Chardonnay Look to unoaked Chardonnays from California's Central Coast for an easy sipping wine perfect for cocktail parties or as an aperitif. The apple, pear and citrus flavors typical of the wines will complement this variety of cheeses, with acidity that will cut through the creaminess of the cheese without being astringent. Top to bottom: Cabot Clothbound Cheddar, Coupole, Roncal, Gorgonzola Dolce / Photo by Meg Baggott, styling by Jenn de la Vega The intermediate cheese board For the intermediate plate, go with some more complex curd concepts. You may need to request these choices from a cheesemonger, or you can order them online. • Coupole: A ripened snowball of goat cheese with a unique, patterned rind. • Cabot Clothbound Cheddar: This is nothing like the Cheddar you know. Savory, crumbly and sweet, notes of caramel become present as you chew. • Roncal: A Spanish, raw sheep-milk cheese aged into a meaty masterpiece. • Gorgonzola Dolce: Scoopable and slick, this cheese tastes like an intense sour cream. Budget one ounce of each type of cheese for each guest per hour. Wine pairing for the intermediate board: Loire Valley Pineau d'Aunis or Austrian Zweigelt While exploring new cheeses take this opportunity to try a wine you may never have had before. Pineau d'Aunis is a red grape known for its peppery flavors and aromas. The reds are made in a lighter style with bright red fruit flavors, mouthwatering acidity and a gentle grip of tannins. While this wine may take some work to find, don't shy away from Pineau d'Aunis rosés, which will have similar flavors with a little more zip. As an alternative, look to Austrian Zweigelt, which has long been hailed for its crisp red fruit and peppery flavors—a solid choice for a number of pairings. Clockwise from top-right: Valencay, Saint Agur, Meadow Creek Grayson, Ewephoria / Photo by Meg Baggott, styling by Jenn de la Vega The advanced cheese board Advanced selections for adventurers willing to take a chance on the unknown and hunt for their cheeses. • Valencay: From the Loire Valley, this uniquely shaped cheese was originally molded into a pyramid as an intended gift for Napoleon during his military campaigns in North Africa. After his failures in Egypt, he insisted all tops be sliced off. Slightly aged, this goat cheese brings mineral and citrus notes you won't get from your standard log of chèvre. • Meadow Creek Grayson: There's no two ways about it—this cheese stinks. But keep an open mind and taste for notes of beefy French onion soup. • Ewephoria: Very similar to an aged Gouda, but with a mysterious finish that can best be described as a flinty Butterfinger candy bar. • Saint Agur: The muted green veins mold make for a cheese that is spicy, yet creamy—like an easier-to-eat Roquefort. The best way to arrange cheese isn't just about the perfect Instagram photo or to impress friends. Visual cues can also help guests navigate the spread. Wine pairing for the advanced board: Demi-Sec With so many strong and varied flavors it's key to select a wine that won't overwhelm. Demi-sec, or medium-sweet sparkling wines, tend to have delicate fruity and floral flavors while the sugar adds enough intensity that the wine won't be overwhelmed by the cheese either. Meanwhile, bubbles and acidity will help cleanse and refresh the palate while jumping between the earthy and spicy flavors of the different cheeses. All About That Cheddar Tips on plating your cheese board The best way to arrange cheese isn't just about the perfect Instagram photo or to impress friends. Visual cues can also help guests navigate the spread. • Choose a platter that best fits all your cheese. It can be a cutting board, lipless large plate, slate or marble slab. If you're worried about cleanup afterward, lay down a bed of greens atop your platter like dandelion or chard. • Knolling is a process to organize items either parallel or 90 degrees from each other. It allows you to see everything on the plate and directs people to pair cheeses with a specific jam or nut. • Clustering is where cheeses are placed with the rinds facing inward and the pastes (or cut sides) outward, with accoutrements piled in the middle. It inspires looser pairings, which encourages guests to mix and match. "Try this compote with everything, because it's right there in the middle!" Throw in a few handfuls of toasted nuts, and call it a day. • While busy, bountiful plates are great visuals, think about how guests can best grab and enjoy their snacks. If another ingredient or garnish provides a barrier, they may give up. When you place selections, consider whether someone can slice downward comfortably and not hit other things. • Remove all inedible materials like wax rind, twine and cloth from the cheeses. If you can get your teeth through it safely and it tastes good, then you can eat the rind. • Plate the cheese one hour before your party. They'll be easier to cut. • Accompaniments like fresh or dried fruit and toasted nuts increase options and flavor combinations. Pears, apricots and apples go great with softer cheeses, while flinty, harder cheeses benefit from the sweetness of jam, compote or jellies. Blue cheeses taste sinful with dried cherries and/or dark chocolate. • Provide pre-cut bread and crackers to cleanse palates between bites. Ready to take it to the next level? Seek out buffalo-milk cheeses. Rich, fatty and a bit more expensive, these are an exciting addition and provide a new world of pairings to explore. Try buffalo mozzarella, Quadrello di Bufala or blu di bufala. Now it's your turn. Tag @WineEnthusiast and @Randwiches when you share your finished cheese platter online, and show us what you've got. Jenn de la Vega is a cheese-loving caterer based in Brooklyn, New York, and author of Showdown: Comfort Food, Chili and BBQ.

Dry Your Eyes: 'Wine Tears' Finally Explained by Science

Turns out we didn't quite have the full picture of the phenomenon, and a UCLA team has discovered a cause that's literally shocking The research team used a real wailer for its analysis. (Courtesy of Andrea Bertozzi / UCLA) By Collin Dreizen Mar 30, 2020 Surely you've noticed the slow-dripping streaks encircling the inside of your wineglass after swirling a Port or a hearty Cab: That melancholic vinous phenomenon we call "wine tears" (or "wine legs"). We know a bit about what causes weepy wine—and that the streaks have nothing to do with the wine's quality. But Prof. Andrea Bertozzi of the UCLA department of mathematics realized there was more to it—and it involves little shock waves going through your wine. Bertozzi told us that the study produced by her and her team, recently published in the journal Physical Review Fluids, was inspired by a lecture on wine tears she had planned previously. "I thought that it would be really good for the students to have a fun lecture. I knew the tears of wine literature," Bertozzi told Unfiltered. "So I brought in wine and glasses, and some cheese and crackers." But leading up to the lecture, Bertozzi noticed that previous research hadn't quite nailed it. "I realized that there was a gap in the literature ... they were missing some physics that I thought was actually really important." Previous research informed us that wine tears were caused solely by the "Marangoni effect." For those of us not in the know: As alcohol evaporates from a glass of vino, the surface of the liquid is pushed up the sides of your glass, which is why higher-alcohol wines and spirits have heavier tears. But Bertozzi suspected there was more to it, so, using Port-like wine and a stemless martini glass, the UCLA team got to work. After glasses were poured and analyzed, the team discovered the specific cause of these weepy patterns: "Reverse undercompressive shocks," shock waves in which liquids move against the direction of the wave. "It's caused by a combination of three very simple types of physics," Bertozzi explained, "One is gravity, the other is the Marangoni stress, and the third thing is the bulk surface tension." Marangoni draws the wine up, gravity and surface tension pull it down, leaving the sad pattern we all know and love; you see a similar effect on your car's windshield when driving through rain and wind. Interestingly, it seems that if it weren't for this effect, the trails in your glass would look more like fingers than tears. Volume 90% "We sort of discovered [these shocks] 20 years ago," Bertozzi noted. "But now we have them in wine, which is very, very cool." More proof that wine and science pair well, and we're a little closer to fully understanding what's in our glass. Before we've dried those tears along with the rest of it, anyway.

What is Kosher wine? - Ask Decanter

What does kosher mean and how is a kosher wine made? Sylvia WuMarch 5, 2020 Credit: Photo by Hermes Rivera on Unsplash Ask Decanter Highlights Kosher wines don't necessarily taste any different to non-kosher wines, but they must adhere to a set of Jewish dietary laws known as 'kashrut' and there are also several different styles to be aware of. The word 'kosher' originates from Hebrew 'ר‎כש (kashér)', which essentially means 'suitable' under the 'kashrut'. Wine has long played an important role in Jewish culture and tradition, and this can be seen in religious ceremonies. 'It's key in Sabbath dinners, and at the Passover Seder feast, participants sip from four glasses of wine,' wrote Decanter's Stephen Brook in a 2008 article. What makes a wine kosher? Interpretations vary to some extent, but to qualify as 'kosher' in most cases, only practising Jewish workers can handle the wine in the cellar, from crushing grapes to tasting and bottling. Winemakers also need to be extra careful when sourcing yeasts, additives and fining agents, to make sure they are kosher, too. Once a bottle of wine has been opened, it could cease to be kosher if handled by anyone not observant of the Sabbath. It isn't generally considered necessary to have the wine blessed by a rabbi, but some certification bodies may require a rabbi to supervise the production process. Not all Israeli wines are kosher Not all Israeli wines are kosher, but Israel is naturally the historical homeland of kosher wines and there is also evidence of vineyards being cultivated in this area going back more than 2,000 years. In the 19th century, Jewish settlers in the Holy Land planted vineyards to replace those that had vanished under Ottoman rule. This marked the beginning of the modern wine industry in what is now Israel, said Stephen Brook. It was then when Baron Edmond de Rothschild, son of the owner of Château Lafite, created the Carmel wine estate and started bringing in French winemaking know-how to Israel. French varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Merlot and Sauvignon Blanc were also brought in at that time, and remain common varieties today. Golan Heights Winery, which is known for its Yarden brand, has risen to international acclaim since it began producing wines in the 1980s. Other notable names such as Ytir, Barkan, Flam and Domaine du Castel, are also playing their part in introducing Israeli and kosher wines to the world in modern times. Do kosher wines taste different? In most cases, not really, said US-based wine writer Howard G Goldberg in a Decanter column, back in 2009. 'Because standard kashruth practices in the vineyard and cellar coincide with universal vineyard and cellar methods, it is relatively easy to produce high quality, competitive kosher wines in idiosyncratic and preferred standardised styles.' However, a small percentage of kosher wines are heated as part of the production process. These wines are known as 'mevushal'; the word literally means the wine was 'cooked'. After the heat treatment, the wine will remain kosher even if it comes into contact with a non-Jewish winemaker or a non-Jewish restaurant waiter or waitress serves it. Nowadays, most mevushal wines are flash-pasteurised to 80˚C (175˚F) and immediately cooled down to 16˚C (60˚F), to minimise the impact on flavours. In the past, wines were heated up and brought to the boil. However, some argue that pasteurisation is not good enough for a wine to keep its kosher status. Going international Kosher wines are now made all over the world, from Bordeaux to California. Goldberg said that examples of Kosher wines included Laurent-Perrier Champagne Brut NV and Châteaux Clarke in Bordeaux. Among the various kosher certification symbols, one of the most common looks like a 'U' in a circle, suggesting that it's certified by Union of Orthodox Rabbis. A 'K' in a circle, a 'K' in a star, cRc and Hebrew 'ר‎כש ' are also indicators that the wine is kosher.

How to Pair Wine with Prosciutto

When you're selecting a wine to drink with this silky cured meat, the options can feel as complex as the ham itself. Fortunately, there are lots of delicious choices to highlight it in different ways. Prosciutto is any Italian dry-cured ham. Prosciutto di Parma and Prosciutto di San Daniele are two giants of the category. These are salted and left to age for about a year, minimum, and sometimes more than three years, at which point they are sliced paper-thin and served uncooked. Other prosciutto-adjacent hams include French jambon de Bayonne and Spanish jamón Ibérico. While it's often served wrapped around fruits or veggies, draped over pizzas or flatbreads, crisped for a soup or salad topper or sliced in thin ribbons to weave into pasta, good prosciutto is an elegant snack or appetizer on its own. It has several distinct flavor components that invite creative wine pairing, depending on which ones you want to highlight. How to Build a Cheese Board Like a Pro Salt Salt loves sweet—just think of prosciutto's affinity with figs or melon. A lightly oaked, off-dry Chenin Blanc from the Loire (e.g. Vouvray) or South Africa has hints of ripe pears, honey and smoke, all of which are naturals with ham. Fat Prosciutto is marbled with fat, which melts on the tongue. Lambrusco—much of which hails from Italy's Emilia-Romagna region, just like Prosciutto di Parma—offers both cleansing bubbles as well as gentle tannins. Tannins can lessen the richness, while fat mellows tannins' astringency. Nuttiness A sweet, creamy nuttiness permeates most prosciuttos, especially Prosciutto di Parma, whose pigs are fed the whey from Parmigiano-Reggiano production. Friulano from Collio in the northeast Italian region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, which is the home of Prosciutto di San Daniele, is full-bodied and offers prominent nutty notes. Funk An appealingly gamy aroma is a sign of great prosciutto. Malbecs from Cahors in Southwest France feature similar aromas of vintage leather and undergrowth, along with ripe black fruit and spice. Try it with an antipasto plate of prosciutto, soft blue cheese and long-aged Gouda.

Sauvignon Blanc

[SO-vee-nyon Blahnk] Characteristics Sauvignon Blanc is historically connected to two French winemaking regions: the Loire Valley and Bordeaux. It most likely originated in the former, which today still makes single-variety expressions to global acclaim. In Bordeaux, where the grape's roots also run centuries deep, winemakers blend Sauvignon Blanc with Sémillon and small percentages of Muscadelle for dry whites and, in the Sauternes and Barsac appellations, world-renowned botrytized dessert wines. Sauvignon Blanc was planted in New Zealand starting in the 1970s; it has since skyrocketed in popularity in the U.S. and worldwide, and is the country's signature grape today. It was also popularized in California in the 1980s, where Robert Mondavi dubbed it "Fumé Blanc" (inspired by the Loire's Pouilly-Fumé appellation). These versions saw hefty oak influence, but these days, few California producers still use this term or make this style. Sauvignon Blanc is early- to mid-ripening, and grows best in limestone soils and relatively cool climates. The archetype dry Sauvignon Blancs are those of the Loire Valley's Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé appellations—these are citrusy whites with herbal and mineral notes. White Bordeauxs can see some oak aging, lending a rounder, riper profile. California bottlings mix ripe, fleshy textures with stone and sometimes tropical fruit flavors. Typical New Zealand Sauvignon Blancs are made in a light, zingy style full of citrus and aromatic herbal notes like lemongrass. Where it's grown Map by Henry Eng France: Loire Valley's Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé; Bordeaux's Pessac-Léognan, Sauternes, Barsac and Entre-Deux-MersNew Zealand: MarlboroughCalifornia: SonomaItaly: Friuli Venezia-GiuliaAustria: Styria Sauvignon Blanc icons Loire: Henri Bourgeois, Didier Dagueneau, Pascal Jolivet New Zealand: Cloudy Bay, Craggy Range, Kim Crawford, Greywacke California: Merry Edwards Suggested food pairings Loire (dry): fresh asparagus salad Loire (sweet): foie gras New Zealand: cod en papillote with lemon and grilled vegetables Sauvignon Blanc fans may also like Grüner Veltliner Pinot Grigio Riesling

Six Quick and Easy Tips for Navigating Restaurant Wine Lists Like a Pro

Have you ever been handed a wine list at a restaurant and been completely overwhelmed? Everyone has been there at some point, and it can be daunting. You're under pressure to order a tasty wine that everyone will enjoy, but don't want to pick something that will require a second mortgage. Here are a handful of quick strategies to help navigate those intimidating and extravagant lists with a bit more ease. Open with bubbles. When you sit down and want to really go through the wine list, stall for time by ordering a bottle of bubbles. Champagne is always a top choice, but there are so many excellent sparkling options typically available at a more accessible price point, particularly Prosecco and Cava. Not only is it a festive way to start any meal, but it allows for some breathing room to properly peruse the wine list and help open up everyone's appetite. Want to try something a little further out there? See if the restaurant has a pétillant naturel, or pét-nat, a rustic style of sparkling wine appearing increasingly on lists across the U.S. Getty There are no hard and fast rules on quality vs. price. You'll hear a lot of conflicting advice on what to order based on price. Some will tell you to never order the cheapest bottle on the list. Others say that the second-cheapest bottle of wine is what the restaurant wants to unload on unsuspecting customers too self-conscious to order the lowest-price wine. The truth is, there is no quick cheat that'll tell you which wine you should buy based on price. Sometimes, the cheapest wine is the owner's favorite, and the restaurant gets a case discount. Or the most expensive wine is something the restaurant barely breaks even on, but keeps it around for prestige and to add to the overall experience. What you can be sure of is that most beverage directors strive to make all the wines on their list ones that they enjoyed tasting, and deal with the price points later. Take the road less traveled. If you go into a steakhouse and look to a bottle of Napa Cab or Bordeaux, you are almost guaranteed to pay top dollar for a wine that usually has the highest markup in the joint. The same goes for a Barolo or Amarone at a five-star Italian restaurant. That's because these are the types of bottles most diners associate with these sorts of restaurants. How to Order Wine in a Restaurant: 14 Alternatives to Panicking However, if you look for Merlot or Zinfandel from Sonoma at that same steakhouse, you'll likely find an outstanding wine with less sticker shock. A Valpolicella Superiore can offer the same value at your favorite Italian spot and would be a welcome alternative to Amarone. Restaurants tend to mark these bottles up less to entice diners to try their favorite "value wines." Double the retail price of the wine for comparison. Most restaurants will charge a flat percentage markup on wine based on its cost. But some may play around with the prices where they think they can maximize profit. If you are considering a wine you're familiar with, a good rule of thumb is to double what you would pay in a local wine shop. That will give you a fair market assessment of restaurant pricing, though you should expect a bit more at higher-end restaurants. If a wine you like is being offered at less than double its retail price, you've found a deal. Getty Ask questions. It's amazing how many bargains can be found just by striking up a conversation with the sommelier or your server. Tell them what wines you've enjoyed in the past and why. If they ask followup questions, they're trying to get a sense of your taste, not quiz you. Besides, getting to know your wine professional has all sorts of side benefits. Maybe the restaurant has one bottle left of an older vintage that they need to clear out to make room for a new wine. Or perhaps there are a few wines not even on the list that just arrived. Maybe a sales rep dropped off some sample bottles about which the sommelier would like opinions. Having a conversation with the staff about your wine preferences and budget could lead to a stellar value selection. Wine preference outweighs wine pairing. It's easy to get hung up on trying to find the perfect pairing, and wine culture places such emphasis on the "right" things to eat and drink together. But if you know that you don't like Rhône wines and your server or sommelier recommends a Gigondas as the best pairing for your dish, chances are that you'll be disappointed. Be sure to order a wine that you know you will enjoy regardless of the food. After all, you're the one paying the bill, right?

Malbec Where it Grows

Leading Regions: Argentina Key Quality Regions: France Other Noteworthy Regions: Chile, Australia

How to Pair Feta with Wine

Not all feta is created equal. In the European Union, feta is a protected term that refers to cheese made in Greece from sheep's milk, with up to 30% goat's milk allowed. Countries outside the EU have taken a looser stance with the term, which is why there are so many cheeses labeled as feta in the U.S. If authentic Greek feta is unavailable, look for one made from sheep's milk. Bulgaria and Israel make very good versions that are quite different from the Greek variety. Great feta is creamy and tangy, and offers nuances of many herbs and spices. Highlight it as the primary player in salads and savory pies. Despite its strong flavor, it pairs well with almost any fruit, vegetable, herb or spice. Many Greek seafood dishes contain feta, but the cheese is also good in recipes that ask for ricotta salata, fresh goat cheese or queso fresco. Fun Facts The word feta means "slice." It's believed that the sheep's milk cheese mentioned in Homer's Odyssey was a form of feta. Feta is one of the world's oldest cheeses. Only 2% of the so-called feta consumed in the U.S. comes from Greece. The Guinness World Record for largest salad was a Greek salad made in Russia that weighed almost 45,000 pounds, which included around two and a half tons of feta. Pair It "Feta has a strong character—it's rich, salty, spicy and can be highly acidic," says Sofia Perpera, an enologist who offers extensive wine-pairing advice in the cookbook Modern Greek Cooking, by Pano Karatassos. "It needs a wine with an equally strong personality, high acidity and good structure. My first suggestions would be a high-acid Assyrtiko from Santorini or elsewhere in Greece, or Sauvignon Blanc from Sancerre or Pouilly-Fumé. How to Build a Cheese Board Like a Pro "One of my favorite recipes is a watermelon salad with feta, which I would pair with an off-dry sparkling Xinomavro rosé from Amynteo, a dry rosato from Veneto or a French Bugey-Cerdon," says Perpera. "Another popular Greek dish is a cheese pie made with feta. This is usually quite rich, spicy and salty and would go well with a high-acid, aromatic white wine such as a Moschofilero from Mantinia, or a dry Riesling from Alsace."

Great wines to drink with pasta dishes

Pasta dishes come in so many styles, with almost as many sauces, that they offer a wine pairing playground for those happy to experiment. Here are some classic styles to consider, with a focus on Italy. Chris MercerMarch 20, 2020 It's hard to run out of options... Credit: Photo by Christine Siracusa on Unsplash Food and wine pairing Highlights There are loads of options when it comes to pairing wine with pasta dishes, and experimenting with new styles is a fun part of the process. Below, we've put our focus on some Italian classics, intermingled with extra suggestions, to give you a few ideas for starters. Read a guide to matching wine with more diverse pasta styles, including noodles and dumplings, in this brief guide written for Decanter by Le Cordon Bleu London in 2016. Barbera d'Asti Barbera's high-acid character and its lovely kernel of red fruits can stand up well to the acidity of a pasta dish that goes big on the tomato sauce. It can also be a winner with a beef lasagne, where the acidity of the wine helps to balance that creamy béchamel sauce, wrote master sommelier Matthieu Longuère MS, of Le Cordon Bleu London school. The richness of a beef lasagne might lure you towards a bolder red, but Longuère said, 'It is better to stay away from oakiness and instead pick a ripe, juicy, fresh style of wine like a Barbera, a Beaujolais [Gamay], or an Austrian Zwiegelt.' For similar reasons, Barbera can also cut through the fat of a gloriously comforting macaroni cheese. Nebbiolo Combine two of Piedmont's gifts to the world by whipping up a truffle pasta dish to match with a glass of Barolo that's seen a few years of ageing in the bottle. The Nebbiolo grape's natural tannins should have softened and flavours like cherry and wild herbs intermingle with tertiary notes, such as mushroom or perhaps tobacco. Master sommelier Piotr Pietras MS told Decanter.com in 2017 that these sorts of aromas in an aged red wine would help 'to reflect the savoury character of truffles'. Younger Nebbiolo wines made in a lighter style can also have a delicious blend of zip, structure and fruit that can match with several pasta dishes, such as a ragú with a lighter meat. You could try a wild mushroom concoction with a dash of cream in the sauce, served with egg-rich 'tajarin', Piedmont's own take on a thinner version of tagliatelle. Avoid big tannins, though. Sangiovese Sangiovese in its various guises can offer vibrant red fruit, herbs and a touch of spice, depending on the style. Its heartland is Tuscany, of course, but also look for non-Italian versions, such as in South Australia. Sangiovese is pretty versatile on the dinner table, but - as above - watch out for younger wines with too much tannin or structure, because they might overpower your dish. Try Tuscan wild boar ragú with pappardelle and a glass of good quality Chianti Classico, especially if you've thrown a splash or three into the dinner itself. Alternatively, pair Rosso di Montalcino - the younger cousin of renowned Brunello - with spaghetti and pork or beef meatballs, particularly if the meat is infused with herbs and a bit of black pepper. Sausage and fennel, perhaps with fusilli, is another classic that often works well with Sangiovese's red fruit and wild herb character. Cabernet Franc could also be a great partner here. Emily O'Hare, formerly head sommelier at the River Café in London and who now runs WSET wine courses in Tuscany, told Decanter.com that isolation imposed by the country's current lockdown due to coronavirus has led to some surprising discoveries. 'I'm drinking Chianti with dishes I'd usually pair with a white and find they go really well,' she said, suggesting 'tagliatelle with rocket, lemon juice and zest, and a mixture of Greek yoghurt and cream cheese'. She was using Philadelphia cheese, because of a lack of creme fraiche at local stores, she added. Vermentino Sticking with the Italian theme, Vermentino can be a surprisingly good partner for garlic. There are many examples of skin-contact Vermentino wines being made in the variety's heartland of Liguria, including some from vineyards on impossibly-steep slopes that rise up from the sea to form part of Italy's famous Cinque Terre. Open a bottle and pour yourself a glass as you prepare a classic pesto Genovese sauce - the green pesto originating from Ligurian capital Genoa. Make sure to save some wine for the meal. Look out for Vermentino from further afield, too, such as the wines made by Ryme Cellars in Sonoma County, California, for example. Chardonnay Chardonnay is one of the ultimate chameleon wines, and chef Michel Roux Jr chose a slightly richer style to pair with his squid ink linguine, accompanied by pan-fried squid and salsa, in an article for Decanter.com in 2016. 'This dish calls for a well-balanced and fruity Burgundian Chardonnay,' he wrote. 'Head to the Mâconnais [in southern Burgundy] for some great examples that won't break the bank.' Look out for the wines of Pouilly-Fuissé, in particular. Chardonnay with a bit time on lees and a touch of oak - yet still with refreshing acidity in the mix - can also work well if your pasta dish involves a creamy sauce, perhaps with a lighter meat like chicken, or with a classic tarragon and mushroom combination. Vernaccia di San Gimignano Here is a white wine DOCG that flies a little under the radar, even in Italy. If you thought some of the red wine pairings listed above were a little too 'safe', then sommelier Emily O'Hare has a suggestion to help you challenge conventional wisdom. 'I grow more and more fond of this white wine,' she said, explaining how she drank a bottle of Vernaccia di San Gimignano with a pasta Bolognese. 'And I was thinking how delicious. Even more so, this white went with the dish [better] than a red.' A few other styles to consider Pumpkin ravioli has a touch of sweetness that could pair well with a Pinot Noir wine that offers a bit of sweet spice alongside the acidity and red fruit. Or, grab a bottle of Pinot Gris from Alsace, where you'll find refreshing acidity sitting alongside bolder fruit flavours and perhaps a hint of ginger. Choosing a wine for seafood spaghetti will really depend on the ingredients. Richer versions, and those involving crustaceans with a meatier texture, like lobster, might work well with a slightly fuller-flavoured rosé, or even a rosé Champagne. Michel Roux Jr also suggested a Bandol rosé for his squid linguini dish, cited above. Lighter reds can pair with seafood pasta, such as Cabernet Franc, Pinot Noir or Corvina (Valpolicella Classico), but steer clear of anything with big tannins. Fresher versions, where the salinity of the seafood shines through alongside parsley and lemon, could work better with fresher, more mineral white wines like Greco di Tufo or Picpoul, as well as the Chardonnays of Chablis.

VIOGNIER Where it grows

Leading Regions: France Key Quality Regions: California, South Africa, Australia Other Noteworthy Regions: Washington, Virginia

Sauvignon Blanc Where it grows

Leading Regions: France, California, New Zealand Key Quality Regions: Italy, South Africa Other Noteworthy Regions: Austria, Australia

Great wines to drink with lamb this Easter

Whether it's a rack of cutlets or a slow-roasted shoulder, here is our expert advice on pairing wine with lamb - if you're looking to create a small moment of normality with a traditional meal this Easter. Harry FawkesApril 3, 2020 Slow-roasted lamb shoulder with rosemary. Credit: Andy Hunting / Alamy Food and wine pairing Highlights Wine with lamb at a glance Style of lamb Wine style Lamb cutlets or young lamb served pink Pinot Noir | Rosé Champagne | Bandol rosé Roast lamb served medium to well done Cabernet Sauvignon | Syrah or Shiraz | Rioja Reserva Slow roasted shoulder of lamb or lamb shank Grenache | Brunello di Montalcino | Gevrey-Chambertin (red Burgundy) Search our expert reviews to find a great wine Choosing a wine with lamb depends on the cut Many red wines from the classic grape varieties are a wonderful, natural match with lamb. But it's important to pay close attention to the cut of meat you've acquired, plus how you are going to cook it and serve it. Below, we've looked at the three most popular ways to cook lamb. Pinot Noir or rosé Champagne with young lamb - served pink Lighter, tender lamb meat demands a wine that will not swamp and overpower the delicate flavours and sublime texture. If you do reach for a full bodied red, you run the risk of ruining your meat. A fresher style of Pinot Noir from cooler climate regions can combine lovely red berry fruit balanced by earthy notes, fine tannins and good natural acidity. Those searching for value in Burgundy could look to less-known areas on the up, such as Rully, where the red have stepping out of Chardonnay's shadow, or Fixin at the northern end of the Côte de Nuits, and fresher styles from Givry further south, in the Côte Chalonnaise. Some top producers have outposts in these regions, and it's worth looking at Bourgogne Rouge from the best growers in general, said Decanter's Burgundy critic, Tim Atkin MW, in a previous article on value Burgundy. Beyond Burgundy, you have a wealth of options. This could be a chance to see why German Pinot Noir is gaining plaudits, or you could look to fresher styles in New Zealand, Victoria in Australia, Walker Bay in South Africa, Russian River Valley or Anderson Valley in California, and Willamette Valley in Oregon, to name only a few. If you don't fancy a delicate red, this is your chance to reach for a weighty rosé such as Tavel or Bandol from the south of France. Don't believe friends who say rosé wines don't go with food. Alternatively, how about upping the tempo with a vintage rosé Champagne? Pink, tender lamb and a top rosé Champagne is something everyone must try once. This recently reviewed Bollinger Grande Année Rosé 2012 could be a good way to attain a moment of serenity on Easter Sunday, for example. Cabernet or Syrah with roast lamb - medium to well done This is the most popular cooking style for lamb at Easter. The meat will be richer in flavour and not quite as tender, so a roast like this can handle a fuller-bodied red wine. Bordeaux blends are made for roast lamb. The young Cabernet Sauvignon-dominant wines of the Bordeaux Left Bank are brimming with cassis fruit, backed by a splattering of spiciness and - in the best versions - well-judged oak. Try a vintage that is more approachable at a younger age, such as 2014, 2011 or 2006 perhaps, but great vintages like 2000 or 1996 could also make a memorable occasion - if you're lucky enough to have them. A wine like this will take the meat to an extra dimension, and the bolder tannin levels in your glass should also make the lamb meat feel more tender. Good Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot blends can be found across the globe, too, of course. The regions to look out for are: Hawke's Bay - New Zealand California - USA Coonawarra & Margaret River - Australia Stellenbosch - South Africa Argentina and Chile - South America If you're not keen on Cab, go for a good Rioja Reserva with some bottle age, or look towards Syrah / Shiraz. A Northern Rhône Syrah will enhance your roast lamb. Some wines will offer a touch of pepper spice in the glass that can also work beautifully with the texture of the meat. Châteauneuf-du-Pape or Brunello with shoulder of lamb If you're slow-roasting a shoulder from an older lamb, you'll be cooking with a lot more fat content on the meat, which holds and seals in the flavour fantastically. That pronounced, gamey flavour to your roast means that we're looking for a wine with that great balance of tannin, acidity and a little bottle age to draw out the flavours. Grenache-based blends from the Southern Rhône, with a few years of bottle age, would fit the bill. This is classic Châteauneuf-du-Pape territory, although you could also look to the exciting area of Cairanne, too. The Grenache blends of Australia's McLaren Vale also deserve consideration here, and the best examples will offer lots of juicy, ripe fruit alongside well-integrated oak and tannin if you want to dial up the power. If none of these sound appealing, then you could also look to bolder styles of red Burgundy, like Gevrey-Chambertin or Pommard, or Spain's Ribera del Duero region. A young-ish Brunello di Montalcino from Tuscany can also offer a lovely mix of bright red fruit, acidity, tannin and herbal notes. Brunello must spend at least two years in oak and a minimum of four months in bottle, giving the wine the age it needs to compliment the older lamb, but retaining the tannin to soften the meat and enough natural acidity to cut through those extra layers of fat. This can be a truly sumptuous match. If you need some help with the cooking, then here is our guide on how to 'slow cook' a leg of lamb. Why lamb at Easter time? As at Christmas with turkey, Easter has long been associated with lambbut its religious connections most likely pre-date Christianity. For example, lamb has central significance during Passover, although some believe lamb's place in this Jewish custom is purely sacrificial, rather than on the dinner table. Controversy over 'spring lamb' It may seem natural enough to eat 'spring lamb' at Easter in Europe and the US, but young lambs raised on local farms will not necessarily have reached maturity by this point. Many butchers in the northern hemisphere traditionally sell young, local lamb in early summer, once flavour has had time to develop. While global sourcing means that lamb is available for most of the year, some people, including British chef Jamie Oliver, have suggested trying alternative meats for Easter or cuts from older animals. Updated in April 2020 by Chris Mercer. Originally published in March 2016.

How to pair wines with chicken

Whether you're a fried chicken fiend, a casserole connoisseur or simply believe that roast chicken and a good bottle are the best companions for a Sunday lunch, here is some wine pairing advice to get you started. Chris MercerFebruary 23, 2020 Chardonnay is a classic match with roast Chicken, but watch out for too much oak. Credit: Magdalena Bujak / Alamy Food and wine pairing Styles to consider when matching wines with chicken: Chardonnay Grüner Veltliner Vermentino Blanc de blancs Champagne English sparkling wine Pinot Noir Spanish Garnacha White wines with chicken, and particularly Chardonnay in various guises, tend to be go-to choices but the rule isn't as concrete as you might think. Lighter red wines with good acidity can make a delicious alternative, and even those with a little more body can work in heavier dishes, such as a casserole. The basic principle is that you don't want to overpower the meat, or the dish; a wine with a bigger kernel of luscious fruit and decent acidity could match up well with a richer dish, but too much tannic structure risks masking the flavours. Roast chicken Chicken is often roasted with a medley of herbs, as well as perhaps some garlic, lemon and butter. Chardonnay is a classic match here, but think about choosing one that carries a little more weight, such as via a touch of oak and perhaps a slightly riper fruit profile. 'Put me down for a textured white Burgundy like 2017 Pierre Yves Colin Morey St. Aubin 'Le Banc,' says Chris Gaither, sommelier and co-owner of Ungrafted wine bar in San Francisco. 'Especially if the chicken is roasted with garlic and herbs in its own juices and finished with a touch of lemon, parsley, and sea salt. I'm heading to lunch right now...' Roast chicken with lemon and herbs can also work with Provence rosé wines, such as those from Bandol, or try an Austrian Grüner Veltliner, with a touch of spice, said Matthieu Longuère MS, wine development manager at Le Cordon Bleu London. 'Because of the acidity of the lemon and the pungency of the herbs and garlic, a ripe aromatic white wine or a full flavour rosé would be perfect,' Longuère wrote in a previous article on matching chicken dishes with wine for Decanter. Acidity is generally your friend in any roast dinner situation, because the wine can help to lift all the elements on the table. Fried chicken with Champagne Fried chicken has long been one of the ultimate comfort foods and a new wave of pop-up stalls and single-dish restaurants have brought this culinary artform to more people's attention over the last decade. When it comes to matching wine with fried chicken, Chris Gaither is thinking big. 'Who doesn't like fried chicken? And who doesn't like Champagne? I'm a big fan of creole spiced fried chicken with a vintage blanc de blancs Champagne like Diebolt-Vallois 2010. 'It has great texture, on the slightly lean side, but enormous complexity and a hint of creaminess in the mid-palate with a citrusy twang.' Sparkling wines that combine signature high acidity with a good dose of freshness can cut right through the fat of the dish. Gaither also suggested an English sparkling wine, naming Gusbourne blanc de blancs 2014 as a particular favourite. 'So clean, and so good!.' Coq au vin and chicken casserole dishes Few things build the appetite like the hearty aromas of a chicken casserole wafting through from the kitchen. Red wine drinkers could try uncorking a Pinot Noir, and Le Cordon Bleu London's Longuère suggested looking beyond Burgundy. 'A soft, low tannin, red cherry flavoured, cool climate New World Pinot Noir would be perfect,' he wrote, citing the coastal region of Limari in Chile as one area that is worth researching. You could also look to Mornington Peninsula in Australia, Oregon, New Zealand or California's Santa Barbara County, to name only a few. In Burgundy itself, some great value can still be found in slightly lesser-known areas. Tim Atkin MW, Decanter's Burgundy correspondent, recently suggested exploring the the Côte Chalonnaise to the south of Beaune, for example. Pinot isn't the only red wine to pair with chicken, of course. In general, look for fruit-forward wines with low tannins and relatively good acidity to help lift the dish. Versatility of chicken: Think about the other flavours A lot depends on how you cook and serve the meat, such is its versatility. For example, a chicken and pesto dish point you towards a citrussy Vermentino with a bit of skin-contact for extra depth and texture. A chicken Thai curry puts the heat of the dish in greater focus and could work well with a high-acid white wine that carries just a touch of residual sugar; Riesling is an option here. Longuère suggested Spanish Garnacha - known as Grenache in France - from Navarra in northern Spain to match skinless, grilled chicken breast. 'Its ripe and juicy blackberry flavour will toy with the smokiness from the grill,' he wrote. And finally It seems bizarre these days that chicken was once a rarity on dinner tables, yet global production and consumption have rocketed in the last 50 years. It can be relatively cheap to produce and has garnered a reputation as a healthier meat due to its generally favourable protein-to-fat ratio. There is, however, a huge difference in flavour depending on how birds have been reared. Always opt for higher welfare standards if you can, and choose organic if possible, too.

What makes a wine vegan?

Are you seeing more wines marketed as vegan? What means that a wine is - or isn't - suitable for vegans? Ellie DouglasJanuary 3, 2020 How do you know if a wine is vegan? Credit: Scott Warman / Unsplash Ask Decanter Highlights Wine advice What makes a wine vegan? Ask Decanter Given that wine is the product of grapes and yeast, some may assume that all wines would be appropriate for vegans - those who do not consume any kind of animal product - but this isn't always the case. Wine bars and retailers have started to market some wines as vegan friendly in response to the growth of veganism in several countries, including the UK and US. According to The Vegan Society, 600,000 people in the UK were vegan in 2019, compared to 150,000 in 2014. 'Veganuary' is increasingly part of the New Year calendar, slotting into the post-festive detox trend. In January 2019, 250,000 people signed up to take part in the UK, according to The Vegan Society. See also: What is fining in wine? See also: Sulphites in wine - friend or foe? Vegan wine It is often some traditional fining agents that can make a wine unsuitable for vegans. Egg whites or casein (a protein found in milk) can be used to remove tiny particles of sediment in a wine that cannot be removed by filtration. However, other ways of doing this are becoming more popular. 'Traditional fining products that were egg/fish/milk derived have probably - we think - moved on to a lot of vegetable-based products,' said Kristin Syltevik, of the Oxney Organic Estate in East Sussex, England, speaking in 2018. 'Vegan wines are made without animal products, so winemakers either leave the particles to sink naturally to the bottom of the wine, or use non-animal fining products usually bentonite, a form of clay or pea protein,' said Waitrose & Partners wine expert, Matt Johnson. Other animal products used in wine production may include beeswax (used to seal bottles) and agglomerated corks (which use milk-based glues). In reality, many wines are vegan friendly. However, it can be difficult to tell. Regulations in the EU and US do not currently require wineries to list fining agents on labels. More wine retailers and producers have started to help consumers make a choice by highlighting which of their wines are vegan friendly. Majestic Wine previously told Decanter.com that it defined vegan wine as those that 'will not have been fined, filtered or come into contact with anything derived from an animal or dairy source'. It said in November 2019 that it stocked 200 wines listed as vegan, compared to 39 a year before. Waitrose have 500 wines listed as vegan on its website. Decanter's Weekday Wines also shows which wines are labelled vegan, as well as those that are organic and biodynamic. Updated January 2020. Top vegan labelled wines to try: Morrisons, The Best Petit Chablis, Chablis, Burgundy, 2017 The 2013 vintage of Morrisons, The Best Chablis 1er Cru won Platinum (97 points) at this year's Decanter World Wine Awards, and the current 2015 vintage at £15 is another brilliant buy. Also made by the excellent La Chablisienne co-op is this Petit Chablis which is top value, the welcome... Points91 Sainsbury's, Taste the Difference, Gavi di Gavi, 2018 This is a very classy wine for the price, made from Cortese vines averaging 35 years of age in the prized Gavi di Gavi DOCG. It has admirable complexity and great fruit weight of crunchy green apple fruit along with a zippy citrus acidity, smoky minerality and a long and... Points90 Aldi, Orange Natural Wine, Romania, 2017 Aldi is the first UK supermarket to stock an orange wine - a white wine that gains colour and texture from an extended amount of time spent on the skins of the grapes. The style is the darling of the natural wine brigade, but the speed with which this wine... Points87 Alain Graillot, Encinas, Bierzo 2016 + Add to My Wines The latest international venture for the northern Rhône's Graillot family sees Antoine Graillot join Spain's Raúl Pérez to craft this meaty, pure-fruited Mencía. Wild fennel joins tart plums and cherries on an inky, earthy palate. Elegantly rustic, with sappy tannins and savoury acidity. Points93 Pisano, Cisplatino Tannat, Progreso, Canelones, 2017 + Add to My Wines A cracking wine for the price from the Pisano family, showcasing what is often a mouth-puckeringly tannic and high-octane variety in an elegant guise. The six months in neutral French oak barrels has imparted sweet spice to the weighty, smoky wild blue and black berry fruits, supported by grippy fruit... Points92 Perez Burton, Rioja, Spain, 2017 + Add to My Wines From star Spanish winemaker Telmo Rodriguez and friend Pablo Eguzkiza comes this sappy, juicy bush-vine Tempranillo, fermented in concrete vats then aged in French oak barrels for 14 months. It's concentrated, mellow and spicy with savoury wild strawberry fruit. The Contino 2015 for £25 is also delicious if you want... Points91 Bosman Family Vineyards, Generation VIII Cabernet-Merlot, Wellington 2019 + Add to My Wines Bosman's wines have gone from strength to strength since head winemaker Corlea Fourie joined the team in 2007 - she also makes the 2019 Taste the Difference Fairtrade Chenin Blanc (£8). This is a blend of 77% Cabernet and 23% Malbec from vines on ancient schist soils is all fruit:...

The Ultimate Guide to the Wide World of Fortified Wine

From Spanish Sherries to Australian Rutherglen Muscats, fortified wines vary in color, flavor, origin and sweetness. But all have one thing in common: fortification. Fortification, the addition of grape spirit to wine either during or after fermentation, is a technique used to increase alcohol content and stop fermentation. The process was popularized by the English in the late 17th century to stabilize and preserve wines for long sea voyages. Prior to the development of fortification, many of these wines were made originally as still, unfortified wines. However, many decisions, like at what point during fermentation a wine is fortified and how it's matured, create a diverse array of bottlings. The Cathedral of San Salvador in Jerez de la Frontera/Getty Sherry All Sherry hails from hot, dry southern Spain, centered in the towns of Jerez de la Frontera, Sanlúcar de Barrameda and El Puerto de Santa María. While the low-acid, white Palomino grape dominates the region, it's often supplemented by aromatic Moscatel (also known as Muscat of Alexandria) and robust Pedro Ximénez. In general, fermentation takes place in neutral stainless-steel tanks, followed by extended aging in neutral barrels. Because Palomino is such a neutral grape, the aging process is crucial to the style of the finished wine. Sherry wines are aged in rows of barrels called criaderas using the solera system, whereby fresh wine is added to barrels holding multiple back years of wine, thus leading to many vintages being blended over time. The process works like this: Winemakers take a percentage of wine from the oldest section below of a solera for bottling. Next, they top up the solera with wine from the first criadera (the next-oldest section), and then they fill the first criadera with wine from the second criadera, and so forth. Each style of Sherry has its own solera system within a bodega, some of which may be decades old. Everything You Need To Know About Sherry There are various styles of Sherry, but dry Sherries can be classified largely into two categories: those aged under a veil of yeast called flor, which includes fino and Manzanilla, and ones matured with oxygen contact, like oloroso. Some, like amontillado and Palo Cortado, are "hybrid" styles that undergo both aging techniques. Generally, free-run and first-press juice is used for fino and Palo Cortado, while second-press juice is used for oloroso. "Free-run and first-press must generally has a more elegant, soft and neutral character," says Antonio Flores, winemaker and master blender for González Byass. "This allows the flor to leave a dominant yeast character. For the oloroso style, we are looking for a must with more structure, body and complexity." Flor-aged Sherries are fortified with a grape spirit until the wine reaches between 15% and 15.5% abv. This encourages flor to grow, which protects the wine from oxygen and imbues it with almond-like, yeasty notes and a dry, refreshing texture. Sherries aged through oxidation are fortified to about 17% abv. Since flor cannot survive at those levels, oxygen can interact with the wine. This creates nutty, caramel-like notes and develops a round, viscous texture. After a few months in barrel, the wines are assessed and can be reclassified. If a wine is too robust and hasn't developed a strong layer of flor, it may be fortified again to 17% abv and aged as amontillado or slightly richer Palo Cortado solera systems. Both of these styles of wine have fresh, citrusy qualities and nutty, oxidative aging characteristics. Sweet Sherries are the result of different winemaking decisions, though they're also aged in solera. Naturally sweet Sherry like Pedro Ximénez and Moscatel are made from super-concentrated, dried grapes with sugar levels so high that fermentation doesn't finish before the alcohol is added. They're fortified to 15 or 16% abv. Pale Cream and Cream Sherries are usually fermented until dry, then fortified and sweetened. The Douro Valley, Portugal/Getty Port Port is always a sweet, fortified wine made from grapes grown on the steep slopes of Portugal's Douro Valley. The warm, dry conditions make powerful, ripe red wines, though white grapes are grown as well. Unlike Sherry, Port is often the result of a blend of multiple grape varieties, often from different vineyard sites. The most prominent ones used to make Port include Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Tinta Barroca, Tinto Cão and Tinta Roriz. "We make around 300 separate lots of our top grapes and many more of lesser-quality grapes at each vintage," says Rupert Symington, CEO of Symington Family Estates. The grapes are macerated extensively for concentration and structure before they're fermented in stainless steel or open granite lagares. Fortification with a 77% abv grape spirit takes place before fermentation is complete. This is why Port is always sweet, though the exact level of sweetness depends on a house's style. The quality and flavor of the grape spirit that's added also matters, since a fair amount needs to be blended in to achieve Port's typical 19-22% abv. In addition to white and rosé styles, Port can be split into two categories. Tawny Ports are aged with oxygen, while ruby Ports are aged for 2-3 years in wood, cement or stainless steel prior to bottling. The first step for most Ports is barrel aging. "After a preliminary sorting at harvest time, the wines are put into wood," says Symington. An exhaustive tasting is conducted the following spring to identify the wines that are structured and concentrated enough for vintage Port production. The wines are then assessed to find those suitable for long aging in wood to create high-quality tawny Ports, where they will develop nutty, dried fruit notes. Others are determined best for bottling after a few years as fresh, fruit-forward late-bottled vintages or ruby reserve wines. The remaining wines are blended into basic ruby Ports. Vineyards on Madeira Island, Portugal/Getty Madeira Made on the subtropical Portuguese island of the same name, Madeira can vary in style based on grape variety and intended quality, but one characteristic rises above all: It is virtually indestructible. According to the Instituto do Vinho do Bordado e do Artesanato da Madeira (IVBAM), about 85% of Madeira is made using the high-yielding red grape Tinta Negra. But the best Madeira wines are made generally from the island's four white varieties: Sercial, Verdelho, Boal and Malvasia. When a wine is labeled by variety, it can indicate the sweetness level. For example, high-acid Sercial tends to be fortified later in the fermentation process, which makes a relatively drier wine. Meanwhile, high-sugar Malvasia tends to be fortified earlier to make a sweet wine. The added spirit is 96% abv, so just a little is needed to reach Madeira's 17-18% abv. Madeira's aging process is rooted in its history. To mimic the conditions Madeira endured as it crossed the oceans during the Age of Exploration, the wine is heated and oxidized. "The maturation of Madeira usually involves exposure to relatively high temperatures, which affects the aroma and flavor composition of these wines," says Rubina Vieira, a Madeira wine educator with IVBAM. The wines may either be heated rapidly in tanks through the estufagem process, or they may be aged over time in barrels through the canteiro process. The latter, while more expensive and time-consuming, tends to create more complex wines, as they slowly heat and cool in a warm, humid environment. "Oak casks lose water, and the resulting wine increases in acidity, sugar levels and alcohol content," says Vieira. Frasqueira, or vintage, Madeira undergoes this superior maturation process, as will most age-indicated Madeira that has aged for at least 20 years. The estufagem process is cheaper and quicker, so it's used generally for entry-level, youthful wines made from Tinta Negra. "The descriptors 'baked,' 'brown sugar' and 'nutty' are typical descriptors for these wines," says Vieira. Marsala wine and snacks in Marsala, Sicily/Getty Marsala Marsala is among the world's historic wines, first fortified in 1773. Though commercialization in the past century resulted in a decline in quality, some producers in western Sicily have revived traditional, high-caliber Marsala. With the exception of the less common rubino style, which uses red grapes, oro (golden) or lower-quality ambra (amber) Marsala is typically made from Grillo, Inzolia and Catarratto. The wine may be fortified to 17% or 18% abv at any point during fermentation and ranges from dry secco with up to 40 grams per liter (g/L) of residual sugar, to sweet dolce, with more than 100 g/L sugar. Like Sherry, quality Marsala is aged in a solera system, called in perpetuum, made of oak or cherry wood barrels. The wines are largely nonvintage and may be classified according to length of maturation. The range spans from fine, which must be aged for just one year, to vergine, which is dry and aged for at least five years. Vergine, and the 10 year-aged vergine stravecchio, show marked signs of this oxidative aging, with aromas of nuts, caramel and baking spice. Large glass demijohns/Getty Vins Doux Naturels France's fortified wines, made in Languedoc-Roussillon and the Southern Rhône, are made largely from Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains, Muscat of Alexandria or Grenache. Though they vary stylistically by region, vins doux naturels (VDN) are always sweet and fortified with a 95-96% abv grape spirit before fermentation is halted. White wines can be aged oxidatively in barrels or glass demijohns. More often, they're unaged and youthful like Muscat de Rivesaltes, which features fresh stone, citrus and tropical fruit with floral and honeyed characteristics. Red VDNs continue maceration on skins even after fortification, which is why they may be deep in color and well-structured. But depending on whether they're aged oxidatively to create tuilé or traditionnel wines, or made in a youthful style called grenat or rimage, they may range from juicy and deeply fruited to complex with dried fruit notes. Banyuls, Maury and Rivesaltes are all common regions for red VDNs. A Tour of Australia's Historic Wineries Rutherglen Muscat While most traditional fortified wines hail from the Old World, Rutherglen Muscat is a gem of the New World. In Australia's inland Rutherglen region, a red-skinned variant of Muscat called Muscat à Petits Grains Rouge is grown in warm vineyards. "The aim is to maximize the natural sugar content of the juice, fortify [it] with a neutral grape spirit and intensify the flavor character through long-term aging," says Ian Diver, winery operations manager for Campbells of Rutherglen. Ripeness at harvest affects the richness and concentration of the finished wine. Some producers pick earlier for freshness, while others wait until the grapes have shriveled on the vine. The Muscat juice is fortified with a 96% abv spirit to make a very sweet wine of around 17.5% abv. Old barrels are used to promote oxidative aging, which produces nutty, savory, caramelized notes. Additionally, as water evaporates, the wines develop a luscious, viscous texture. Rutherglen Muscat is typically a nonvintage wine, and some producers, like Campbells, use a solera system to age their wines. There are four classifications: Rutherglen Muscat, which averages three to five years of aging; Classic Rutherglen, which ages from six to 10 years; Grand Rutherglen, which averages 11-19 years; and Rare Rutherglen, with a minimum age of 20 years. The longer a Rutherglen Muscat ages in these barrels, the richer and more complex it becomes.

Chardonnay

[shar-dun-NAY] Characteristics This white grape takes its name from a village in the Mâconnais region of Burgundy in France. It remains widely grown there today, but the variety became so popular in the 1970s that for a time it became nearly synonymous with "white wine" in the U.S. Today, almost every wine-producing region in the world grows Chardonnay. This early-budding and early-ripening variety is relatively easy to grow, explaining its attractiveness to winemakers. The best soils for its vines are limestone, chalk and calcareous clay. The main appeal of Chardonnay lies in its versatility: Its ability to translate terroir, or a sense of where it's grown, and respond positively to a wide range of winemaking techniques have bolstered its popularity among growers and winemakers. Cool-climate Chardonnays tend to have a leaner profile, with fresh citrus, orchard and stone fruit flavors like lemon, apple, pear and peach. These styles are mostly found in France—Burgundy, of course, but in other areas too, such as Champagne, where Chardonnay plays a major role in the bubbly's blend. Chardonnays from warmer climates show riper fruit; California is the best-known producer of New World Chardonnay, but Oregon and Australia also make high-quality versions. Winemakers across the globe can choose to employ malolactic fermentation, lees stirring or oak aging, which impart notes of butter, cream, toast and baking spices. Where it's grown Map by Henry Eng France: Burgundy's Côte de Beaune and Mâconnais; Champagne; JuraCalifornia: Napa, Sonoma, Santa Barbara, MontereyAustralia: Margaret River, Yarra ValleyNew Zealand: Hawkes Bay, Kumeu Chardonnay icons California: Aubert, Kistler, Kongsgaard, Marcassin, Paul Hobbs, Ramey, Ridge Burgundy: Domaines Coche-Dury, Comtes Lafon, Leflaive, Leroy, Ramonet and Roulot Champagne: Krug's Clos du Mesnil Suggested food pairings California: butter-poached salmon Burgundy: roast chicken or sea bass Chardonnay fans may also like New World Chenin Blanc Sémillon Viognier

What is Whole-Bunch Fermentation and Why Does It Matter?

"Whole bunch," "whole cluster," "stems" and "stemmy" are all terms that pop up in wine conversation. But what do they actually mean? Grapes come into the winery as whole bunches. Winemakers have a choice: de-stem them or leave the grape bunch intact. What they decide impacts how the wine will eventually taste. To de-stem means to take the berries off the bunch with a machine that separates the fruit from their stalks, or stems. Modern destemming machines do this very gently, so that whole, uncrushed berries come out at the other end. Other machines crush and de-stem simultaneously. But some winemakers forgo this process and ferment with the entire grape bunch intact, stems and all. In red wines Whole-bunch winemaking is the original way of making wine. Before crusher-destemmers were invented in the 20th century, almost all red wines were fermented with their stalks. This created wines that were often rustic and tannic, especially when the stems were not lignified, or still green. Today, most red wines are made from destemmed grapes. However, fermenting whole bunches can be used as a stylistic tool in winemaking. The practice is often associated with Pinot Noir or, less frequently, with Syrah. It's rarely or only experimentally with other red grape varieties. Whole-bunch fermentation affects the aroma, texture and tannic structure of a wine. Some of Burgundy's most famous estates use the technique to create their signature style. It's achieved by either not destemming all the bunches, or by destemming and adding some of the stems back in during fermentation. Whole-bunch ferments result in an aromatic headiness that often comes across as floral, herbal, spicy and scented. This can be polarizing. Some people find these qualities attractive, others are put off by it. If whole bunches are used, there can be an element of intracellular fermentation. That's an anaerobic fermentation that happens inside an intact, uncrushed grape that causes it to break down on its own. This produces different flavors and changes the aromatic composition of the wine. However, whole-bunch fermentation is not the same as carbonic maceration, even if some intracellular fermentation takes place in both processes. What is Carbonic Maceration? The presence of stems also affects the length and temperature of the ferment, which changes the flavor composition. The stems release phenolic compounds that add to the tannic structure of the wine. With a trend for lighter, more delicate wines, the use of stem tannins can be more subtle and corrals the fruit in a gentler frame than oak. The grape stems need to be ripe, or they can add harsh, green tannins that can be detrimental to the wine. Stems in the ferment also absorb color, which is why whole-bunch fermented Pinot Noir tends to be paler and more translucent. Most winemakers report that some plots seem to be more suited to the style than others, and that the percentage of whole bunches used can change from vintage to vintage. Getty In white wines In white winemaking, the difference between using destemmed or crushed grapes and whole bunches lies in extraction. In whole bunches, the grapes remain intact until pressure is applied. Then they burst, which sends their juices through the press. The spaces created in bunches by the stems act as drainage channels within the press. The advantage of this method is that the grape juice picks up few of the phenolic compounds and potassium from the grape skins. Unless hard pressure is applied, the juice remains relatively clear and very light. Since potassium acts to buffer acidity, this is a preferred method for making crisp, fresh wines. This is also the way Champagne grapes are pressed. The red grapes pick up almost no color and retain wonderful acidity. However, for Riesling grapes, where acidity can be sky-high, destemming, crushing and then macerating the juicy pulp can soften acidity by leeching as much potassium from the grape skins as possible. Destemming and crushing extracts the aromatic compounds, especially terpenes, which reside mainly in grape skins. While there are pros and cons to each technique, based on a winemaker's desired outcome, the decision to destem or press whole bunches of grapes can notably impact a wine style, acidity and aromatics.

Spaghetti and Meatballs and Chianti

Why they're a perfect pair: Chianti has a bold, fruity flavor with enough acidity to stand up to the tomatoes and meat.Similar pairings to try: Spanish Rioja also pairs well with tomato-based sauces. Parmesan cheese goes well with Chianti.

Local Crops and Balanced Flavors: Meet the New Generation of Fruit Wine

"A very strong bias against sweet fruit wine exists and is mostly deserved," says Michael Terrien, co-owner of Bluet, a producer in Maine that makes a wild blueberry sparkling wine. "Fruit wines are often made by adding lots of cane sugar, both to jack the alcohol and to sweeten the wine. Large sugar additions make it very difficult...to represent the complexity and character of the fruit." Recently, however, serious vintners, inspired by American history and modern maker trends, have begun to ferment local fruit beyond typical wine grapes in dry styles. The results are balanced, thoughtful wines that might surprise traditional wine lovers. From traditional-method blueberry bubbles to fermented apples that taste a lot like Chardonnay, a new era of fruit wines has arrived. Wild Maine blueberries at Bluet / Photo by Hannah Henry The History of Fruit Wine in America Archaeological digs prove humans will ferment anything to make alcohol. In America, the "anything" is typically fruit. Fruit wines have long played a role in America's agricultural history. Early homesteaders used yeast to preserve seasonal berries into belly-warming beverages. Throughout the period of European colonization of the Americas, settlers expressed their love of grape-based wines with fruit from the native Vitis riparia varieties. However, not satisfied to only use North American grapes, many growers began to experiment with importing European Vitis vinifera vines, a trend later championed by Bordeaux wine-advocates like Thomas Jefferson. These vines include Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir and many others that continue to produce America's most popular wine grapes today. "[The wild blueberry] is very good for making wine due to its natural acidity and balance, especially wines that suit the changing 21st-century palate that favors the natural, authentic, low alcohol, local and healthy." —Michael Terrien, co-owner, Bluet Of course, the building blocks of grapes differ from those of other fruits. Red varieties like Cabernet Sauvignon embody the holy trinity of acid, sugar and tannin. Unlike, say, a peach, grapes ripen with enough natural sugar to achieve a minimum 11% alcohol by volume (abv), with freshness and structure informed by acid and skin tannin. However, through winemaking skills, fruit wines can resemble more traditional bottlings and still remain honest to their core ingredients. And like grape-based wine, raw materials matter. Rotten grapes equal bad wine. The same rule applies to plums and apples. Lise Clark amd Chestnut Run Farm's Fuji apple harvest / Photo courtesy Chestnut Run Farms Why Now? The "drink local" movement dovetails nicely with fruit wines. These offerings allow producers to diversify their income from pure crop production, especially when a farmer's site is better suited to orchards than vineyards. New Jersey grows a broad range of fruit. The state's wine industry brings in millions of dollars each year, says Bob Clark, who co-owns Chestnut Run Farms in Salem County with his wife, Lise. The couple have grown Asian pears and other fruits for 34 years. "We were grower/packers for the wholesale fruit trade for about 20 years," says Clark. "With that industry's global shift, our small farm could no longer compete with corporate importers. We experimented with various value-added products...and switched over to wine about 13 years ago." Clark attributes the success of Chestnut Run's dry Asian pear wines to his philosophy: He makes fine wine from fruit, not "fruit wine." Vintners that apply science in their cellars give consumers new reason to try these products. This may appeal to drinkers who seek to support local, sustainable beverages with lower carbon footprints. As Terrien says, wild blueberry fields don't need intensive management or inputs the way wine grapes do because they evolved on the landscape. Ken Hardcastle of Hermit Woods Winery, with a glass of its Petite Blue Reserve, made from lowbush blueberries / Photo by Bob Manley Can—and Should—Wine Drinkers be Converted? "Absolutely," says Bob Manley of Hermit Woods Winery, in Meredith, New Hampshire. He says he regularly turns classic wine drinkers on to his New World fruit wines. "We convert them every day," he says. "We see people from around the world in our tasting room...many of them serious wine drinkers. If we can get them to the tasting bar, we almost always make a convert out to them." Carlo DeVito, owner of Hudson Valley's Hudson-Chatham Winery, professes intrigue and respect for the potential of fruit wines. He calls Bartlett Estate's Blueberry Dry Oak Aged wine a "First Growth" of the category and argues it tastes like Chianti. "We convert them every day. We see people from around the world in our tasting room...many of them serious wine drinkers. If we can get them to the tasting bar, we almost always make a convert out to them." —Bob Manley, co-founder, Hermit Woods Winery DeVito has even gone so far as to serve it secretly to his "Italophile" brother-in-law. "I placed bottles of Tignanello on the table and when no one was looking, filled their glasses with this fabulous [blueberry] red wine," he says. "Everyone cheered." To Manley and DeVito, when vintners take fruit wines seriously, they can be as interesting as grape wine. However, "the tastes of people who enjoy sweet fruit wines are as valid as those who enjoy other types of wines," says Keith Bishop, of Bishop's Orchards Farm Market & Winery in Guilford, Connecticut. "Wine is a beverage and can be enjoyed in all its forms as part of an interesting and varied diet and lifestyle." Winter in one of Chateau Grande Traverse's contracted cherry orchards on the Old Mission Peninsula / Photo courtesy Chateau Grande Traverse Specialty Regions Unlike the strong tradition of apple wine in Denmark, or plum wine in Japan, few American regions produce one particular type of fruit wine. However, a few areas boast enough specialization to warrant recognition. Michigan: Cherries Traverse City, Michigan, reigns as America's tart cherry-farming capital and has a long history of wines made from it. More than a dozen producers make some version of deeply hued cherry wine in dry, semi-dry and sweet styles. "We wish more people realized fruit wines can be just as serious and delicious as wines made from grapes." —Megan Molloy, marketing coordinator, Chateau Grande Traverse Chateau Grande Traverse started to produce fruit wines in the late 1970s and now distributes as far as China. "We wish more people realized fruit wines can be just as serious and delicious as wines made from grapes," says Megan Molloy, the winery's marketing coordinator. "Fruit wines take just as much attention and time...to create a successful final product." Chateau Grande Traverse's lineup includes six cherry products, from 100% cherry wine to a rich, fruity fortified bottling crafted in the style of a reserve Port. Pineapple harvest at MauiWine / Photo courtesy MauiWine Hawaii: Pineapples If there's one fruit indelibly synonymous with Hawaii, it's the pineapple. MauiWine started to make pineapple wine in 1974 on a lark. To test a traditional-method sparkling wine program, they first practiced on local fruit. The surprise success of the wine turned into a core focus of their business. "Wine is a representation of agriculture and place, simple as that. For a winery on Maui, what better way could we represent these things than to utilize a famed part of our culture and agriculture heritage as the pineapple." —Joe Hegele, marketing and branding director, MauiWine Today, the winery makes three pineapple wines. Its traditional-method brut sparkling bottling has particularly earned serious praise from wine lovers and bartenders. "Wine is a representation of agriculture and place, simple as that," says Joe Hegele, MauiWine's marketing and branding director. "For a winery on Maui, what better way could we represent these things than to utilize a famed part of our culture and agriculture heritage as the pineapple." Eric Martin and Michael Terrien of Bluet / Photo by David Lampton Maine: Blueberries Wild blueberries carpet the landscape in swaths of Maine. Several producers have capitalized on the bounty to craft beautiful wines made from this tart fruit. "This native, 10,000-year-old wild fruit is the original blueberry," says Terrien of Bluet. He believes the fruit has a natural affinity for fermentation. "[The wild blueberry] is very good for making wine due to its natural acidity and balance, especially wines that suit the changing 21st-century palate that favors the natural, authentic, low alcohol, local and healthy." Bluet's bottle-fermented wine features a cork and Champagne-like packaging, while remaining true to its provenance at 7% abv. Workers during harvest at Bishop's Orchards / Photo courtesy Bishop's Orchards Farm Market & Winery Other Notable Producers At Bishop's Orchards, Keith Bishop has experimented with the diverse fruits grown on his family's nearly 150-year-old farm. However, his wildly popular apple wines often fool visitors into believing they're sipping a traditional white wine. New Hampshire's Hermit Woods has racked up accolades for its fruit wines that "drink like classic wines from notable regions of the world," says Manley. "We studied classic winemaking techniques; we barrel-age many wines for a year or more. Many of our wines are well suited to lay down in your cellar for ten or more years." He and his cofounders, Ken Hardcastle and Chuck Lawrence, use local, organic whole fruits blended to create drier, complex wines. Plum Wine is Confusingly Named and Often Misunderstood DeVito likens Hermit Woods's Petite Blue, made from wild Maine lowbush blueberries, to Syrah. In Tenino, Washington, Deana Ferris of Mill Lane Winery makes 22 different fruit wines. She sources local and fresh produce with ripeness levels that require little additional sweetening. She and her husband, Dan, first earned recognition at a local wine festival for their blackberry wine. Because of their success, the local industry has enjoyed a related boom. "Now almost all wineries produce some version of fruit wine to pour at events," says Ferris.

Cabernet Sauvignon Where it grows

Leading Regions: California, France Key Quality Regions: Washington, Italy, Australia Other Noteworthy Regions: Chile, Argentina, South Africa

Minerality in wine: Where are we now?

It's a term that has long confounded and fascinated us, but are scientists any closer in understanding what causes us to perceive these characteristics in a wine's aroma and flavour? Professor Alex Maltman gives his expert insight Professor Alex MaltmanJanuary 6, 2020 Grapes growing in Chablis Credit: Jeanette Teare / Alamy Stock Photo Highlights Long Read Wine Articles Another article about minerality... It was more than 15 years ago that I first wrote a piece on this topic and I've been asked to do quite a number since then, as have countless other authors. There have been conferences, masterclasses and workshops devoted to minerality in wine, and still they keep on coming. So what is it about this subject that continues to fascinate? Who knows, but maybe it's to do with a melding of the pragmatic usefulness of the word - evocative of the much-loved link between wine and the land - with the continuing lack of consensus on what the term actually means. That the word is attractive is clear, and not only with wine: minerality is now reported from beef, tea, watercress, maple sugar, milk, oysters, marijuana... So where are we now, with understanding the perception in some wines that we call minerality? Recognising and reporting minerality First, how do we sense it? It varies. In one recent study, 20% of wine professionals detected minerality in Chablis wines by taste and 16% by smell, and the remainder used both senses. Interestingly, all three groups varied markedly in their assessments of the intensity of the minerality, and they described it differently. For instance, in the smell-only condition about two-thirds correlated minerality with gunflint and reductive aromas, and lack of fruit, while (when nose-clipped) about the same proportion related minerality to acidity and bitterness. Another investigation concluded that French tasters relied more on smell than those from New Zealand, who tended to use both nose and palate. Other studies have noted that where both smell and taste are used the acidity of the wine is important, whereas with smell alone the particular varietal becomes more significant. So, which grapes tend to show minerality? Investigations at Spain's University of La Rioja of red wines made from Tempranillo, Syrah and Grenache found weak responses and inconsistent patterns; minerality is mostly associated with white wines, though there is disagreement on the particular varietals. In a study at California's UC Davis, Riesling, Pinot Gris and Sauvignon Blanc wines were judged to be more mineral than Chardonnay wines. (It's worth noting that the latter included Chablis, for some the archetypical mineral wine.) Of course, the majority of vines are grafted, and it's actually the rootstock rather than the cultivar that interacts with the soil. I'm unaware of any study that assesses the role of rootstocks in minerality. Sensing something you're going to call minerality is just the start: how are you going to convey to others what you mean? Several studies have grouped the words people use to express minerality into categories, for example acidity, tenseness and freshness; seashore-related things such as iodine, saltiness and shellfish; and stone-related sensations including wet or hot stone, flint and chalk. In one report, winemakers distinctly preferred using terms that invoked place and soil, and they regarded minerality positively, unlike the vaguer and negative connotations indicated by some consumers. Another illustration of the communication problem is the different word associations reported by research groups at Lincoln University in New Zealand and at California's UC Davis. While both teams noted positive correlations between minerality and words like citrus, fresh, zingy, flinty, and smoky, the Lincoln researchers differed from those at Davis in finding no correspondence with acidity or reductive notes. One study showed that minerality represented different things to Swiss and French wine consumers, and that the Swiss group used a markedly broader vocabulary. Another experiment showed that the vocabulary used to convey minerality depended on the level of knowledge - ranging from the most inexperienced respondents never having heard of minerality, through comparisons with bottled water (especially popular, for whatever reason, with female tasters), to the importance to experts of acidity, terroir and earthy flavours. See also: Tasting notes decoded - Understanding wine aromas What is minerality in wine due to? In view of the inconsistencies outlined above, it is no surprise that science continues to have difficulty identifying what in a wine might be triggering the perception that we label 'minerality'. Most studies have focussed on the possible roles of acidity, reductive sulphur compounds and the lack of fruit. Regarding acidity, one of the earliest published studies, on Italian Rieslings and Grüner Veltliners, implicated the weak, slightly saline-tasting succinic acid but that suggestion has never been substantiated. A later investigation, from UC Davis, reported that professional tasters found minerality in wines with greater malic and tartaric acidity and, to a lesser extent, free and total sulphur dioxide. However, a New Zealand study, while supporting a role for sulphur dioxide, found no correlation between acidity and perceived minerality, nor with reductive notes. Several studies, though, have reported a relevance for sulphur compounds, such as various methanethiols and polysulphanes. In their selfless quest for a better understanding of the world around us, a Swiss team was studying toilet malodours - yes, that's right: toilet malodours - when they accidentally isolated 'a flint-like odour', and showed it was due to hydrogen disulphane or HSSH. They then found that in blind tastings of Swiss Chasselas wines, the two that showed greater minerality contained significantly more HSSH than the others. Otherwise, despite investigating a comprehensive list of candidate compounds, studies to date haven't confirmed a clear relationship between minerality and reductive phenomena. Similarly, although tasting statistics give some support to the perception of minerality arising from a lack of other wine flavours, it has not been substantiated by chemical analysis. For example, paucity of the known key aromatic ingredients of Sauvignon Blanc wines (eg thiols and isobutyl methoxypyrazine) is not matched by greater perceived minerality. Chablis Limestone Soil But what about the vineyard? So maybe minerality comes chiefly not from organic compounds produced during vinification but from the soil - exactly as the name suggests. This would nicely tally with it being related to earthiness, stones, flint, slate, chalkiness, and the rest. There is some work that relates minerality to place, for example a study of Chablis wines from the left and right banks of the Serein river. Those from the left bank, when assessed by smell alone, showed greater minerality. On analysis, they showed more sulphur-bearing methanethiol (which has a shellfish aroma) and a lower copper content, presumably some effect of the soil there. The authors suggested that on the right bank the more abundant copper may be reacting with the methanethiol to produce an odourless compound, and hence decreasing perceived minerality. Intriguingly, this would suggest that the grand cru sites of Chablis (all on the right bank) give less minerally wines. Most commentators appear to have accepted the scientific arguments that minerality is not simply due to vines somehow sucking up geological minerals from the soil and transmitting them through to the finished wine for us to taste. Nevertheless, for many the concept retains strong geological connotations. However, the earthy words linked with minerality have to be metaphors, mental associations, recollections of some past encounter involving rocks, and not the direct taste of geological things that were originally in the vineyard ground. Here's why. Rocks have no taste. Any stone surface exposed to the air will soon be filmed with all manner of bacteria, algae, moulds, lipids and the like, which are all around us and which produce highly aromatic vapours when warmed on a sunny day or wetted in a shower of rain. Similarly, tilled earth, damp cellars and struck pebbles produce familiar smells - but they are not of the rocks themselves. It's easily tested if you have access to a rock saw and some different kinds of rock. Smooth, freshly sawn surfaces will give a cool, tactile sensation on your tongue but they will have no aroma or taste. If you lick and smell them blindfolded you won't be able to tell the rocks apart. It seems to me that talking of a 'taste of slate' and the like has to be involving the imagination in a constructive way - conjuring what it would be like if slate did have a taste. Grey Slate Soil The science of soil and wine taste Vines take up dissolved chemical elements (with a positive electrical charge and hence properly called cations) from the soil, often called nutrients or just 'minerals'. These elements are slowly unlocked from geological minerals by weathering, but in practice are largely derived from the organic material - the humus - in the top metre or less of the vineyard soil. At depth, the subsoils and unweathered bedrock have very little nutrient availability: vines develop deep roots in order to seek supplementary water. Deep roots are a good thing for the stability of water supply to the vine, but they are not accessing something magical down there. Similarly, stony soils are often said to promote minerality, but the stones exist because they have resisted weathering - they are inert. Wine commentators are fond of using phrases like 'mineral-rich soils', and implying that this somehow gives rise to greater minerality in the wine. It certainly sounds seductive, but all rocks and soils are made of (geological) minerals, not some more than others. And if it means rich in nutrient minerals, that's the same as saying fertile, and it's pretty much axiomatic in viticulture that highly fertile soils are to be avoided, as they lead to high vigour, lower grape quality and poor wine. Chablis Fossils in Bedrock Nutrient elements are essential for the vine to grow, but their source is irrelevant. The fossil oysters of Chablis, for instance, are well known and often said to engender minerality, but the creatures are preserved because they have been replaced by a durable geological mineral, in this case calcite. Any nutrient minerals that the vine roots obtain from these fossils are indistinguishable from those from the host soils, or, for that matter, from fertiliser. A few of these mineral nutrients may survive into the finished wine, joining those introduced during vinification, and while almost certainly they themselves can't be tasted, at least individually, their presence can indirectly influence our taste perceptions. But such effects are complex and circuitous, very different from the notion of directly tasting minerals from the vineyard soil. Comparisons are sometimes made between wine minerality and the taste of some bottled waters. Putting aside the fact (from time to time gleefully reported in the tabloids) that in blind tastings most people can't tell expensive bottled waters from tap water let alone distinguish between bottled waters, here are two observations. Most bottled water is drawn from the ground, where it has remained for long periods (the average residence time in the UK is more than a century) in direct contact with the host aquifer. So anything that's remotely soluble is taken in by the water, unlike the regulated uptake of cations by vine roots. Consequently, the mineral concentrations in bottled water are typically greater than those found in wine, and crucially - and in contrast with wine - they can include plentiful anions (negatively charged). And these are the main inorganic contributors to flavour and mouthfeel. There is a saying in the brewing industry that while cations in the water govern the methods, it's the anions that give the flavour. In fact, the effects of dissolved anions on taste are particularly evident in beer. For instance, the classic ales from England's Burton-on-Trent have whopping bicarbonate and sulphate concentrations (the reason for the sulphury 'Burton snatch' beloved of beer aficionados). Similarly at Tadcaster, England, when the Samuel Smith's brewery recently considered bottling the tasty well-water used in its ales, they had to abort the plan because the level of sulphate was above the limits allowed in bottled water. Yet tellingly, the beer style in which minerality is normally trumpeted is lager, which ‒ classically from the Czech town of Plzeň (Pilsen) ‒ has a remarkably low mineral content. Minerality in wine Finally, if wine minerality was due to mineral nutrients, then it should be easy to enhance it by simply adding some more. But for various reasons it doesn't work. As one example, water tasters report that as the presence of cations becomes increasingly detectable, the taste becomes more and more disagreeable. And because water lacks competing flavour compounds, in wine the detection thresholds must be vastly higher and hence, presumably, even more distasteful. This doesn't sound like the desirable perception we label 'minerality'! So what, then, is minerality due to? The jury is still out. But maybe if I'm still writing about minerality in another 15 years' time I'll be able to say.

Spicy Indian Takeout and Riesling

Why they're a perfect pair: Slightly sweet, low-alcohol wines like German, Australian or New York Rieslings give the palate some relief from a spicy meal. A highly alcoholic wine would make you feel the burn.Similar pairings: Spicy Asian food or highly spiced Mexican dishes like enchiladas also pair well with Riesling. A dry Gewurztraminer also pairs well with heart-pumping cuisines like Thai or Indian.

Q: I saw an ad for a wine club. They say their wines are "natural," with grapes grown without chemicals, they don't add sulfites, the wines are 100 percent sugar-free, and they are much better for your health than other wines. It sounds good, but my visceral skepticism has me on the fence. What do you think?—Jerry, Minneapolis, Minn.

A: I've seen those wine clubs advertised. Minimal-intervention winemaking is a popular trend right now. Some of these vintners have adopted the term "natural" to describe their wines, which makes me a bit uncomfortable for several big reasons: I don't like that it suggests that wines not adopting these practices (or terms) are "unnatural," there isn't any consensus about the definition of what a "natural" wine is (so I'll continue to put it in quotation marks for now), and the claim that these wines are "healthier" for you is dubious. Despite all that, I would expect that these "natural" wines are produced on a small scale, and are made sharing some of the ideologies that you mention, and that might be very appealing to you. But are these wines healthier for you? Wines grown without pesticides are certainly better for our environment, and that's good for us all. But there are plenty of wines that are grown sustainably or organically that don't call themselves "natural." These growing practices don't affect the parts of wine that have been linked to health benefits—polyphenols, antioxidants, resveratrol, etc.—all wine contains those. And lots and lots of laws are already in place that prevent the sale of wines with detectable levels of pesticides or other chemicals that come anywhere near levels that would be considered harmful for human consumption. The sulfite thing is slightly more complicated. All wines contain sulfites—it's a natural byproduct of winemaking. Many winemakers add additional sulfites to help keep wines stable and prevent them from spoiling. There's a very small percentage of the population that are very sensitive to sulfites, so they are probably staying away from wine no matter what to avoid some serious respiratory difficulties. And most wines don't have added sugar (aka chaptalization)—but if you need to keep an eye out for sugar in your life, check out our complete guide to what wine drinkers should know about sugar, and also talk to your doctor. I think your skepticism is well-founded, but I also think it's OK if you decide these viticultural and winemaking practices are important to you and you want to sign up for this wine club. I just hope you also like the way the wines taste!—MaryAnn Worobiec

Q: Is it harmful to occasionally move wine bottles around in my cellar?—Daniel, Tacoma, Wash.

A: Moving around wine to organize it should be fine—that's what I'd consider normal handing. Excessive regular vibrations and disturbances—like if your cellar is over a subway line or next to an airport runway—might cause sediment to be disturbed more frequently than would be advised and could potentially negatively impact the chemical reactions of aging wine and the aging process, but there's not really any scientific evidence of this. Vibration is really the least of your worries when it comes to proper wine storage. Just be mindful when moving around older wines—say, 10 years or more, especially if you're planning on drinking them soon—because the sediment will get disturbed and can cause the wine to become cloudy or even gritty. With older bottles with lots of sediment, it's advisable to stand them upright a few days before you want to open them, to let the loose sediment collect at the bottom of the bottle.—MaryAnn Worobiec

Q: Is it safe to put silica gel in boxes containing wine or whisky to prevent mold?—Daniel, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

A: Silica gel is a pretty harmless substance, which is why you see packets of it in vitamin bottles or bags of beef jerky, and why it's used in water filters and even for cat litter. But please follow the "do not eat" warning, since it can be irritating to your digestive tract. It can also irritate your skin or eyes, so keep it in those packets. Silica is a desiccant, which means it is a drying agent. The geek in me will point out that it doesn't absorb moisture, but rather its structure removes moisture by adsorption. That means water molecules adhere to its porous surface rather than being absorbed into its structure. Science stuff! I like the idea of using silica gel for a small area like inside a wine box, but I don't think it's effective for, say, a whole room. Silica gel can adsorb about 40 percent of its weight in moisture, so it would take a whole lot of it to be effective in a cellar. But for a box, I think it's a terrific idea.—MaryAnn Worobiec

Q: I keep seeing the term "grower Champagne." What does it mean?—Griffin, Austin, Texas

A: There's a growing number of grower-producers, called récoltant-manipulant, who make "grower Champagne" in the Champagne region of France. While the concept of making wine from your own grapes is widespread in other winegrowing regions in the world, it's pretty uncommon in Champagne. Most Champagne—the vast majority, actually—is made by large Champagne houses or négociants who blend their sparkling wines from purchased grapes grown in multiple sites. Récoltants-manipulants are producers who make Champagne from vines they own and farm themselves. Even though the category is growing, it still only represents about 5 percent of the Champagne in the U.S. market. Since traditional Champagne is often blended not just from multiple sources but also multiple vintages for consistency's sake (easier to do when you have a big operation), grower Champagne can be more distinctive, made from individual vineyards or parcels, and typically dominated by a single vintage.—MaryAnn Worobiec

Q: Is there a type of wine that is aged in bottles, stored in racks and regularly physically turned?—Terry, Federal Way, Wash.

A: Yes, I believe you're thinking of the "riddling" process in the traditional method of making sparkling wine. The person (or fancy robot) that does the turning is called a "riddler" and, yes, I know that is also the name of a Batman villain. Traditional Champagne-method [or -style] production is fascinating in that a secondary fermentation is taking place individually in every bottle. (Other types of sparkling wine production involve a secondary fermentation in large batches before bottling.) Because of this, sediment—a byproduct of fermentation—ends up in each bottle. Most wine lovers don't want cloudy sparkling wine, so the challenge is to get it out. Riddling is a way to consolidate all the sediment so it will be easier to extract. It's tricky, because if you move a bottle too much, the sediment will dissipate. If you just leave it alone, it would tend to stick to the side of the bottle and be hard to remove. A riddler uses gravity and a riddling rack, and a quick, small back and forth motion to gently coax the sediment toward the opening of the bottle, which during this process is sealed with a crown cap, like you find on a beer bottle. The process takes at least a couple of weeks, as the bottles are slowly rotated from their side to completely upside down with these small movements, usually every day or every other day. The "plug" of sediment that collects in the neck of the bottle is then frozen and removed in the process of disgorgement. As you might imagine, hand riddling is pretty labor intensive, so many sparkling houses have automated rotating riddling cages, or Gyropalettes, which can do the process automatically. Please don't riddle at home—every once in a while I get a question about it or see someone rotating the bottles in their cellar. I don't recommend it: There's no need to disturb the sediment in your aging wines and, in fact, if you leave the bottles still, the sediment will collect on one side and your wines won't be cloudy or chewy.—MaryAnn Worobiec

The Wine Pros Bringing Champagne-Style Disgorgement and Low-Intervention Processes to Saké

Although the first mention of saké production dates to the third century B.C., the rice-based beverage has been slow to gain broad appeal in the U.S. However, a slew of breweries have taken style cues from wine with the hopes of bringing saké mainstream. Régis Camus, the former chef de cave at Piper-Heidsieck and current cellar master at the house's prestigious Maison Rare Champagne, turned to Japan for Heavensake, a project he's embraced as he nears retirement. Unlike traditional saké that's bottled by the batch, Camus calls upon his Champagne blending skills to calibrate an ideal balance from different batches of saké. To create Heavensake's initial bottlings, Junmai Daiginjo and Junmai Ginjo, Camus works with two established breweries, Dassai and Urakasumi. The line's newest bottling, Heavensake 12, is made in collaboration with Konishi brewery. While most saké is 15% alcohol by volume (abv), Heavensake Junmai 12 comes in at 12% abv. Its soft texture and creamy mouthfeel make it reminiscent of a buttery Chardonnay. It's Time to Stop Serving Sake Incorrectly Other breweries want their sakés to mirror the same joyful fizz associated with Champagne. "I believe at the dining scene, a carbonated drink such as Champagne, sparkling wine [or] beer is a good starter drink because carbonation stimulates the stomach for eating, as well as [a] celebratory toast," says Jiro Nagumo, president of Hakkaisan, based in the Niigata Prefecture. "I started to think, 'Why don't we create [a] saké version of the same drink?' " The addition of sugar is forbidden in saké production. Hakkaisan's toji, or head brewer, adds a moromi (mash), a mixture of rice koji, steamed rice and water, to finished saké. It creates a second fermentation in bottle. "Unlike wine, saké can control sugar contents during fermentation," says Nagumo. "Therefore, there is no need to add sugar to start second fermentation to create carbonation. Without adding sugar, strong gas can be created naturally." This sparkling saké, called Clear Sparkling AWA, is then disgorged like traditional Champagne, which results in mousse-like, tongue-teasing bubbles. With Amabuki's Gin No Kurenai, rosé season never has to end. This innovative brewery in the Saga Prefecture eschews traditional rice varieties. Instead, this saké is brewed with saga no hana, an organic black rice that provides a delicate pink color. It also skips commercial yeast strains in favor of flower yeasts, which offer floral and fruity characteristics common in pink-hued wines. Getty While many wines age in the bottle, most sakés develop minimally and need to be enjoyed within the first year. But at Yuho brewery in Ishikawa Prefecture, Miho Fujita, a former Tokyo marketing executive who returned home to take over her father's brewery, ages her sakés in bottle before release, to develop character and complexity. Her junmai spends one year in the bottle. She also crafts a kimoto junmai, an older, low-intervention method where lactic acid develops naturally in the moto (the fermentation starter). That ages for three years before release. Like an aged white Rioja, her sakés display a golden tint and delectable tertiary aromas like bread pudding, hazelnuts and baked apple. Fujita, the brewery president, works alongside the toji, unusual in the saké industry, to create Yuho's signature high-acid and umami-driven style. "If people want to learn about saké, people shouldn't come here," she says. "It's backwards from what you learn in a book. It's more instinctive." Instinct also drove former sommelier Kazuki Usui, senior managing director of Senkin brewery, back to the family business. His education gave him an appreciation for the terroir-driven wines of Burgundy, as well as realization that his family's saké "wasn't very good," he says. Usui returned home to revamp production with an eye toward wine qualities he had grown to appreciate. Burgundy fans will applaud the singular approach he takes to rice selection. He focuses on local grains sourced from the brewery's estate rice field and eight local farmers. He tries to limit the number of varieties used, much like how Burgundy producers focus on Chardonnay for white wines and Pinot Noir for reds. "If [you] buy saké rice from far away, you don't know who the farmer is," Usui says. That philosophy extends to yeast selection. Usui works with Delta yeast, developed in his prefecture, for his Classic and Modern sakés. Like Yuho, he wants to bring a higher level of acid to his sakés and prove they can stand up to any grand cru.

How is sweetness of Tokaji measured?

Caroline Gilby MW talks you through the key points, including the meaning of 'Aszú' and whether there are any ageing requirements for Tokaji sweet wines. Caroline Gilby MWJanuary 26, 2020 Large Tokay wine wooden fudder. Credit: vkstudio / Alamy Stock Photo Ask Decanter Highlights Tokaji There have been several changes to how Tokaji sweetness is measured and communicated, but Tokaji Aszú remains simply one of the world's great sweet wines. If you are looking for the perfect finish to your meal, or even a great start, then look no further. What is Aszú? Aszú is the Hungarian term for grapes that are affected by noble rot and have shrivelled - the region's foggy mornings allow noble rot to take hold and breezy sunny afternoons shrivel the grapes. These Aszú berries are picked individually and soaked in fermenting juice for around one to two days. Puttonyos and the Tokaji sweetness measure The traditional Puttonyos measure counted the numbers of buckets [Puttonyos] of Aszú added to a traditional [gönci] barrel of grape must. However, today the classification is based on residual sugar. In 2013, Tokaj regulations changed significantly, removing the 'three' and 'four' Puttonyos categories. The minimum level is now equivalent to 'five' Puttonyos, which means at least 120g/l of residual sugar. At 'six' Puttonyos, the wines are required to contain at least 150g/l. High as these sugar levels sound, the beauty of Tokaji is that it is always underscored by a streak of appetising acidity. In practice, producers choose to label by the balance of the wine, as long as it meets the legal minimum. Matching Tokaji with food 'Five' Puttonyos wines are about the interplay of sweetness and refreshing crispness, which means they can match pâté, Asian dishes and lighter cheeses brilliantly, as well as fruit-based desserts like apple crumble, poached pears or fruit tart. 'Six' Puttonyos is more about gorgeously luscious sweetness, although acidity again comes into play so that the best wines are never cloying. Think more of matching these wines with full-flavoured cheese, especially blue cheese, which is a match made in heaven. Also read: Are there any ageing requirements for Tokaji sweet wines? Recent rule changes have brought the minimum ageing period for Tokaji Aszú down to two years in total, with at least 18 months in barrel, though individual producers may choose to age for longer. Of the other sweet styles of Tokaji, Szamorodni, which is made from whole bunches with a varying proportion of Aszú berries, has to age for 12 months with a minimum of six months oak ageing, while late harvest doesn't have to be aged in oak at all. The incredibly rare Eszencia, a syrupy free-run juice that trickles from Aszú berries, usually contains more than 450 g/l of residual sugar so there's minimal fermentation - usually in glass demijohns. It is occasionally bottled and served by the spoonful. Legend has it that this wine cures the sick.

What to Drink with a Majorly Misunderstood Cheese

Gouda is a misunderstood cheese. Since the name isn't protected, it's used globally for a range of generic, mass-produced versions. But real Gouda (pronounced "HOW-da") is one of the world's great cheeses. Look for "Gouda Holland" or "Noord-Hollandse Gouda" designations for authentic Dutch cheese. There are six age categories that range from jonge kaas (young) to overjarig (very old). Try a few, with a different wine for each stage of development. Nutty Younger Goudas are nutty and buttery, like macadamia or pine nuts. The Dutch drink beer alongside them, but try Sercial Madeira. Like the cheese, it has nutty notes and faint sweetness, with a palate-cleansing acidity to prep for the next bite. Piquant As Gouda ages, it develops a throat-tickling sharpness that can be unpleasant when paired with wines that exhibit pronounced tannins. But when confronted with the cherry-berry fruit and high acidity of low-tannin Gamay, that spiciness retreats into a softer lactic tang. Grilled Chicken Paillard with Peach, Olive and Aged Gouda Salad Caramel After about a year of aging, Gouda's easygoing flavors start to turn to butterscotch and toffee, while the salt intensifies. An off-dry Riesling echoes these caramelly notes with a vivid freshness that plays well against the saltiness. Funk Like Parmigiano-Reggiano, long-aged Gouda has tiny, crunchy amino acid crystals that pack a funky, umami punch. They are a sign of quality to cheese connoisseurs. The prickly sensation is fun to pair with a rich, tannic wine like Sagrantino, for a wild textural playdate.

How long should you keep wine open? - Ask Decanter

Had a party or just opened a bottle in the week without finishing it? Don't be tempted to throw it away, it will probably last longer than you think... How long should you keep wine open? - Ask Decanter According to a study from Laithwaite's Wine, the average UK household throws away an average of two glasses of wine a week, mainly due to thinking that the wine is no longer fit to drink. Once a wine has been opened, it generally stays fresh for a few days - depending on what style it is. Laithwaite's recommend that most still wines stay fresh for around 3-5 days - much longer than that, and oxygen will interact with the wine and impact on the flavours. 'Conventional wines generally last a couple of days open maximum,' said Christelle Guibert, Decanter's tasting director. 'After that they tend to deteriorate very quickly.' Wines made using a more natural approach can last up to a week in the fridge, said Guibert. 'It really depends on the style of winemaking, rather than the colour.' There are now various gadgets on the market that claim to preserve your wine long after it has been opened, although some question how effective these are in practise. Sparkling wines Sparkling wines generally need to be finished a bit sooner, before they go flat. However, Champagne expert Tyson Stelzer said that many people would be surprised that an open bottle will 'still keep some fizz in the fridge for some days.' But don't be fooled by the myth that putting a spoon in the neck of your open Champagne bottle will keep it sparkling. The most reliable way of keeping them fresh 'to use a Champagne stopper that provides a tight seal, and to keep the bottle as cold as possible,' said Stelzer. Fortified wines Fortified wines can last for weeks once opened. In the case of Tawny Port, Sarah Jane Evans says it can be stoppered back up, put in the fridge and it will keep for a few months. 'It carries you through Christmas Eve, Christmas, New Years'... family birthdays - so it's really a great investment.' And if you want a break from drinking, follow our advice for how to use up leftover wine.

How to Understand (Almost) Everything on a Wine Label

Have you ever looked at a bottle of Chianti, Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Taurasi or Alentejo and wondered exactly what's inside? Or how about when you come across a Rhône-style red blend from California? Wine labels can offer up a lot of information about what's inside—that is if you can decode the cryptic language on the label. But fear not. There are some basic formulas that can help you understand the rather confusing and sometimes smug words on wine labels. How to Read a Wine Label The first thing to determine is if the wine is from the Old World (Europe, the Mediterranean, parts of Western Asia) or New World (any other wine-producing region). While all labels will include basic facts like region, producer, alcohol by volume (abv) and vintage (unless nonvintage), there are some notable distinctions. Here are the differences between what you may find on labels from these two categories. Photo by Meg Baggott Old World Wine Labels The vast majority of Old World wines will typically only indicate regions and aging classifications on the front label, but not grape varieties. For example, red Riojas are produced typically from Tempranillo grapes, possibly with Graciano, Garnacha and perhaps Mazuelo. (And how could anyone not know that Mazuelo is the name for Carignan in Rioja). The problem is you'd be hard-pressed to find a Rioja that lists any of these grapes on the front label, if at all. The same goes for Chianti (made from Sangiovese), Burgundy (Pinot Noir for red wines and Chardonnay for white), Bordeaux and many others. The main reason for these labeling practices is that these wines are more about a regional style than the grapes themselves. The same grape can show different characteristics based on climate, soil and terroir. So, while it may seem like producers are trying to confuse you by not naming the grapes on their bottles, it's actually quite the opposite. In recent years, some Old World producers have begun to name their wine's grapes on the back labels, or even occasionally on the front. The caveat is that you're expected to know what grapes can be (and are allowed to be) used in specific regions. That's where a hint of Old World presumption can kick in. Another characteristic of an Old World label is it may offer guidelines to aging. Unlike many New World wine labels, terms like "Reserva" (or "Riserva" in Italy) and "Gran Reserva" have real meaning based on the region they're from. However, each region's regulations for age classifications can have almost identical names, but be very different. For example, if a bottle of red Rioja has Reserva on the label, that means it has been aged for a minimum of 36 months, with at least 12 months in oak. However, a bottle of Chianti with Riserva on the label has spent at least 24 months in oak, with another three months in bottle. Additionally, a Brunello di Montalcino with Riserva on the label has spent five years aging after harvest, with at least two of those years spent in oak and six months in bottle. This is compared to the standard four total years (two in oak and four months in bottle) for non-Riserva Brunello. Photo by Matthew Dimas The most confusing wine labels of them all might be German, which contain a multitude of technical information and German-language terms like "Trockenbeerenauslese," "Bernkasteler Badstube" and "Grosses Gewächs." One glance and you may feel you need to be a Mensa member to ever understand these descriptions. Here are a few tricks to help you decode German labels: German Wine Quick Tips German labels include ripeness levels. For Prädikatswein, a designation that denotes superior quality wines, the levels range from the least ripe (Kabinett) to the ripest (Trockenbeerenauslese) and everything in between (Spätlese, Auslese and Beerenauslese). The ripeness levels can help indicate the sweetness level of the final wine. There may also be specific sweetness levels noted on German wine labels, which include Trocken (dry), Halbtrocken (half-dry/off-dry) and Eiswein (sweet dessert wine made from frozen grapes). You may also see Feinherb stated (another term to represent off-dry wines). And this is just the tip of the iceberg. When you see two names together, particularly if the first name ends with an 'er,' it denotes a subregion and vineyard. So, Bernkasteler Badstube means the wine is from the Badstube vineyard, located within the Bernkastel subregion. German wines have their own version of Crus, like Bordeaux or Burgundy. Grosses Gewächs on a label refers to a "great growth" and a wine of the highest quality, where Grosse Lage and Erstes Lage refer to grand cru and premier cru, respectively. Photo by Sara Littlejohn New World Wine Labels With wines from the U.S., South America, Oceania and most other non-European countries, the grape variety almost always appears on the label. Originally, New World wine labels focused less on where the grapes were grown because they were basically all unknown wine regions. Rather, they highlighted grapes to link the wines to iconic European regions. A Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot could be associated with Bordeaux, while a Chardonnay could be compared to Burgundy. This also occurred because, unlike their Old World counterparts, the style of the wine focused more on the grape's expression than the region, though this has certainly changed over time. Now, many non-European regions are home to some of the finest vineyards in the world. New World wine labels tend to be fairly straightforward. More often than not, they provide the grapes, region, subregion and even a description of the wine's aromas and flavors, usually on the back. However, there are certainly exceptions to this rule. Take one of the most popular wines in the U.S. right now, The Prisoner. That name is literally all you'll find on the front label, while the back label states simply that it's a "red wine" from Napa Valley. These wines, like some Old World counterparts, count on the prestige of their name communicating all a wine connoisseur needs to know. The Dos and Don'ts of Wine Labels Certain New World wines may also be deemed a Rhône-style red blend or a super Tuscan-style wine. Again, you have to know the grapes used in the historic European regions to understand what's in the bottle. Typically, Rhône-style red blends from California are a combination of Syrah, Grenache and Mourvèdre other grapes permitted in France's Rhône Valley. Keep in mind that with New World labels, terms like "Reserve," "Special" and "Selection" don't have any regulatory minimums in terms of aging or vineyard location. They are basically marketing terms meant to imply a higher-quality bottling, but they can be slapped on any label and offer no guarantee. The only term that really has legal meaning in the U.S. is "Meritage," the combination of "merit" and "heritage." A number of California winemakers banded together in the late 1980s to form the Meritage Association (now Meritage Alliance) and created this classification for Bordeaux-style blends produced by member wineries, intended as a designation of quality. These wines must be a blend of two or more of the red Bordeaux varieties: Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Merlot, Petit Verdot and the rarer St. Macaire, Gros Verdot and Carmenère. They can't have more than 90% of any single variety. For white Meritage, the blend must include at least two of the three Bordeaux white grapes: Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon and Muscadelle. There's a lot to learn from wine labels—so long as you know where to look. Keep these tricks in mind and you'll be headed in the right direction.

Are Moldy Corks and Bottles Bad for Wine?

Have you ever looked in your wine refrigerator or cellar and noticed a bit of mold? Don't worry, you're not alone, and your wine collection is not in trouble. Wine cellars and refrigerators are constructed to have higher levels of humidity than a standard fridge in order to keep the corks from drying out. While most cellars allow bottles to rest horizontally to keep the wine in contact with the cork, evaporation can still happen over time. To ensure that the cork doesn't dry out and allow harmful oxygen into the bottle, humidity in a wine cellar should be between 50% and 80%. And while such high levels of humidity are beneficial for the corks, they're just as helpful to mold spores. Wine cellars in Porto know a thing or two about mold / Getty Mold is around us all the time. If you have a damp basement or have experienced water leakage in your home, you know that mold is drawn to moisture. Likewise, a wine cellar's humidity also attracts mold like a mouse to cheese. Most collectors will experience mold in their cellars at some point. But is mold really a bad thing? All of those old French wine caves that have been around for centuries are loaded with mold, which contributes to their charm and sense of history. Visible mold adds a bit of character, and it can indicate a bottle of wine that has matured with proper age. Many photos you see of an older bottle of Bordeaux Grand Cru Classé or Port will have an unrecognizable label due to mold brought on by years of aging. Yet, no one feels the wine itself is ruined by a worn label. Usually, it's the opposite. Visible mold adds a bit of character, and it can indicate a bottle of wine that has matured with proper age. Of course, if the mold spores go unattended for long periods, they can run rampant, and what once was charming can become disgusting. The best thing to do is to keep an eye out for the first signs of mold and take humidity level readings in the cellar. If the humidity is more than 80%, you may want to use a dehumidifier or place a few dry sponges in your cellar to absorb excess moisture. Silica bead packets, like those found in clothing or bags of dehydrated food, can also work wonders. There are also several mold-removing sprays available, but be sure to remove the bottles from your cellar before use. Hydrogen peroxide or vinegar solutions are also DIY options that can work wonders to revive bottles to their original condition. Vinegar as a mild acid that will kill mold, while peroxide releases oxygen at a rate that decomposes and oxidizes the surface of the mold, making it easier to remove. In any case, don't let mold in your cellar make you fear for the juice in the bottle. Unless the cork has been affected and protrudes from the neck, the wine is going to be as good as the winemaker intended. Quick Tips to Clean Mold From a Wine Bottle • Wipe bottle with solution of half cup white vinegar to one quart water. • Apply undiluted 3% strength hydrogen peroxide to bottle. Allow to saturate for 10-15 minutes, then scrub clean. • For stubborn mold, add half cup white vinegar directly to one quart hydrogen peroxide.

How long to reach the perfect temperatures - Ask Decanter

How long should it take to cool or warm a bottle of wine for serving? Ronan Sayburn MSApril 1, 2020 Credit: Theme Photos / Unsplash Ask Decanter Highlights Magazine: May 2020 Issue Jonathan Quaintrell-Evans, by email, asks: Is there any formula to the rate at which a bottle warms or cools? It would be handy to know how long a bottle of red needs to spend out of a 12°C unit to be at ideal serving temperature; and on the flip side, how long a bottle should spend in a fridge in order to take three or four degrees off. Ronan Sayburn MS, head of wine at 67 Pall Mall and CEO of the Court of Master Sommeliers Europe, responds: Wine temperature is a small but very important detail and it can enhance or spoil the wine drinking experience if you get it wrong. As modern central heating can keep room temperatures above 20°C and domestic fridges are 5°C or below - too warm for reds and too cold for whites - any specific scientific formula would have many variables that may include thickness of glass, air movement and alcohol levels. In addition, serving temperatures will also be determined by wine styles too; for example Pinot Noir should be served at a cooler temperature than Shiraz. The general rule is lighter reds should be served chilled, around 12-13 °C and full bodied reds at warmer temperatures, between 16-18 °C. The same logic applies to white wines; the lighter the wine, the cooler the temperature. As a rule of thumb, put room-temperature white wines (at 20°C) into a fridge (at 5°C) for 45 minutes or a freezer (at -15°C) for 20 minutes before serving at 8°C. Put room-temperature reds into a fridge for 20 minutes to cool to 15°C. This question first appeared in the May 2020 issue of Decanter magazine.

How long does bag-in-box wine last? - ask Decanter

How long to keep your bag-in-box wine open.... Ellie DouglasMarch 24, 2020 Credit: BSIP SA / Alamy Stock Photo Ask Decanter Highlights How long does bag-in-box wine last? - ask Decanter An advantage of bag-in-box wine is that it can last much longer than an open bottle, depending upon how quickly you drink it, of course. So-called 'BiB' wines also tend to be lighter and easier to carry and store. With many countries under lockdown due to the outbreak of Covid-19, bag-in-box wine could be a good way of stocking up. In general, it will state somewhere on the box roughly how long the wine can stay fresh. Some producers say wines can last for up to six weeks after opening. That compares to just a few days for many bottled wines, although fortified styles, like Port, will go for longer. See our top bag in box wine recommendations Once a wine has been opened, oxygen can interact with the wine and impact on the flavour. This happens more slowly for bag-in-box wines. However, boxes and pouches are not deemed suitable for ageing fine wines, because the plastic used is permeable and will cause the wine to oxidise over time. Why bag-in-box wines last longer than open bottles 'The tap and plastic bag in bag-in-box wines help to prevent oxygen ingress, keeping the wine fresh once opened for a number of weeks,' said James Button, Decanter's regional editor for Italy. 'The plastic is permeable on a microscopic level, however, which explains why bag-in-box wines still have expiry dates. The wine will become oxidised within a few months.' He added, 'Despite what some say on their packaging, I would say keep them for three weeks, or four weeks at absolute maximum.' It's probably best to keep the bag-in-box wines in the fridge, even for reds, as with an opened bottle of wine. In any case, most red wines in a box tend to be lighter styles that are best enjoyed slightly chilled. Other benefits of bag-in-box wines If you're watching your environmental credentials, bag-in-box wines could also be the answer. With more wine in less packaging, the carbon emissions of transportation are significantly reduced. 'It's eco-friendly, and the lower shipping costs mean that we are able to pass on the value to you - in other words, you get a better wine for your buck,' said St John Wines recently on it's Instagram page. 'These formats address some of the ecological, financial and qualitative issues around wine; even if they don't have the same visual or romantic appeal as a traditional wine bottle, and aren't really suitable for ageing wines,' said Button. First published in August 2017 and updated March 2020.

Why do bottles of Rioja have gold mesh - Ask Decanter

Is the gold mesh any indicator of quality for the wine in the bottle...? Sarah Jane EvansApril 11, 2020 Credit: Tim Graham / Alamy Stock Photo Ask Decanter Highlights Magazine: December 2019 Issue Michael Ballard, Surrey, asks: Why do some bottles of Rioja have gold mesh around them? And does it say anything about the quality of the wine within? Sarah Jane Evans MW, author of The Wines of Northern Spain, and Co-Chair of the Decanter World Wine Awards, replies: The golden mesh, or malla, around the bottle was an early form of protection against counterfeiting. It was introduced towards the end of the 19th century by the Marqués de Riscal, to protect his increasingly successful wines from tampering. Undoubtedly they added a certain glamour to the packaging, too. Given the medal-winning success of the Riscal wines, the golden cage came to be seen as an indicator of quality. Producers of cheaper wines and other regions soon caught on to the idea. There are no regulations around who can and cannot use the mesh. As a result, if you find a Spanish red wine with a golden cage in a supermarket today that resembles Rioja, with a fancy label named after a Marquis, and it's selling at a low price, then you can almost certainly guarantee it is not Rioja. It will have come from much further south. López de Heredia's Viña Tondonia white and red wines all carry the traditional malla. An elegant tip for removal so you can open the bottle is credited to María José López de Heredia: loosen the wire in the punt of the bottle and slip the mesh down from the top of the bottle to the shoulders; tighten the wires neatly back up again in the punt, and uncork the wine as usual. Thus the golden mesh is fairly easy for any consumer - or counterfeiter - to remove. The mesh on the Viña Tondonia Gran Reserva red and white is held down with wax: altogether more challenging for a forger. This question first appeared in the December 2019 issue of Decanter magazine.

Drinking Only One Type of Wine is Bad for Your Palate (Sorry)

It can happen to the best of us. That moment when we take the first sip of a new wine and find ourselves writing it off without a second thought or taste, pushing away the glass dismissively. For those who review wines for a living, we make a conscious effort not to do this. As recreational wine drinkers, it's equally important to keep an open mind, as it can be too easy to pass on a wine outside of your comfort zone. "Cellar palate" is a phrase used to describe a condition that can afflict winemakers when they become too accustomed to their own wines and the wines of their regions, rarely tasting bottlings from outside their orbits. The lack of broad tasting and expansive exposure to the greater wine world—the good, the bad and everything in between—can even limit their potential to produce the best wines possible. But cellar palate doesn't just plague winemakers. It can infect all of us, from those employed in the wine industry to those who simply enjoy the pleasures of the fermented grape. If we drink the same kinds of wines continuously, whether from one variety, region or winemaking style, aren't we closing our minds and palates to the beautiful breadth and depth that the wine world has to offer? "It's important to keep an open mind, as it can be too easy to pass on a wine outside of your comfort zone." As someone who was, for many years, deeply entrenched in the natural wine world, where most of the wines I tasted were made with native yeast and virtually no oak, sulfur or other additions (not to mention, in some cases, a fair amount of "funk"), I unconsciously closed off my palate to the rest of the wine spectrum, becoming afflicted with a unique case of cellar palate. In recent years, thanks both to my own personal growth and to my role as a wine reviewer, my palate has broadened. I continue to harbor a deep love and admiration for the most expertly made natural wines, but, by tasting outside my comfort zone, I have come to appreciate a much broader range of wine styles. I have lost track of the number of times I've heard someone say that they, "don't like natural wine," or "only drink Chardonnay," or "exclusively drink reds." The sheer vastness of the wine world can be intimidating, and the temptation to focus the lens more narrowly is understandable. But to do so means missing out on one of wine's most delicious attributes: near unending diversity. This New Year, resolve to drink more widely and more adventurously. And before you push the glass away, take a second sip.

Zinfandel Where it's grown

Leading Regions: California Key Quality Regions: Italy Other Noteworthy Regions: Croatia

CHARDONNAY Where it grows

Leading Regions: California, France Key Quality Regions: Oregon, Australia Other Noteworthy Regions: Chile, Argentina, South Africa, New Zealand

Merlot Where it Grows

Leading Regions: California, France Key Quality Regions: Washington, Italy, Australia Other Noteworthy Regions: New York, Chile, Argentina, South Africa

Syrah Where it grows

Leading Regions: California, France, South Africa, Australia Key Quality Regions: Washington Other Noteworthy Regions: Oregon, Chile, Argentina, Portugal, Spain, New Zealand

Gewürztraminer Where it Grows

Leading Regions: France, Germany Key Quality Regions: Italy, New York Other Noteworthy Regions: Washington, California

Riesling Where it grows

Leading Regions: France, Germany, Austria Key Quality Regions: New York, Australia Other Noteworthy Regions: Washington, Ontario, New Zealand

Pinot Grigio/Pinot Gris Where it Grows

Leading Regions: France, Italy Key Quality Regions: Oregon, Germany Other Noteworthy Regions: California, Australia, New Zealand

Chenin Blanc Where it Grows

Leading Regions: France, South Africa Other Noteworthy Regions: California

Nebbiolo Where it Grows

Leading Regions: Italy Other Noteworthy Regions: California, Argentina, Australia

Sangiovese Where it grows

Leading Regions: Italy Other Noteworthy Regions: Corsica

Pinot Noir Where it grows

Leading Regions: Oregon, California, France Key Quality Regions: Australia, New Zealand Other Noteworthy Regions: South Africa, Germany, Italy

Tempranillo Where it grows

Leading Regions: Spain Key Quality Regions: Portugal Other Noteworthy Regions: Argentina

Grenache Where it Grows

Leading Regions: Spain, France Key Quality Regions: California, Australia Other Noteworthy Regions: Washington, Italy

Can You Drink Cooking Wine?

Let's uncork the details of cooking wine (versus cooking with wine). PINTEREST FACEBOOK TWITTER EMAIL By: Layla Khoury-Hanold Related To: Wine Recipes Lisovskaya, Lisovskaya Lots of favorite recipes call for wine. But what is the best wine for cooking? If you have a dusty bottle of Sherry lurking at the back of your cupboard as your go-to cooking wine (Here's looking at you, Grandma!) or think of cooking wine as the cheap stuff that is not fit for drinking, you're not alone. It wasn't until I took cooking classes that I learned that culinary authorities recommend that you only cook with wine that you'd drink. It makes sense, since all cooking ingredients impart some flavor or characteristic on the final dish — that wine should be good enough to augment the rest of the ingredients. With that in mind, steer clear of bottles labeled "cooking wine," as they're loaded with preservatives and salt, which can negatively alter the taste of finished dish. And since many bottles labelled as such are often found in the same grocery store aisle as vinegar, they're not exactly made for sipping. Instead, a good rule of thumb when cooking with wine is to select your bottle from the wine section of the grocery store or hit up your local wine shop. But this doesn't mean you should break the bank on a Burgundy to make beef Bourguignon. Since wine is a living thing, the cooking process neutralizes many of the subtle nuances in flavor or character. Aim to pick something that's drinkable and moderately priced, but not splurge-worthy. You'll still retain the main characteristic you're after, namely acidity, which helps break down tougher cuts of meat when used as a marinade and yields a tender texture in slow-simmering stews and braised dishes. Wine's acidity can also help keep more delicate proteins or ingredients tender and moist when used in poaching or steaming preparations. What matters more than the wine's price tag, is when you add the wine to the dish. If it's going into a braise or a sauce, add it before you add your stock or other liquid and cook it down so that it reduces, allowing most of the alcohol to burn off (or your dish will end up tasting wine-y). And when you use wine to deglaze a pan, wine helps dissolve the fond (those tasty brown bits at the bottom of the pan) better than water or stock because it can break down oil-soluble compounds. When wine gets cooked, its flavor becomes concentrated so it can also impart sweetness (in dishes both sweet and savory), and other flavor characteristics like earthiness. Broadly speaking, dry red and white wines are recommended for savory dishes. For recipes calling for red wine, opt for crowd-pleasers like Merlot, Pinot Noir or Côtes du Rhône Cabernet; for whites, crisp whites like Sauvignon Blanc are good bets. Sweet wines, such as Sauternes or sweet Riesling, are usually reserved for desserts. Whether cooking with red or white wine, avoid oak-y wines (like Cabernet Sauvignon or Chardonnay) as these can become bitter when cooked. Other wines have their place in cooking too. Rosé wines can bring a burst of acidity in place of vinegar in condiments such as mignonette (which typically calls for red vinegar), and champagne is often used alongside sweet Marsala (a fortified wine) in sabayon, a custardy sauce that's perfect for dolloping onto fruit or pastries. Speaking of Marsala, if you've been using "cooking wine Marsala" for your chicken Marsala, swapping in a bottle of actual sweet Marsala is a total game-changer and adds a rich, nutty, caramelized flavor to the sauce. Bottom line: skip the "cooking wine" and pick out a decent bottle (read: good, not great), then head to your kitchen to make some of our favorite cooking-with-wine recipes. Some call for a whole bottle, but most, handily, leave enough for a very generous chef's glass. Spicy Red-Wine Spaghetti Giada's spaghetti calls for a full bottle of Zinfandel, which the pasta absorbs to add deeply jammy flavors to the spicy, garlicky tomato-based sauce. Parker's Beef Stew Ina calls for one bottle of good red to marinate beef chuck along with aromatics like garlic and bay leaves (but we won't tell if you save a small glass for yourself!). The leftover marinade is then combined with stock to create a deeply savory broth and tender morsels of beef. Braised Short Ribs For this low-and-slow braised short ribs recipe, Anne Burrell calls for two to three cups of hearty red wine. By liquid measure there are about three cups of wine in a bottle, so stay closer to the two-cup range if you want a glass to sip while you cook. Pork with Plum Sauce This recipe calls for just one cup of dry, red wine—a touch goes into the marinade, but most of it is reduced with sliced plums, helping to create a syrupy, jammy topping for the pork loin chops. Since you're cooking with fruit here, you can opt for a wine with more pronounced dark- or stone-fruit notes. Fish en Papillote This recipe is proof that wine can enhance delicate ingredients too. One tablespoon per parchment packet (a quarter-cup total) is all it takes to help keep the fish moist while it bakes, without overwhelming it with booze. There will be plenty of wine left to sip, so ask a pro to help you pick one out that can double as a pairing for the meal.

Your Ultimate Guide to Pairing Chardonnay

Like most of the world's great wine, Chardonnay began in a French vineyard a long, long time ago. The grape gradually made its way across the New World where, as it turns out, everyone loves it. Today Chardonnay reigns as the world's most popular white grape. Winemakers especially love Chardonnay because of its versatility. Its flavors are not as distinctive as other varietals giving it a blank canvas for winemakers to use individual techniques to create their own imprint on the wine. Winemakers who want flavors of spice, toast, and vanilla ferment the wine in oak barrels, while those who want a leaner, crisp wine ferment in stainless steel tanks and so on. Climate also dramatically affects the flavor profile. Cool climate Chardonnays tend to have more citrus flavor, minerality and acidity. Warm climate Chardonnays tend to have less acidity, ripe fruit flavors, and tend to be fuller-bodied, higher-alcohol wines. Because of Chardonnay's variations of flavors, mouth feel, and body, pairing it with food is not as easy as saying "it's a white wine so serve it with fish," Here is a quick guide to help you pair your next bottle of Chardonnay with the right meal. Unoaked California Chardonnays have garnered a reputation of being butter-bombs that are oaked-out-to-the-max, but as Bob Dylan said, "the times they are a changing." Cali winemakers are shaking off that reputation by creating wines that do not rely on oak to add flavors. Case in point- the 2018 Kendall-Jackson Avant Unoaked Chardonnay. Cold fermented in stainless steel tanks, this crisp wine showcases the pure expression of the Chardonnay grape. Green apple, citrus and tropical fruit make it a lively wine with a superb affinity for food. The wine's crisp nature allows it to pair well with just about anything. Keep it light by pairing the delicate flavors of the wine with simply flavored foods like poultry with butter and herbs. The acidity helps neutralize spice, so it is a great wine for a Mexican or Thai night. Light Oak Lightly oaked Chardonnays combine light butter nuances with tropical fruit making them exceptionally food friendly. The 2017 Kendall-Jackson Vintner's Reserve Chardonnay, California is medium weight wine with a well-balanced palate of pineapple, mango and papaya mixed with a hint of toasted oak. Pour a glass of it alongside a dish of piping hot Alfredo or mix it up at your next backyard BBQ. The oaky flavor of the Chardonnay pairs nicely with grilled or smoked meat. Medium Oak Medium oaked Chardonnays are the cat's meow for those wanting a creamer white wine. The barrel-fermented 2017 Kendall-Jackson Grand Reserve Chardonnay has a rich texture of lush tropical fruit, floral notes, and a hint of spice to round out a long finish. Mineralitly is present providing saline notes typical of Santa Barbara where 75 percent of the fruit is sourced. Apricot, honey, dried flowers, mint and butter notes lead into a creamy finish. Two words for this wine: crab cakes. Those little lumps of heaven loosely held together with bread crumbs, eggs, and light seasoning pair with the rich, full-bodied Chardonnay. This big, rich Chardonnay also pairs well with big rich foods like lobster and drawn butter. Heavily Oaked Warm-climate Chardonnays in newer regions, like those from Chile, tend to be buttery and oaky with flavors of vanilla and caramel. Some can be fruit explosions with flavors of pineapple, coconut, and banana. Big, oaky bottles of wine call for bold cheeses like blue cheeses and washed rinds. To complement the fruiter wines, serve a curry, chicken salad with grapes, apples, golden raisins and toasted almonds tossed in the mix. Or match the creaminess of the wine with a creamy bowl of Clam Chowder.

Which Wines Have the Least Sugar?

Love a glass of wine, but monitoring your sugar intake? Get ready to say "cheers" to these options! First of all, what determines and impacts the sugar content of wine? "The sweetness of a wine is determined by how long it is fermented," says Maryann Walsh, MFN, RD, a dietitian and certified diabetes educator in Palm Beach, FL. "The naturally present fructose and glucose in wine are major parts of the fermentation process. During this process, yeast converts the natural sugars to alcohol and carbon dioxide." What does this mean for a wine's sugar level and buzz potential? "When less sugar is fermented, more will stay in the wine — and the alcohol content of a sweeter wine will usually be lower," says Walsh. In general, a dry wine — one that's not too sweet — will fall into the lower-sugar category. When shopping for low-sugar sparkling wine in particular, look for a bottle with the descriptor "brut," "dry" or "extra dry." The words "asti spumante" or "moscato d' asti," on the other hand, indicate sweeter sparkling wines. "They could have anywhere from 10 to 25 grams of sugar per serving," notes Walsh. Some companies tailor wines to the low-sugar market. FitVine, for instance, sells low-sugar wines, typically with less than 1 gram of sugar per serving. The FitVine Pinot Noir contains .03 g sugar per serving, while the FitVine Chardonnay has .04 g sugar. Additionally, Dry Farm Wines sources wines guaranteed to contain less than 1 g sugar per liter, making them virtually void of sugar. Because all wines are produced differently, there's no be-all, end-all rule to buying the lowest-sugar wine. Some winemakers may even add sugar or grape juice to heighten the sweetness of a wine. That said, use this guide from Walsh as a start to your lower-sugar wine shopping. Some wine manufacturers will be able to provide nutrition information about specific wines. And if you're looking to make the most of your one pour, try cutting your wine with sparkling water, to create a spritzer. Reds With dryer reds, you can expect 1 to 3 g sugar per 5-ounce pour for the following varietals. Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot Pinot Noir Tempranillo Whites With dryer whites you can expect 1 to 3 g sugar per 5-ounce pour for the following varietals. Chardonnay Pinot Grigio Sauvignon Blanc Sparkling With dryer sparkling wines you can expect 1 to 3 g sugar per 3- to 5-ounce pour for the following options. Brut Champagne Prosecco And, when you're out shopping, try to avoid wines with the following words, which typically imply a higher sugar content: Dessert Late harvest Ice wine Spatlese Eiswein Dolce Demi sec Semi sec

Organic vs natural wine: What's the difference?

Natural wines have shot to notoriety over the past decade, and divided opinion along the way, but how are they different to organics? Chris MercerFebruary 28, 2020 Credit: Photo by David Köhler on Unsplash Ask Decanter Highlights Both organic and natural wines share some common values, particularly around sustainability and environmental stewardship. Both have also become a much more common dinner party talking point. But, organic and natural wines have important differences. The rule of law Organic wine has been legally defined in both the vineyard and the cellar, albeit certification rules may vary and not everybody agrees with the boundaries. At government level, the US and EU differ over the addition of sulphites, for example. Natural wines have so far defied all attempts to create a legal definition. Some supporters are relaxed about this. 'It's a bit of an anti-establishment movement,' said Henry Poultney, co-founder of the recently-opened Kask wine bar in Bristol, UK, which specialises in 'low intervention' wines from natural to organic. Isabelle Legeron MW, founder of RAW wine fair, said that 'strictly speaking, natural wine is pure, fermented grape juice' with nothing added. The aim is to 'bottle a drink that is alive [and] full of the naturally occuring microbiology that existed on the grapes and in the cellar too'. However, several winemakers who do not use the 'natural wine' term would argue that they share this goal and employ some of the techniques; critics say it is unhelpful to infer that other wines are somehow inferior or do not properly reflect their origins. In the vineyard Despite a lack of legal definition for natural wine, Legeron said 'there is general acceptance in the natural wine community as to what is and is not permissible'. Growing organic grapes is generally seen as a prerequisite for making natural wine. That is the main reason why 'all natural wines are organic but not all organic wines are natural', said Legeron, speaking to Decanter ahead of Raw Wine London 2020, on 8 and 9 March. In the cellar 'Where practices begin to diverge is in the cellar itself,' Legeron said. While organic winemaking rules are stricter than for non-organic wines, and regulations differ between countries, Legeron said that, 'broadly speaking, organic wine cellar regulations permit the use of additives, like yeast, winemaking aids, like fining agents, and processing, like sterile filtration and pasteurisation, that would not be allowed at all in natural winemaking.' Sulphites and 'low intervention' wines One divisive issue within the natural wine congregation is the use of sulphites. Strictly speaking, natural wines would not contain sulphites added in the cellar, but some feel that low levels of sulphites are acceptable - albeit far below the maximum allowed in organic wines in the EU, for instance. 'We make the distinction between "natural wines" and "low-intervention organic and biodynamic wines",' said Legeron. 'We accept both at the fair but refer to these different wines as two distinct categories,' she said, adding that both are more natural than non-organic wines. At Kask, organic and biodynamic bottles sit alongside natural wine styles, in what is described as a 'low intervention' range. 'We label everything by their certified terms where possible,' said Poultney, who believes the overall message is about transparency and 'what goes into the liquid that we drink'.

Great wines to drink with Christmas ham Read more at https://www.decanter.com/learn/food/wines-with-christmas-ham-350585/#pt49qVCSoqUezxEh.99

No self-respecting Christmas ham comes without a glaze, and this is the key to finding a good wine pairing. image: https://keyassets.timeincuk.net/inspirewp/live/wp-content/uploads/sites/34/2016/08/Fiona-Beckett.jpg Fiona BeckettDecember 13, 2019 image: https://keyassets.timeincuk.net/inspirewp/live/wp-content/uploads/sites/34/2018/12/christmas-ham-alamy-min-920x609.jpg From Semillon to Gamay, there are lots of options when pairing wine with Christmas ham. Credit: Brent Hofacker / Alamy Christmas Food and wine pairing Highlights Styles to consider when pairing wines with Christmas ham: Reds Beaujolais (Cru) / Gamay Zinfandel Châteauneuf-du-Pape / Grenache-Syrah-Mourvèdre blends Pinotage Whites Sémillon Viognier Gewürztraminer ADVERTISING Search our expert wine reviews to find your perfect match It's all about the glaze The one thing you can be sure of is that your ham will be sweet. No self respecting Christmas ham comes without some kind of a glaze and that is the main factor to take into account in any wine pairing. Granted, it makes more of a difference when the ham is served hot than it does once it's cold. Leftovers, particularly combined with turkey will rub along happily with a decent Beaujolais cru or a fresh young village Burgundy, wines that would taste sharp and weedy with the same ham served hot. Many glazes have an orange or marmalade component that tends to work well with bright, fruity reds like Australian Shiraz from Barossa or McLaren Vale, or a GSM blend; Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre. If there's a degree of heat and spice involved, as is the case with glazes or rubs that use mustard, look to the kind of red that can handle spicy food. Zinfandel immediately comes to mind, or a good Pinotage. Both of those wines should also be able to handle the slightly smoky taste you get when a ham is cooked in cola, Nigella-Lawson style - even with the treacle glaze. If your ham coating is slightly less sweet that could bring into play an Amarone, a wine that is too powerful for the turkey I tend to feel. And many people's Christmas favourite, Châteauneuf-du-Pape, can be a winner especially if the ham is served alongside the turkey. A bit of bottle age could be even better, bringing some complexity to the pairing. Jean-Baptiste Lemoine, head sommelier at the Goring in London, recently told Decanter.com that the softer tannins and more complex flavours of aged Barolo or Bordeaux would also work well with a roast ham. Finally, what about a white? It's trickier than a red, I'd say. Again, you want one that can handle the sweetness of the ham. A rich Sémillon, such as one from Australia's Hunter Valley, is the obvious call; think about the classic ham and pineapple combination. Otherwise, look to full-bodied whites such as Viognier, or old vine Chenin Blanc from the Cape in South Africa. As a wild card, a grand cru Gewürztraminer from Alsace could be a great match. See Fiona Beckett's website, MatchingFoodAndWine.com. This article was originally published in 2016 and has been updated in December 2019 with new wine recommendations (below) and extra comments from sommelier Jean-Baptiste Lemoine. Read more at https://www.decanter.com/learn/food/wines-with-christmas-ham-350585/#pt49qVCSoqUezxEh.99

Versatile wines that can pair with all sorts of meals

Nothing beats the magic of a brilliant pairing, but it's always good to have a go-to wine that can adapt to all sorts of dining situations. Chris MercerApril 10, 2020 Credit: Zachariah Hagy / @zachhagy at Unsplash.com Food and wine pairing Highlights Versatile wines to consider Riesling Gamay Pinot Noir Barbera Chenin Blanc There's a fine line between picking versatile wines to suit different tastes around the table or a range of meals, and just playing too safe. Where that line lies is a personal matter, just as individual preference is a big part of food and wine pairing in general, but it doesn't mean you have to sacrifice quality. Generally speaking, look toward wines that have bright fruit, good acidity and relatively low tannins, if you're after something that can work with all sorts of dishes. You don't necessarily have to restrict yourself to grape varieties that traditional offer this combination. It's possible to find fresher versions of wines once considered uniformly big and bold, such is the stylistic diversification in the wine world today. Acidity is one of the most prized aspects of a wine when faced with many dishes on one table - such as Christmas dinner - because it can cut through the array of side-dishes and add lift to the whole meal. Partly for this reason, it's been commonly held for years that Riesling is a superb go-to food pairing wine for many sommeliers. It can also be produced in a range of styles, not least from dry to sweet, of course. However, there are many other versatile wine styles out there. Ronan Sayburn MS, head of wine at the 67 Pall Mall private wine club and restaurant, said, 'A good allrounder wine for both fish and meat could be a fairly youthful Pinot Noir. He suggested looking at Chile, New Zealand or South Africa for great value and quality, and said the wines 'will work very well with lamb, beef or pork, as well as salmon and tuna and a variety of cheeses'. He added, 'For those who prefer a deeper wine, Argentine Malbec has been a great success story over the last 20 years, because it's dark, fleshy and packed with flavour although soft in tannins.' Will Hargrove, head of fine wine at Corney & Barrow, said Barbera's combination of bright red fruit flavour, crunch and racy acidity means the wines have a lot to offer at the dinner table. 'There are some very, very good Barberas in Piedmont,' he said. These wines are often a good choice for a group in a restaurant, 'if people are having all sorts of food', he added. Sunny Hodge, founder of London-based wine bar and bottle shop Diogenes the Dog, told Decanter.com, 'Good all-rounder wines are expected to be inoffensive, so avoid extremely high acidity whites, big tannic reds, and [anything] too dry or too sweet.' He added, 'Sugar, acidity, and tannins are usually the things that can destroy or work well with food. Good all-rounders will have to have these three factors, muted and in balance.' But that doesn't mean you have to play too safe. 'For whites, think very softly oaked [wines] to take an acidic edge off matters,' said Hodge, who suggested a Czech biodynamic wine called Milerka from his bar's list. 'It's a Müller-Thurgau and Neuburger blend in a little oak and acacia. It's round and fruit forward without being too oaky.' For reds, he advised avoiding oak so as not to over-emphasise tannin. 'For softer all-rounders, think colder climate juicier and lighter wines.' He highlighted Gamay. 'Your Beaujolais style, [plus other] younger and fruit-led options would work to compliment a lot of dishes and palates out there.' When it comes to French wines, Pierre Vila Palleja, sommelier-turned-owner at Le Petit Sommelier bistro in Paris, said that he would look to Chenin Blanc and Gamay. 'It's hard to find a course that doesn't work with these two grape varieties,' said Palleja, who previously worked as a sommelier at the Ritz. 'Everybody is happy with a Beaujolais,' he said, adding that both Beaujolais and Loire Valley Chenin wines can be great value. This might be bending the rules of versatile wine slightly, but those looking to go slightly more in-depth with their pairings could consider stocking up on a couple of different styles - such is the flexibility offered by these grape varieties. In Beaujolais, you can find more structured wines in some crus, such as Moulin-à-Vent, for example. In the Loire, a richer, oaky Chenin would suit creamier dishes, said Palleja.

What's the Difference Between Cooking Wine and Regular Wine?

Our top tips for selecting, cooking with and drinking wine — they're more straightforward than you might guess. PINTEREST FACEBOOK TWITTER EMAIL By: Layla Khoury-Hanold Related To: Wine Recipes Adrian Assalve, Adrian Assalve The main difference between cooking wine and wine that you drink is quality. But just as a fine wine has subtle nuances, so too does the definition of cooking wine. Here's a primer and a few tips to help you compare, well, grapes to grapes, and make the most out of cooking with wine (hint: save yourself a chef's glass). Avoid the stuff labeled "cooking wine" When it comes to cooking with wine, avoid bottles labeled "cooking wine." Cooking wine isn't anything you'd want to cook with — it's loaded with preservatives, sweeteners and salt, which can make your final dish taste overly sweet, salty or even metallic. Abide by this rule of thumb: Cook only with wine that you'd drink. Your first tipoff that bottles labeled "cooking wine" aren't fit to drink is that they're usually shelved near the vinegars and salad dressings in your local grocery store. Your best bet is to select a bottle from the wine section of your grocery store, or better yet, your local wine shop. "The quality of cooking wine is so low ... you have to remember that you're putting that in your body and in your dishes, so it's well worth it to spend the extra money to get a wine that'll really represent the dish," says Maria Rust, the wine director and founder of Somm Time Wine Bar in New York City. "If you really want to cook well, it's worth [making] a trip to the liquor store and getting a proper wine from people who do proper winemaking." Pick a "good" bottle Cooking with a good wine can really bring the wow factor to a dish, but you don't need to break the bank. Since many of wine's subtle characteristics burn off when cooked, it doesn't make sense to splurge on a fancy bottle for that batch of boeuf bourguignon. For cooking, look for a wine that's moderately priced. While wine is an ingredient like any other and you should buy the best you can afford, rest assured that even chefs aren't cooking with $40 bottles. "There's so much good wine out there for $10 to $15," Rust says. "Find something decent — a nice Sangiovese from Tuscany that retails for $10 to $12, or a nice clean, crisp white wine like Pinot Grigio or even a Muscadet. You want flavor but nothing too huge." Understand what wine brings to the dish The main thing wine provides in cooking is acidity, which helps break down tougher cuts of meat when used in a marinade or keeps them tender in longer-duration cooking methods like braising. Wine's acidity also helps more delicate ingredients stay tender and moist in quicker-cooking recipes, such as poached vegetables or steamed fish. As wine cooks, its flavor becomes concentrated, so it also lends savoriness or sweetness to a dish. Generally, dry red and white wines are recommended for savory dishes. Whether cooking with red or white wine, avoid oaky wines (like Cabernet Sauvignon or Chardonnay), as these become bitter when cooked. Save sweet wines, such as Sauternes, Moscato or sweet Riesling, for dessert recipes such as poached pears. Get more bang for your buck Cooking with the same wine you're going to serve with the meal is a way to get more bang for your buck (provided that the recipe doesn't call for the whole bottle), which is particularly nice if you're shelling out closer to $15 a bottle. Rust follows this philosophy for some of the wine-based dishes on Somm Time's small-plates menu. The Chianti used to bolster meatballs in a rich tomato sauce is also a fine match for sipping, as its acidity cuts nicely through the dish's richness. When Rust makes risotto at home, she'll often use something from her list, like a Muscadet or Pinot Grigio. (But if she's cooking risotto the traditional way, she'll spend a little more on a bottle of Amarone.) Use it up After you open a bottle, Rust recommends storing leftover wine in the fridge and either drinking or cooking with it within in four days. Otherwise, it'll oxidize (or go bad). "Oxidization goes into the dish as well, so you can get this musty, nutty, almost sherry quality, too," she explains. In other words, if the wine goes bad, it will impart those undesirable flavors into the dish, too. If you ask us, that's another good reason to pour yourself a chef's glass or serve the wine with dinner. Fortify your repertoire: oxidized and fortified wines Some wines, most notably sherry, are oxidized on purpose, to bring nutty, complex flavors into them. A dry sherry can lend a pleasing nuttiness to savory dishes, for example — but again, the key is to pick something that you'd actually want to drink. The wine should also be one that has been intentionally oxidized by the winemaker (rather than oxidizing a bottle of red and letting it go bad in your fridge to bring nuttiness to a dish). Fortified wines are another category that can be useful in cooking. As Harold McGee explains in his book On Food and Cooking, fortified wines are so named because the strength of the base wine is bolstered by the addition of distilled spirits to bring the alcohol level to 18 to 20%. This is a level that prevents spoilage, so winemakers can expose these wines to air for months or years to derive more desirable flavor profiles from oxidization. They also keep for much longer, up to a month or even two in some cases, as long as they're refrigerated. Two types of fortified wines most commonly called for in recipes are Madeira and Marsala. They're also a common source of confusion, because you'll often notice bottles of "cooking Madeira wine" and "cooking Marsala wine" in the grocery store. "Many people have never heard of Madeira or the tiny group of islands from which it hails," says Michael Corcoran, the sommelier at Peppervine, a Charlotte, North Carolina, restaurant lauded for its wine service. "These wines are often not cheap and can be tricky to find in some markets. Don't use cooking Madeira! It's just gross." Another thing Corcoran says you should consider when buying Madeira is the sweetness level: Sercial is dry, Verdelho is off-dry, Bual is sweet, and Malmsey is very sweet. "When cooking with Madeira, the wine will reduce and get even sweeter, so be careful when choosing your bottle," he advises. "Unless you are making a sweet demi-glaze, you'll likely want a Sercial or Verdelho — plus they are less expensive." The same goes for Marsala, a fortified Italian wine that hails from Sicily, which is available either dry or sweet. Using sweet Marsala lends a rich, nutty, almost caramelized flavor to mushroom sauces in dishes like chicken Marsala. Sweet Marsala can also be used in desserts, as with zabaglione, a classic custard sauce that's a fine match for fresh berries. Employ dry Marsala to deglaze a pan of roasted shellfish or meatier fish to add a savory depth to the sauce. Another fortified wine to keep on hand is Port, which enriches sweet sauces that pair nicely with chocolate desserts or can be drizzled over cheese — and then sipped with the same dessert or cheese.

Wine with chocolate: Pairing ideas to try at home

Pairing wine with chocolate always sounds great, but it can be a tricky business. Here is some inspiration for the upcoming Easter weekend, including archive commentary from food and wine expert Fiona Beckett. Chris MercerApril 8, 2020 Matching wine and chocolate can be tricky... Credit: Unsplash / Food Photographer | Jennifer Pallian Food and wine pairing Highlights Ideas for pairing wine with chocolate at-a-glance: Dark chocolate: PX Sherry, Barolo Chinato, Banyuls, Dolcetto Milk chocolate: Viognier, Alsace Pinot Gris, Tawny Port, Demi-Sec sparkling wine White chocolate: Off-dry Riesling, Rosé, Moscato d'Asti Watch out for: It's a matter of personal taste, but the tannin overload from dark chocolate and a full-bodied, dry red wine may lead to bitterness. Wines with a bit of residual sweetness can help to soften the bitterness of tannins in dark chocolate, which itself has relatively low sugar levels. Top tip: Think about the flavours that you are trying to match. What characteristics are in the chocolate? Is there cherry, orange, ginger or almond involved, for example? More detail Pairing food and wine is always subjective to some extent. Sarah Jane Evans MW, a co-chair at the Decanter World Wine Awards, recommends thinking about a wine's flavour, acidity, weight and length, and whether this works with the intensity, sweetness and texture of the chocolate. Yes, you might just have to conduct some tasting research before presenting dinner party guests with your perfect match. Even then, don't necessarily expect everyone to be happy. Some people love rich, luxurious dark or milk chocolate with lush reds, such as fuller-bodied styles of Zinfandel with ripe, jammy fruit and elements of sweet spice garnered from oak. If you've found a great combination, then why not indulge? However, others find this too much. 'Personally, I prefer reds with a fresher acidity when pairing with dark chocolate,' said sommelier Kelvin McCabe, wine buyer and beverage director at chef Adam Handling's restaurants, which includes the Frog in London. Speaking to Decanter.com in 2019, he recommended Dolcetto as a good match for a dessert predominantly involving cherries and dark chocolate. 'White chocolate has a very creamy texture on the palate, with a gentle flavour, so I would move towards a light, sweeter Riesling to freshen the palate whilst maintaining the soft notes of the chocolate,' said McCabe. 'Consider a good German Auslese or Mount Horrocks Cordon Cut Riesling.' White wine can also work for milk chocolate, he said. 'Milk chocolate sits somewhere between [dark and white chocolate], depending on its concentration, and can work really well with riper white wines with a little touch of oak, such as a Viognier or perhaps a Pinot Gris.' He added, 'With a milk chocolate dessert, I tend to move away from dessert wine styles [that are] too unctuous, so tawny Ports work really well.' Advice from Decanter contributor Fiona Beckett on pairing wine with chocolate desserts Three main things to consider: The type of chocolate - white and milk chocolate being generally easier to match than dark Is the dish hot or cold - cold is more wine-friendly What other ingredients are on the plate? Cherries, for example, might lead you to a sweet red like a Recioto or a late harvest Zinfandel rather than a white. The idea that chocolate is ruinous to wine is still widely held but, as many of you will know, the problem is overstated. Yes, it can be difficult to find a wine to match a molten chocolate fondant (PX Sherry just about manages), but there are many other chocolate desserts - and chocolates - which can be flattered by a fine wine match. In fact, it's a useful tip to think of the sort of fruit that might work with a particular type of chocolate and find a wine that includes those flavours - dark chocolate and orangey moscatel, for instance. 'For me, the wine needs to be sweeter than the dessert' It also depends on how much of a sweet tooth you have. For some - myself included - an Australian liqueur muscat would just add too much sweetness to a rich chocolate dessert. I prefer a sweet Sherry or Madeira with more acidity, for others it would be bliss. By contrast, not everyone would enjoy a Barolo Chinato, which I find the most marvellous match for a slender square of fine dark chocolate. I'm also not a fan of pairing full-bodied red wines with chocolate, although I know many are. For me the wine needs to be sweeter than the dessert. See also: Barolo Chinato: The best after-dinner drink you've never tried Lighter desserts with lighter wines In general lighter dessert wines such as Sauternes, Riesling and Moscato work best with lighter chocolate desserts, and richer ones such as Tokaji and fortified wines with darker, denser ones. Finally, bear in mind it may be a question of you could, but why would you? If you love Château d'Yquem Sauternes then I'm sure you'll enjoy it with a Mars bar or a slice of devil's food cake, but there are so many sweet (and savoury) foods that would show it off better. Fiona Beckett is a Decanter contributor and a food and wine pairing expert with her own website, matchingfoodandwine.com This article was originally published in 2016. It was updated in April 2020.

The Ultimate Guide to White Port, a Versatile, Accessible Wine

Versatile white Port wine offers a range of flavors, from fresh and young aperitifs to rich and complex wines aged in wood for up to 40 years. An impressive drink on its own, it's used in cocktails like the porto tónico (white Port and tonic) and can pair easily with food. White Port, made in small quantities by about 30 producers, is unique to Portugal's Douro Valley, a UNESCO World Heritage Site where Port has been made since the 1600s. The fortified wine can range from mostly dry to intensely sweet. The same blend of native white grapes used to make Douro's dry white wines are also used to create white Port. However, the style accounts for only 10% of all Port production. These grapes grow on high ground above the Douro River valley, where the summer temperatures are cooler. The grapes used in white Port are: Malvasia Fina: A subtle, full-bodied variety that brings notes of molasses and nutmegGouveio: Offers apple aromas, with lively acidity and a smooth feelViosinho: A low-yield variety that adds structure and intense aromasCódega do Larinho: An old Portuguese grape with low acidity and tendency toward high alcoholMoscatel Galego Branco: Offers aromatic lift via orange and apricot characteristics that are essential to white PortRabigato: Adds refreshing acidity to the blend Just like red Ports, white Port is fortified with clear brandy to stop fermentation. It's either put into wood casks for aging or kept in tanks to be bottled young. Young is easy to drink, while wood aging adds drama. They are typically 17-20% alcohol by volume (abv). Aged specialty white Ports matured for a generation in oak barrels can rise as high as $300. Once bottled, they generally don't continue to age, unlike still wines. Grapes used in white Port:Malvasia FinaGouveioViosinhoCódega do LarinhoMoscatel Galego BrancoRabigato When you pour white Port, don't miss the aromas and aftertaste. While the aromatic range is wide, many will display tones of toffee, caramel, orange, lemon, apple and honey. Wood-aged bottlings will offer notes of almond, vanilla and oregano. Similar to wood-aged tawny Ports, older white Ports are labeled with an age: 10, 20, 30 or over 40 years. The year is not a specific age but denotes characteristics of the final blend. Some may also be labeled colheita, which means it is from a single vintage. These pours are intensely nutty, with additional prominent flavors of orange zest and toffee. Prices for these rarities are correspondingly high: from $50 to easily more than $100 for 30- or 40-year-old bottles. They are to be treasured and sipped. When used for cocktails, drier styles mix better. The sweetest white Ports are known as lagrima, or tears, and are best enjoyed on their own or with blue cheese, foie gras, pâtés and sardines. All young white Ports are great with seafood. White Port ranges in price and can be difficult to find. Here, some of our favorite bottles for sipping straight or mixing with tonic for a traditional taste of Portugal. Why Port Wine Cocktails Are Worth Your Attention White Ports to Seek Out: Quinta Santa Eufemia NV 30 Anos White Port; $75, 95 points. This dry wine offers bright acidity that's balanced by the intense concentration from long wood aging. It has an edge of burnt toffee to go with the tangy acidity. It is a very fine, beautifully balanced wine. DB Wine Selection. Editors' Choice. C. da Silva 1971 Golden Colheita White Port; $175, 94 points. This intense wine is finely balanced, showing bright acidity as well as the remnants of orange marmalade fruits. It is a very fine, rich wine with great lift as well as richness. Other Brothers Brands. Kopke 2007 Colheita White Port; $57, 92 points. Rich, jammy and full of sweet orange flavors, this is a rounded wine with a smooth texture. Its acidity is just right to balance this richness, giving a very fine, delicious wine. Wine In-Motion. Niepoort NV 10 Anos White Port; $40, 91 points. Rich and jammy with deliciously fresh lemon-curd flavors to balance, this is a fruity wine. Its acidity sits well with the ripe toffee and marmalade flavors to give an immediately attractive aftertaste. Martine's Wines. J. H. Andresen NV 20 Year Old White Port; $20, 91 points. The wine balances bright acidity with wood spice and ripe fruit tones. It's a dry, zesty style, with the bite of spice showing strongly. It's as much a wine for food as for sipping. Aidil Wines/Old World Import. Quinta do Portal NV Lágrima White Port; $20, 90 points. This smoothly textured wine is ripe, generous and rich. It has delicious honey and lemon flavors that are enhanced by the baked apple flavors. This is a fine wine. M Imports, LLC. Poças NV 10 Years Old White Port; $28, 90 points. This ripe wine has a fine balance between the rich fruits and bright acidity. With an edge of tangy dryness as well as some sweetness, the wine's aging is just right. Tri-Vin Imports. Editors' Choice. Ramos-Pinto NV Lágrima White Port; $18, 89 points. This smooth ripe wine is poised between rich honey and bright acidity. It is concentrated, touched with spirit and gifted with an attractively rich aftertaste. Maisons Marques & Domaines USA.

Vitis Labrusca:

Vitis Labrusca: The species of grape native to the eastern U.S. that includes the Concord and Catawba varieties.

Vitis Riparia:

Vitis Riparia: A hardy grape native to North America, Vitis Riparia is one of the phylloxera-resistant rootstocks used with Vitis Vinifera grape varieties.

Vitis Vinifera:

Vitis Vinifera: Classic European winemaking species of grape. Examples include Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay and most of the famous varieties grown around the world.

Volatile Acidity (VA) :

Volatile Acidity (VA) : An excessive and undesirable amount of acidity, which gives a wine a slightly sour, vinegary edge. At very low levels (0.1 percent), it is largely undetectable; at higher levels it is considered a major defect.

Great wines to drink with fried rice

Sylvia Wu, editor of Decanter China, talks you through some of her personal favourite dishes and suggests wines to match. Sylvia WuMarch 28, 2020 Credit: Stocksolutions / Alamy Food and wine pairing Highlights Wines with fried rice - Styles to consider: Riesling, dry or off-dry Pinot Gris Chardonnay Pinot Noir Syrah / Shiraz Bold, off-dry rosé My family's favourite fried rice recipe involves soy sauce, minced pork, and crunchy, finely sliced cabbage. When this hearty and flavoursome meal sits on the table, you know you don't need any other dish to go with it - it's all in there. My version adds a splash of bone-dry, young Riesling - only to be added at the very end, when you are about to turn off the fire, and let the white blossom and sweet peach scents rise generously from the wok. The rest of the bottle? Drink it with the fried rice, of course. The grease in rice and soya saltiness pair nicely with the crisp acidity, and ginger seasoned minced pork won't over power a delicate white. The complex floral and stone-fruity aromas add a flare to every satisfying bite. You can even risk a bit of residual sugar in the Riesling, if you enjoy a salty-and-sweet combination. The same rule applies to those soya flavoured 'special fried rice' from Chinese takeaways. If you don't want too much cooking and are happy to settle with a bowl of egg fried rice, only seasoned with a pinch of salt, then look for a fruity white such as Pinot Gris or a round and ripe Chardonnay. Egg can be notoriously difficult to pair with wines, but a previous Decanter article suggested trying Viognier, which has the richness of flavour and depth of texture to work with a variety of foods. Appreciate the natural fragrance and texture of the rice, savour the touch of sweetness when it hits your tongue, and then take a sip to refresh. Unless you add plenty of salt to expand the spectrum of the flavour, watch out for too much acidity, which may kill the interplay of starch and saliva. Those who like a bit of extra heat from spices in their fried rice have a few options. Off-dry Riesling can add a touch of sweetness to round off the heat. Wine expert and restaurant critic Fiona Beckett suggested pairing a bold, off-dry rosé with dishes containing Sichuan spice, in an article for Decanter in 2017. Anne Krebiehl MW previously told Decanter that she loves Pinot Noir with Chinese five spice. 'I am a big fan of Chinese five spice, with its warm redolence of clove and cinnamon. Rounder, gutsier Pinot Noirs that border on plummy fruitiness.' Alternatively, some people may like to fight fire with fire by choosing a bold red with a bit of spice, such as an Australian Shiraz, to meet chilli heat head-on. Speaking of robust reds, if that's your thing, then another of my favourite dishes fits more into the flavoured rice category, rather than fried rice. If you're after a powerhouse rice dish then look no further than Cantonese claypot rice, best when topped with slices of cured pork belly. A ripe and concentrated Australian Shiraz, a classic New World Cabernet or an Amarone go hand-in-hand with the oily and sweet soya flavoured rice, although try to find a wine where the tannins have been well-integrated - otherwise you may lose the taste of the dish. Sylvia Wu is editor of our sister site DecanterChina.com. Editing by Chris Mercer.

Choosing Christmas wines: The right bottles for your table Read more at https://www.decanter.com/learn/choosing-christmas-wines-right-bottles-for-your-table-427906/#DWxCyEg6uh95J47E.99

The festive season offers plenty of occasions for wine lovers to enjoy their favourite bottles. But what should you serve when? Fiona Beckett offers practical tips for perfect wine service at home... image: https://keyassets.timeincuk.net/inspirewp/live/wp-content/uploads/sites/34/2016/08/Fiona-Beckett.jpg Fiona BeckettDecember 7, 2019 image: https://keyassets.timeincuk.net/inspirewp/live/wp-content/uploads/sites/34/2019/11/Christmas-wines-920x614.gif Credit: Hans Geel / Alamy Stock Photo Christmas Highlights Magazine: January 2020 issue Christmas wine advice - at a glance Have a few bottles on the table to cater to every taste Consider your wine choices for leftovers too - like a cru Beaujolais with the cold cuts. Don't be afraid to serve your better bottles first For Christmas parties, consider the food; fizz for canapés, still wines for more substantial foods. Remember serving temperatures - don't let the reds get too warm, or the whites too cold. For any wine lover, Christmas offers the opportunity to bring out the best bottles in the cellar - but is this the wisest strategy? The truth is that the Christmas meal, with its stuffing, sauces and sides, is a bit of a wine killer - and there may well be family members around your table who would frankly rather be drinking their favourite Chilean Merlot. Still, it's your Christmas as well as everyone else's and if you don't drink your best bottles on one of the biggest occasions of the year, then when do you drink them? At least that's how I justify it. The ideal answer, I think, is to have two or three bottles on the table to cater for every taste. If we're talking turkey, that should include a white as well as a red. At a Decanter tasting a few years ago we were amazed that a Chassagne-Montrachet stood up as well as the very posh reds we'd lined up, and I'd certainly have a relatively young red alongside a more mature one - not least as back-up if you find a wine is corked or over the hill. Magnums always go down well on the Christmas table and definitely provide the wow factor. On the table If you are fielding a special bottle, beef is actually much kinder to a good claret or similar Bordeaux blend than turkey is. Goose, I think, needs something with greater acidity to cut through the fat. I personally like spätlese Riesling, but an Italian red, such as a good Chianti or Brunello, would probably be more what your guests would expect. Veggie options like nut roasts don't pose too many problems as they're generally accompanied by the same sort of sides as turkey, so again think in terms of vibrant, Rhône-ish reds. It's also worth considering bottles for leftovers - a cru Beaujolais is my favourite with the cold cuts, and by the 27th I'm generally gagging for a Riesling, along with something light, spicy and crunchy. How to kick off the big day? Well it has to be fizz, really, doesn't it? Our standard family Christmas fare - both because it was easy to make and the kids liked it - was always smoked salmon open sandwiches. I paired this with a decent bottle of non-vintage Champagne, generally a blanc de blancs. These days - for those of us living in the UK at least - that might well be English sparkling wine or, for non-drinkers, sparkling tea (Fortnum & Mason does a good one), which is infinitely better than any alcohol-free wine. And if you're replenishing your glass stocks, I'd strongly suggest investing in some tulip-shaped glassware rather than the ubiquitous flute, which rarely serves to show off any fizz to its best advantage. Despite the usual argument for saving the best wine for the main course, there is something to be said for serving your more impressive wines first, while your guests are still relatively sober. In my experience, things tend to get progressively messier as the meal wears on. The most disastrous example of that was a Christmas down in the Languedoc a few years ago, when we'd bought some inexpensive Sauvignon Blanc in the local co-op and bottled it in Perrier bottles. On the reasonable assumption that it was water, my helpful son used it to top up the oldies' whiskies, resulting in a memorable scene with my late mother-in-law's elderly admirer staggering around the garden asking anyone who would listen why he'd ever got involved with her. Speaking of alcoholic overload, I'm personally a fan of skipping the Port at the end of the Christmas feast meal. Instead I'd recommend enjoying it on its own with some Stilton or a mince pie later in the day, when you're feeling slightly less stuffed. Party pairings When it comes to parties, it again comes down to what you're eating. Fizz again for canapés (Cava or crémant is invariably nicer than cheap Prosecco), still wine for more substantial food - bearing in mind that cooked food like a casserole or pie needs a more structured wine (say a decent Rhône or a Languedoc red) than quiche and salads (try a lighter Sauvignon Blanc or a Merlot). It's also worth getting in a less expensive red, such as an own-label Corbières or Garnacha, for mulling and cooking with (and pouring down younger and possibly less discriminating members of the family). And if you want to ensure your most treasured wines are not opened accidentally, never utter the fatal words: 'Can you find me another bottle of red?' without specifying what that should be. Including the vintage. Another challenge over Christmas is to prevent your reds getting too warm, especially if you decant them in advance. It's best to keep them in an unheated room or wherever you normally store them until shortly before you serve them. Whites, on the other hand (especially richer whites such as Chardonnay), are often allowed to get too cold - especially if you've been super-organised and put them in the fridge earlier in the day. But don't forget to chill them, obviously. Read more at https://www.decanter.com/learn/choosing-christmas-wines-right-bottles-for-your-table-427906/#DWxCyEg6uh95J47E.99

Exploring the Global Footprint of Italy's Star Grape

The grape of Chianti and Brunello di Montalcino, Sangiovese currently accounts for about 10% of Italy's total grapes. First documented in 1590, it's seen its share of highs and lows, from being the backbone of the most sought-after wines of Tuscany, to a long stretch as an unnamed grape in cheap table wines throughout central Italy. More recently, Sangiovese has seduced growers in places like Australia, Argentina and Canada. It's created a footprint in the U.S., too, mainly along the West Coast, but also in Texas. It's searched a bit for its personality and place in the New World, winemaking styles that emphasize zippy, fresh character may finally settle it. A Beginner's Guide to Chianti and Chianti Classico California In Sonoma, the Seghesio family still has some century-old vines. Newer plantings go into fresh incarnations like Peter Stolpman's Love You Bunches carbonic Sangiovese, or Ryme Cellars' Sangiovese-Friulano carbonic coferment. Jennifer Reichardt of Raft Wines sources Sangiovese from Nessere Vineyards in Butte County, which struck her for its "beautiful cherry flavor, [with] lots of pop and zest." Pacific Northwest In Oregon, Sangiovese can be found in Umpqua Valley and Columbia River Gorge, while in Washington State, it has made a home in Walla Walla Valley. Graham Markel of Buona Notte Wines procures grapes from Oregon's Gorge, just east of The Dalles, for his fruit-driven, largely whole-cluster Cento per Cento cuvée. He says it's a "wild spot" where "ripe clusters drip into flowering sage brush." In Washington, Leonetti Cellar makes a serious bottling aged partly in classic botti. Australia Sangiovese makes small, respectable appearances from the Barossa Valley and McLaren Vale to Victoria's King Valley. Famous producers like Penfolds, Chapel Hill, Hewitson and Brokenwood Wines have bottlings, while Coriole Vineyards and the Pizzini family have showcased the variety for decades. Light, bright and juicy examples from cooler areas like Heathcote or the Yarra Valley have brought renewed attention to the grape. Corsica Is Sangiovese by any other name still Sangiovese? Corsican wine producers who make it under the local name Nielluccio might have something to say. The grape takes on distinctive bright and floral notes on the island. Domaine Comte Abbatucci, Domaine Antoine Arena, Clos Canarelli and Domaine d'Alzipratu use it in everything from bright and savory rosés to deep, ageworthy reds.

Vosges Oak:

Vosges Oak: Tight-grained French oak from the Vosges Mountains in Alsace used to make wine barrels.

Sweet Georgia on My Mind

Way down among the piney woods in southernmost Georgia, there's a little town called Thomasville that, thanks to two decades of dedication from a particular cheesemaking family, has been put squarely on the map. Al and Desiree Wehner had practiced conventional modern dairying in northern Florida for 15 years when they realized it left little time for raising their children and was too hard on their cows. In 1993, they bought a dairy about 18 miles northeast of Thomasville and switched to a grass-based rotational grazing system. "My parents converted when I was in middle school," says their daughter Jessica Little, now 39. "I could tell right away it was much better for the cows, for the farm, for everybody." Jessica and her husband, Jeremy, joined the creamery business in 2001 and bought it in 2005. He's now head cheesemaker while she handles marketing and runs their cheese shop and gastropub. Her brother Clay, 37, is in line to take over the farming operation. Sweet Grass' success has been fueled by three magnificent obsessions: Al Wehner's for growing the finest grass, Desiree's for creating cheese recipes and Jeremy Little's for perfecting them. "We were making some incredible milk because of how we decided to dairy," says Al, 63. "[Cheesemaking] was Desiree's dream, her passion. She had to convince me." Desiree, 60, began experimenting in her kitchen in the late '90s, went commercial in 2000 and named her signature cheese for their original farm, Green Hill. They subsequently bought two more properties in the area; each hosts about 500 cows on around 350 acres divided into 5-acre paddocks. Al plans the herds' grazing schedules 72 hours in advance: "You're letting the cow harvest the grass at its optimum stage for her and also for the grass." The good news in the Deep South is that there's a year-round growing season. The bad is it's often too darn hot, with high humidity, an average daily temperature of 67° F and the mercury frequently topping 100 during summer, which requires special measures such as running the irrigation sprinklers on the grazing cows to keep them cool. The Wehners crossbred their herd, which is about 50% Jersey stock, to be smallish, hardy and capable of yielding rich, golden-hued milk. Al spent years patrolling his pastures armed with a refractometer for gauging the grasses' sugar content; he tested the soil and studied how to maximize beneficial minerals. By the early 2010s, Green Hill and Thomasville Tomme had found their place among the finest American artisanal cheeses. Asher Blue, a raw-milk natural-rind blue cheese, was trickier to master. "It's our most inconsistent cheese and it's given [Jeremy] the most trouble," says Jessica. "But of course he wasn't going to shrink from that challenge." Like his father-in-law's grass-growing, Little's cheesemaking odyssey has been an ongoing discovery process. "I can walk into the cheese room and it feels like home, but it also feels like a classroom in the best possible sense," he says. "I always feel like today's going to be an exciting day because I'm going to learn something new." The current annual output at Sweet Grass is about 370,000 pounds, putting it roughly on par with California's Cowgirl Creamery. Aiming to triple output within five years while dialing in greater consistency, Little designed a new creamery, scheduled to open this summer, which is more good news for fans of Georgia's Sweet Grass. David Gibbons is co-author of Mastering Cheese. Andrew Thomas Lee THE SWEET GRASS DAIRY LINEUPsweetgrassdairy.com; all cheeses $17-$25 per pound 1 Green Hill: Featuring a delicate rind and fudgy paste that melts languorously on the palate, this Camembert-style cheese showcases the rich, creamy, buttery flavors of the milk, with a hint of white button mushroom. 2 Thomasville Tomme: The dairy's French alpine-style workhorse is buttery and slightly tangy, with subtle nutty and sweet notes. Kid-friendly and versatile as an ingredient, it's the basis for their highly regarded pimento cheese spread. 3 Asher Blue: Inspired by Roquefort but made from cow's milk; strong and fairly salty, but with plenty of other flavors—meaty, mushroomy, earthy, herbal—to round out a wonderfully balanced profile. 4 Lil' Moo: A tangy fresh spreadable cheese, which Little recently tweaked to bring out more citrusy flavors. 5 Griffin: Starts life as a Thomasville Tomme but is denser and more cheddarlike; the curds are washed in porter, adding some malty, hazelnut and mocha cappuccino notes.

From the archive: Michael Broadbent MW - Lessons in wine appreciation

We look back at a Decanter magazine column from the late Michael Broadbent MW, originally published in 2007. Time to go back to basics... Michael Broadbent MWMarch 23, 2020 Credit: Elisha Terada / Unsplash Highlights News Home Lessons in wine appreciation - back to basics The approach of September reminds me that exactly half a century ago I began my part-time professional wine writing. That is to say, I got paid. I still have the receipted invoice for £5, a welcome addition to my modest wine trade stipend, for my first monthly column on wine in Cheshire Life. Appropriately, for though at the time I was working for Harveys in Manchester, in the mid 1970s we lived in Cheshire. Each column was headed by one of my drawings, an appropriate vignette, foreshadowing the illustrated wine maps to come, currently being promoted by Decanter. It was also around the same time that I began 'tutored' tastings - a term I detest - first for local organisations ranging from the Women's Institute to the Wine and Food Society. Was all this seminal wine lecturing of any use whatsoever? I think it was, because I realised that, faced with a glass of wine, the vast majority of my audience had not the foggiest idea how to start: the significance of the appearance of wine, particularly its nose, and the components of taste. Worse still, in the early 1960s, having been transferred to Bristol, I found that Harveys 'reps' and sales staff in the retail shops were almost as ignorant, relying entirely on brief wine list notes - and prices. Which brings me to another appropriate and significant anniversary, coinciding with the time the reader will receive the advance October issue of Decanter - the 25th anniversary of the first Christie's wine course, which Steven Spurrier and I based on the classes at his successful Académie du Vin in Paris. They say that 'those who can, do; those who can't, teach'. But the more one teaches, the more one learns, not only helping to better master the subject but - and this is important - to take note of what the participants, of all ages, want to learn about wine. For the past quarter-century, my part in the five-course sessions has alternated between the introduction to wine and the Bordeaux session, helping to identify regional and cépage variations. What do beginners need to know? First of all, what one can learn from the appearance of wine: the whites ranging from almost colourless to more pronounced yellow, its clarity, its viscosity, and any signs of oxidation; then the extra dimensions of the reds, the significance of depth of colour, the actual hue, the intensity or weakness of the rim. The question of whether and when to decant crops up at every tasting. Timing is not crucial. My short answer is that it matters little though I do advocate decanting red wines. At home I invariably pour young wines into an open jug an hour or so before serving. If a mature wine, then over a strong light - I prefer an upturned torch or table lamp to the traditional candle - to spot any sediment as it approaches the shoulder of the bottle. Glasses are important too. Riedel has all the answers, perhaps too many! After 'appearance' comes the next natural progression, raising the glass to the nose. First, though, I advocate swirling the wine in the glass to rouse, aerate and maximise the surface area of wine. Much has been said about the importance of the first impression, the first sniff. It is important, up to a point, but I always stress that unless the taster concentrates, undistractedly, on that first elusive sniff, the significance is missed. In practice, the professional, experienced taster will be on the look-out for typicity, perhaps its varietal aroma, cleanliness, possible faults including corkiness. It is the next stage which is vastly more important and I always recommend a steady, not too deep inhalation, for it is then that the component parts can be identified, and, of course, its fragrance, its depth; if red, the not-always-identifiable sweaty leathery tannin, the 'hot' prickle of high alcohol and, that latter-day scourge, oak - new oak, with its spicy cinnamon scent. In the case of a young red Bordeaux, whether it is dumb or forthcoming, the former needing time. Also, most importantly, to realise that the identification of major facets, particularly in a young red, is irrelevant in a fine mature wine, for the purpose of giving such a wine bottle age is for all the component parts to blend, resulting in a harmonious, seamless, bouquet. In short, it is pointless to attempt to identify the same characteristics of a young wine in an old wine; for example, with the 1955 Latour or 1953 Lafite (should you be so lucky), one just luxuriates in the unravelling layers of delectable scents. What about maturing whites? Sauternes for example? Starting off life a palish yellow-gold, the wines become a deeper amber-gold; and the fresh, sweet aroma develops into a richer, more honeyed, crème brûleé when fully matured. To quote the late Professor Peynaud, the appearance - depth of colour and hue - and nose of the wine will tell you all you need to know about its quality and maturity. The third stage, the taste, merely acts as confirmation. He was of course referring mainly to red Bordeaux.

Weather:

Weather: Temperature, precipitation and sunshine hours associated with specific events such as a hailstorm. In contrast, climate refers to long-term patterns.

Dumplings and wine pairing - ask Decanter

What wine should you serve with your Chinese dumplings? The do's and don't's ahead of Chinese New Year... Sylvia WuJanuary 22, 2020 Credit: Unsplash / SJ Baren Ask Decanter Food and wine pairing Highlights Dumplings and wine pairing - at a glance Champagne works particularly well with fried dumplings, or when serving with vinegar. Think of ripe Chardonnays, or fruity rosés to go with your dumpling fillings. The stronger the filling flavour, the harder to pair with a wine Avoid heavy, tannic reds When speaking of dumplings (or in Chinese 'Jiaozi'), this encompasses a variety of fillings and flavours - from jiucai (garlic chives) and pork dumplings, baicai (Chinese cabbage) and pork dumplings to seafood dumplings. 'If you want to pair your dumplings with wine, it's better to choose light-flavoured fillings,' said Jennifer Doherty MW, head of brand portfolio management at Summergate Fine Wines & Spirits. 'The classic garlic, chive and pork dumplings, for example, are difficult to pair with wines due to their overpowering flavours. 'Pork and cabbage, Sanxian (pork, prawn and eggs) and mushroom dumplings, on the other hand, are more delicate.' 'I would pick a light and delicate white wine to go with something like pork and cabbage - I don't think you want a red wine. Try a wine that's got a little oak on it with good acidity - I'd go for a nice Bourgogne Chardonnay, maybe a Mâcon.' 'Personally I love Rieslings, so I'd try a Kabinett—with refreshing acidity with a little bit of residual sugar, to pair with it.' See also: Chinese food and wine pairing See also: Peking duck and wine pairing - ask Decanter What about the sauce? Classic sauces to serve with dumplings can include a mixture of soy sauce, Jiaozi vinegar, sesame oil, garlic and spice. 'This is the benefit of making your own sauce,' said Doherty. 'You can adjust the levels of salt, sourness, and give it a little bit of roundness to achieve a nice balance. 'It shouldn't be too difficult for you to find a pairing wine if you prefer a more savoury sauce. 'But if you prefer only vinegar as the sauce, finding a wine match will be more difficult, so try something with high acidity; Champagne could be a good option here.' How are your dumplings cooked? You may be asked whether you'd like your dumpling fried or boiled in a Chinese restaurant (although you are more likely to find fried dumplings in Japanese restaurants). You can also have your dumplings steamed in a dim-sum style. If your dumplings are steamed or boiled, the skin turns soft while retaining the clean, doughy mouthfeel. Flavours of the filling tend to drop a little if dumplings are boiled in water, so good wines to choose could be a creamy aged Champagne, a ripe New World Chardonnay or a fruit forward Grenache or Zinfandel-based rose, especially when the dish is served warm. Fiona Beckett also recommends blanc de blancs Champagne or a fino Sherry with dim sum, in her guide to wine and Chinese food pairing. Avoid big, heavy red wines as they would most certainly overpower the flavours, and tannins don't tend to work well with the soft and sticky doughy skin. A touch of residual sugar, however, can work well, especially with a meaty filling and seasoned with savoury, umami-rich soy sauce and Shaoxing wine. Fried dumplings tend to pair better with wine, as the skin gets crisper; a bit of burn on the bottom adds even more to the texture. If done properly, the filling should remain soft inside. As fried dumplings absorb some oil in the cooking, a chilled bottle of NV Champagne or dry English sparkling make a good match with fried dumplings, served cold or hot. Editing by Ellie Douglas.

Whole cluster:

Whole cluster: This can refer to whole-cluster pressing and/or whole-cluster fermentation, where pressing and/or fermentation happen without the stems having been removed from the berries. Stem inclusion can add more tannins and structure to the finished wine, but can also impart additional flavors. If the clusters are picked early in the maturation process, the greener, more flexible stems might impart vegetal or herbal notes. If the clusters are allowed to hang on the vine longer, given time to achieve full polyphenolic ripeness and lignification of the stems (turning rigid, brown and woody), the flavors imparted will be more mellow, earthy and spicy.

Oysters and Muscadet

Why they're a perfect pair: Muscadet, which is made in western France and along the Atlantic coast, heightens the oysters' fresh flavor with its acidity.Similar pairings to try: Mussels, clams, oysters and white fish like trout or skate are also delicious with lightly oaked Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc.

Steak and Cabernet Sauvignon

Why they're the perfect pair: Cabernet Sauvignon is high in tannin — the substance that leaves a chalky sensation on your teeth and dyes your mouth dark after drinking. The fat in a steak stands up to tannins and softens their impact, and the meat's bold flavor matches the big, fruity flavor of the wine.Similar combinations to try: Red meat and red wine are a classic combination. Grilled steak would be delicious with an American red Zinfandel, or a tannic or soft Merlot, while a pan-fried steak pairs well with a fruitier red like an Australian Shiraz, or a California, Oregon or Washington Merlot.

Winemaking:

Winemaking: Largely synonymous with "Vinification," winemaking is the process by which harvested grapes are crushed, fermented (and otherwise manipulated through yeast inoculations, temperature control, punch-downs, pump-overs, racking, oak-chip additions, filtering, etc.), aged in barrel, steel tank or other vessel, and finally bottled.

Yeast:

Yeast: Micro-organisms that convert sugar to alcohol and carbon dioxide in the process known as fermentation. The predominant wine yeast, saccharomyces cerevisiae, is the same micro-organism that ferments beer and makes bread dough rise.

Yield

Yield: The quantity of grapes or wine produced measured in tons per acre or hectoliters per hectare. Although it is true that overcropped vines with high yields produce less-concentrated grapes, it is not true that lower yields always mean higher quality. Different soils, vineyards and varieties are able to successfully carry different levels of crop.

How to Pair Tomatoes with Wine

You say tomato...we say, "here's how to pair this versatile summertime treat." There are more than 10,000 types of tomato, which range in color from white to black and are used around the globe in everything from drinks to dessert. This popularity hasn't spared them of a reputation for being difficult to pair with wine, however, thanks in large part to their considerable acidity. But, as American farmers markets flood with juicy, field-ripened varieties this time of year—a delight after months of bland supermarket tomatoes—there are ways to find your perfect partner pour, depending on which side of the flavor spectrum they fall. Sweet Juicy sweetness is the hallmark of a great tomato. Cooking can accentuate this, as it concentrates and caramelizes sugar while reducing acidity. An off-dry Riesling can be a delicious and hedonistic match. For cooked tomato sauces, Sangiovese-based Chianti is also a classic pairing. Pappardelle with Eggplant Ragout Tangy The bright acidity of tomatoes helps balance their sweetness. High-acid wines can handle the challenge it poses. A common pairing in Spain for gazpacho, Albariño has tart citrus flavors with underlying melon or stone-fruit qualities that blend well with tomatoes. Green Even ripe red tomatoes have a subtle green quality. Just smell the stem end for the alluring and pungent scent of tomato leaf and wet grass. This helps explain why wines like Sauvignon Blanc and Chilean Carmenère, which often smell of tomato leaf and herbs, are a good pairing partner. Earthy The complex earthiness of tomatoes distinguishes them from other fruits. A Bandol rosé with a high percentage of Mourvèdre is among the richest of French rosés. It's earthy, smoky and floral, beautiful alongside grilled, roasted and sundried tomatoes.

Zero Dosage:

Zero Dosage: See Brut Nature.

Cabernet Sauvignon

[KA-bur-nay so-vee-NYON] Characteristics Cabernet Sauvignon, native to Bordeaux, has thick blue skins, giving the resulting wines plentiful tannins and phenolics and making them particularly ageworthy. Over the past 50 years, Cabernet Sauvignon has spread to all of the New World's major winegrowing regions, and it remains one of France's most important grapes. A late-budding, mid- to late-ripening grape, Cabernet Sauvignon performs best in warm climates, particularly in well-drained gravelly soils. It is probably best-known as the main component of Bordeaux's Left Bank blends, supported by Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Elsewhere in Europe, it has become a pillar of Italy's super Tuscans. But its appreciation for warm weather also explains why it has found success in New World regions like Australia, Washington, Chile and, most significant, California's Napa Valley. French styles of Cabernet Sauvignon tend to put the savory, herbal and mineral characteristics of the grape forward, while New World versions focus more on its plush blackberry and black currant fruit, as well as rich notes like licorice. But what typically unites these styles is Cabernet's tannic structure and its oak-aging treatment, which is popular worldwide, giving the wines additional notes of cedar, star anise and tobacco, depending on the type of oak and time spent in it. And while some Cabernets are made in fruit-forward styles that are approachable in their youth, the best examples are built to age, sometimes for decades. Where it's grown Map by Henry Eng France: Bordeaux's Left BankCalifornia: Napa, Sonoma, Paso RoblesItaly: Toscana and Bolgheri in TuscanyWashington: Columbia ValleyAustralia: Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon icons California: Harlan, Heitz, Mayacamas, Schrader, Stag's Leap Wine Cellars Bordeaux: Châteaus Lafite Rothschild, Latour, Margaux and Mouton-Rothschild Tuscany: Antinori's Solaia, Ornellaia, Tenuta San Guido's Sassicaia Suggested food pairings California: rib-eye steak Bordeaux: Pauillac lamb Cabernet fans may also like Malbec Merlot Syrah

Malbec

[MAHL-bek] Characteristics Malbec originated in Southwest France, where it's also known as Côt; it is still the main grape in the area's top appellation, Cahors. It was once a significant blending partner in Bordeaux's reds, but has largely fallen out of favor there. Farther north in France, it has a presence in the Loire Valley. However, Malbec today is most associated with Argentina, where it has become the signature red grape. It's also grown in other New World regions, including Chile and Australia. Malbec is mid-ripening, has thick skins and small, concentrated dark purple berries that make for structured, full-bodied wines. The grape thrives in several soil types, but has shown an affinity for limestone, as well as clay and sand. In the vineyard, common threats include frost, rot and coulure, making dry conditions ideal. In general, Malbec shows a range of black and red fruit, including plum and raspberry, as well as rich notes of chocolate and licorice, and some herbal and spice accents. Cahors Malbec tends to have hefty tannins and can be quite rustic and savory. Argentina's Malbecs are typically lusher, with softer tannins and juicier fruit. Where it's grown Map by Henry Eng France: Cahors in Southwest France; Bordeaux; Loire Valley Malbec icons Argentina: Achával-Ferrer, Bodega Catena Zapata, Viña Cobos, Cuvelier Los Andes, Viña Doña Paula Cahors: Château du Cèdre, Clos Triguedina, Château de Haute-Serre, Château Lagrézette Suggested food pairings Argentina: grilled flank steak with chimichurri sauce France: cassoulet Malbec fans may also like Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot Zinfandel

Pinot Grigio/Pinot Gris

[PEE-no gree/PEE-no GREE-jeeo] Characteristics Pinot Gris' genetic roots can be traced to both France's Burgundy region and southwest Germany, and is a lighter-skinned mutation of the red grape Pinot Noir. Today, there is relatively little Pinot Gris grown in Burgundy, but it has become significant in France's Alsace region, home to some of the world's most lauded versions. It has spread to northern Italy, where it's known as Pinot Grigio, as well as to New World regions including Oregon. It's also still grown in Germany, where it's known as Grauburgunder. Pinot Gris' berries are much darker than most white grapes, reaching pink and purple hues. It's early-budding and early-ripening, and produces relatively low acidity, making it best-suited to cool climates, which allow the resulting wines a degree of freshness. It also has naturally high sugar levels; some producers opt to make late-harvest wines. In Alsace, Pinot Gris wines are fleshy in texture and medium- to full-bodied, showing subtle orchard and stone fruit accented by floral and spice notes. The best examples remain fresh despite the grape's natural tendency toward low acidity and high alcohol. However, Italian Pinot Grigio is so different it's sometimes hard to believe it's the same grape. Bulk-production versions are made from grapes picked very early, preserving high acidity at the expense of flavor. More serious examples hail from Trentino-Alto Adige and Friuli Venezia-Giulia, where the wines are usually light- to medium-bodied, with a stony, mineral note accompanied by floral, orchard and stone fruit flavors. Where it's grown Map by Henry Eng France: AlsaceItaly: Veneto, Trentino-Alto Adige, Friuli Venezia-Giulia Pinot Gris/Pinot Grigio icons Alsace: Hugel, Trimbach, Weinbach, Zind-Humbrecht Trentino-Alto Adige: Alois Lageder, Cantina Terlano, Cantina Tramin Friuli Venezia-Giulia: Marco Felluga, Vie de Romans Suggested food pairings Alsatian Pinot Gris: smoked trout and sauerkraut Italian Pinot Grigio: salade niçoise Pinot Gris fans may also like Gewürztraminer (for Pinot Gris styles) Sauvignon Blanc (for Pinot Grigio styles) Viognier (for Pinot Gris styles)

Pinot Noir

[PEE-no nwar] Characteristics This popular red grape originated in Burgundy but has spread across the New World. Like its white Burgundian counterpart Chardonnay, Pinot Noir is early-budding, early-ripening and thin-skinned. The sites where it tends to thrive can experience tough growing conditions, which lead to more rigorous fruit selection and lower yields. This is one of the reasons that high-quality Pinot Noir often carries a higher price tag than other wines. The variety enjoys cool climates and grows best in calcareous soils, marl and loam. Pinot Noir is known for its bright red fruit flavors of cherry, strawberry and raspberry, as well as floral notes. Its structure is friendly to many wine lovers: light in body, low in tannins, with good acidity. Pronounced earthiness can be found in Old World versions, like those of red Burgundy, whereas riper fruit-forward flavors are typical of New World styles, which are found in cool pockets of California and Oregon. The wines are juicy and approachable in their youth, but the best versions can develop elegant complexity as they age. Where it's grown Map by Henry Eng France: Burgundy; Alsace; Loire Valley's SancerreCalifornia: Sonoma, Santa Barbara, MendocinoAustralia: Yarra Valley, TasmaniaNew Zealand: Central OtagoItaly: Friuli Venezia-Giulia, Trentino Alto-Adige Pinot Noir icons Burgundy: Domaines Leroy, Romanée-Conti, Roumier, Armand Rousseau California: Brewer-Clifton, Kosta Browne, Marcassin, Williams Selyem Oregon: Adelsheim, Beaux Frères, Domaine Serene New Zealand: Escarpment, Felton Road Suggested food pairings California: roast duck Burgundy: coq au vin Pinot Noir fans may also like Gamay Frappato Mencía

Chenin Blanc

[SHEH-nin Blahnk] Characteristics Chenin Blanc originated in France's Loire Valley, likely in the Anjou subregion, which today makes the world's most acclaimed Chenins. The grape's frontiers have expanded, to South Africa, where it's also known as Steen, as well as to some regions in the U.S., most notably California. Chenin Blanc is early-budding, mid-ripening, and grows successfully in varied soil types, including silex, schist, sand and clay. It's made in a range of styles and sweetness levels. In France, Chenins emphasize the grape's high acidity, orchard and citrus fruit flavors, and floral notes, like honeysuckle. This is the case with Savennières, home solely to dry versions, as well as with Vouvray, where dry, off-dry and sweet bottlings are all made. Chenin Blanc is susceptible to botrytis, enabling the production of richer dessert-wine styles, such as those from Coteaux du Layon and Quarts de Chaume. In the New World, South Africa and California in particular, Chenin Blanc is mostly made in a dry style, but with riper, sometimes tropical fruit. However, a handful of South African producers use the grape in their dessert-style "straw wines." Globally, producers often opt to age Chenins in oak, as well as to subject it to malolactic fermentation and aging on its lees, which emphasizes brioche, toast and nutty notes. Where it's grown Map by Henry Eng France: Loire Valley's Vouvray, Savennières, Saumur, Anjou Chenin Blanc icons Loire: Domaine des Baumard, Domaine Huët, Nicolas Joly South Africa: Mullineux, Reyneke, Sadie Family Suggested food pairings Loire (dry): seafood pasta South Africa: chicken fricassée Chenin Blanc fans may also like Chardonnay Riesling Viognier

Zinfandel

[ZIN-fan-del] Characteristics This grape's genetic roots can be traced to modern-day Croatia, where it's known as Crljenak or Tribidrag; both Zinfandel and the southern Italian grape Primitivo are clones of this Croatian variety. Despite its international origins, Zinfandel is most widely planted and most successful in California. Americans may associate the grape with white Zinfandel, an off-dry blush wine popular in the 1980s and '90s, but it has since come into its own as a serious red wine. Zinfandel is a mid- to late-ripening variety with thin skins; it tends to ripen unevenly, and grows most successfully in warm climates and poor, well-drained soils. Some of the best examples are made from old vines, which limit the grape's naturally high yields and concentrate the grape's fruit flavors. In general, Zinfandels have high acidity and mild tannins, with ripe, sometimes jammy fruit flavors of cherry, raspberry and blueberry. Black pepper is also a signature trait, and some versions exhibit herbal details like sage and dill. Where it's grown Map by Henry Eng California: Sonoma, Lodi, NapaItaly: Puglia Zinfandel icons California: Bedrock, Carlisle, Ravenswood, Seghesio, Turley Suggested food pairings California: barbecued brisket Zinfandel fans will also like Grenache Malbec Syrah

Grenache

[gruh-NASH] Characteristics Grenache is the French name for the red grape known as Garnacha in Spain and Cannonau in Italy. Today, Grenache is the star of red blends in France's Southern Rhône Valley, reaching its pinnacle in Châteauneuf-du-Pape. It is widely grown in Spain, where it's dominant in Priorat and a component of blends with Tempranillo in Rioja and other regions. Cannonau is one of the main grapes in Italy's Sardinia. It also has a growing presence in the New World, in places like California and Australia. Grenache buds early but ripens late. It thrives in warm climates, and likes stony soils like gravel, as well as limestone, clay and sand. In Châteauneuf-du-Pape, the vineyards are studded with large, round stones called galets. The wines tend to have low to moderate acidity, and the berries can reach high sugar levels, resulting in relatively high-alcohol wines, but still retaining balance with vibrant fruit. Grenache can vary widely in style, depending on where it's grown, but also what grapes it is blended with—Syrah and Mourvèdre are common partners. Generally, the wines show a mix of red and dark fruit, like cherry, raspberry and blackberry. They can have some spice, often manifested with black pepper and star anise notes, and also display pronounced dried-herb qualities, such as bay leaf and tobacco. Where it's grown Map by Henry Eng France: Southern Rhône, Languedoc-RoussillonSpain: PrioratItaly: Sardinia Grenache icons Southern Rhône: Château de Beaucastel, Henri Bonneau, Clos des Papes, Domaine du Pégaü, Château Rayas, Domaine St.-Préfert Priorat: Celler Mas Doix, Clos Mogador, Álvaro Palacios, Vall Llach Suggested food pairings France: herb-roasted lamb chops Spain: duck breast Grenache fans may also like Mourvèdre Syrah Tempranillo

Gewürztraminer

[guh-VOOR-stra-mee-ner] Characteristics Gewürztraminer is a pink-skinned mutation of the French grape Savagnin, which likely originated in what is now northeast France and southwest Germany. In keeping with its origins, Gewürztraminer is best-known and most successful in France's Alsace region, but it's also prominent in Germany and Alto Adige in northern Italy. The grape doesn't have much of a New World presence as it prefers cool climates, but it has a found a home in New York, California and Washington. Gewürztraminer does best in clay soils, and makes wines that are typically full-bodied and ripe, with high alcohol and relatively low acidity. They are also highly aromatic, showing perfumed notes of rose, ginger, honey and orange peel, complementing grapefruit, lychee and peach fruit. The best examples strike a balance between richness and acidity. Around the world, Gewürztraminer is made in dry, off-dry and sweet styles, including late-harvest or botrytized versions. Where it's grown Map by Henry Eng France: AlsaceItaly: Trentino-Alto AdigeNew York: Finger Lakes Gewürztraminer icons Alsace: Rolly Gassmann, Weinbach, Zind-Humbrecht Suggested food pairings Choucroute garnie Gewürztraminer fans may also like Muscat Riesling Viognier

Merlot

[mer-LOW] Characteristics Merlot is one of the most important Bordeaux varieties along with Cabernet Sauvignon. It's fleshier and ripens earlier than Cabernet, resulting in softer wines with plush tannins and fruit. Bordeaux is the grape's native home, where it's the dominant grape in Right Bank appellations like Pomerol and St.-Emilion and plays a supportive role on the Left Bank. It has also gained an international presence, with a notable boom in California in the mid-1990s, both as a single-variety wine and as part of a blend. While France and California are the most important growers of Merlot, versions from Italy, Australia, Washington, New York and more are worth seeking out. Merlot grows best in cool soils that retain moisture well, such as clay and limestone. It's a vigorous, high-yielding grape that demands careful attention in the vineyard in order to achieve quality wines with optimal fruit balanced by acidity. Because of its thin skin and loose bunches, Merlot is also susceptible to frost and rot. Under ideal conditions, Merlot shines on its own, with ripe, rich fruit flavors including plum, blackberry and raspberry, and adds a layer of plush fruit and suppleness to Bordeaux-style blends. Hints of cinnamon or licorice may arise when Merlot is aged in new oak barrels. Where it's grown Map by Henry Eng France: Bordeaux's Right BankCalifornia: Napa, SonomaItaly: Tuscany's Bolgheri and ToscanaNew York: Long Island Merlot icons Bordeaux: Château Canon-La Gaffelière, Château Pavie, Pétrus, Château Le Pin Tuscany: Masseto, Tua Rita's Redigaffi California: Duckhorn, La Jota Suggested food fairings California Merlot: roast beef Bordeaux: roast duck Merlot fans may also like Grenache Malbec Zinfandel

Nebbiolo

[neb-ee-YO-low] Characteristics Nebbiolo originated in Piedmont in Italy, where it remains the region's most important red grape. Its name comes from the Italian word nebbia, which means fog, a feature of the hills where the grape traditionally grows. Nebbiolo is thick-skinned, early-budding and late-ripening; it needs long periods of sunshine to ripen fully and is often planted on south- or southwest-facing hillsides for maximum exposure. The best examples come from calcareous marl vineyards, with some planted in sandy soils. Its finicky nature has made international production difficult, although some plantings are found in California, Australia and Argentina. The true home of Nebbiolo today is Piedmont, although other northern Italian regions like Lombardy and Valle d'Aosta also have significant Nebbiolo production. Nebbiolo makes wines with high levels of acidity and tannins, making them a little tight and austere in their youth, but providing enough backbone to make them particularly ageworthy. The wines show cherry, plum and strawberry fruit, backed by floral notes like rose and violet, as well as leather, licorice and herbs. With age, Nebbiolo's tannins soften, its color turns to a brick hue, and its flavor profile develops notes of dried fruit, game and mushroom, sometimes truffle. Where it's grown Map by Henry Eng Italy: Piedmont's Barolo and Barbaresco; Lombardy's Valtellina; Valle d'Aosta Nebbiolo icons Piedmont: Aldo Conterno, Bruno Giacosa, Gaja, Giacomo Conterno, Produttori del Barbaresco, Roagna Suggested food pairings Lamb ragù Truffle risotto Nebbiolo fans may also like Aglianico Pinot Noir Sangiovese

Sangiovese

[san-joe-VAY-zay] Characteristics The name Sangiovese comes from the Latin sanguis Jovis, meaning "blood of Jove." Its color mirrors its etymology: The wines range from brick red to copper-tinged, and can be quite concentrated. Although the grape is originally from southern Italy, the central region of Tuscany boasts the best Sangiovese wines in the world. It is the most widely planted grape variety in the country. A late-ripening variety that grows best in marl and sandstone soils, Sangiovese yields tannic wines with high acidity, which can sometimes make them difficult to approach in their youth. However, the best are incredibly complex and long-lived. Their flavor profile tends toward cherry, plum and red currant, but can also be savory in character, showing earth and mineral notes, and spice like cardamom. Where it's grown Map by Henry Eng Italy: Tuscany's Brunello di Montalcino and Chianti Classico; Emilia-Romagna; Umbria Sangiovese icons Brunello di Montalcino: Altesino, Biondi Santi, Casanova di Neri, Ciacci Piccolomini d'Aragona, Valdicava Chianti Classico: Castello di Ama, Felsina, Fontodi Suggested food pairings Pasta Bolognese Pepperoni pizza Lamb ragù Sangiovese fans may also like Nebbiolo Syrah Tempranillo

Syrah

[sih-RAH] Characteristics This dark-skinned red grape most likely originated in France's Rhône Valley, which is still considered its most famous home. Syrah is the sole grape in the reds of the Northern Rhône Valley, but it's also a blending partner in Southern Rhône appellations, including Châteauneuf-du-Pape, where it adds structure and body to Grenache-based wines. The grape was brought to Australia in the 19th century, and is better-known there as Shiraz, which it's also sometimes called in South Africa. Syrah is generally late-budding and mid-ripening, with vines that are reasonably resistant to disease. It does particularly well in stony soils, especially those with granite content, but also has success in clay, loam and calcareous earth. Both Old and New World Syrahs are typically considered quite ageworthy. The grape shows notes of blackberry, plum and blueberry, as well as black pepper, olive, rosemary and lavender. Old World versions are somewhat leaner, emphasizing a savory character, while hot climates generally yield wines with riper, bolder fruit. Where it's grown Map by Henry Eng France: Northern RhôneAustralia: Barossa Valley, McLaren ValeCalifornia: Paso Robles, Santa Barbara, Sonoma Syrah icons Rhône: M. Chapoutier, Jean-Louis Chave, A. Clape, E. Guigal Australia: Henschke, Penfolds, Torbreck California: Alban, Saxum, Sine Qua Non Washington: Cayuse, K Suggested food pairings Rhône: roast leg of lamb Australia: beef burger Syrah fans may also like Grenache Merlot Mourvèdre

Tempranillo

[tem-pra-NEE-yo] Characteristics Tempranillo traces its origins to the Iberian Peninsula. It's still most associated with Spain, notably the Rioja and Ribera del Duero regions. It is also widely grown in Portugal, where it's known as Tinta Roriz. There are some notable plantings in Argentina, too. Tempranillo grows in tight clusters of black, thick-skinned berries. It's early-budding and -ripening—"temprano" means "early" in Spanish—and generally likes warm days and cool nights. The grape is best-suited to calcareous and clay soils, as well as chalk and limestone. Tempranillo's profile varies, depending mostly on winemaking techniques, but it does have hallmark characteristics. It makes medium- to full-bodied reds of moderate to high levels of tannins and acidity. It shows a mix of red and dark fruits, including cherry and plum, as well as earth and herbal notes; its acidity can sometimes be citrusy and orange peel-like. Oak aging is very common for Tempranillo, traditionally in American oak, but French oak is also used in modern styles. This will impart flavors like vanilla and cocoa powder. Where it's grown Map by Henry Eng Spain: Rioja, Ribera del Duero Tempranillo icons Spain: Cune, Bodegas Emilio Moro, La Rioja Alta, Bodegas Vega Sicilia Suggested food pairings Roast lamb Pork tenderloin Tempranillo fans may also like Grenache Merlot Sangiovese

Viognier

[vee-OWN-yay] Characteristics Until relatively recently, plantings of Viognier were scarce, found exclusively in France's Northern Rhône Valley, where the grape originated. After nearly going extinct in the 1960s, plantings crept up in the 1980s, and the variety traveled to New World winegrowing areas like California, Australia and South Africa. It is bottled solo in the Northern Rhône, but is often blended with other Rhône varieties elsewhere, like Marsanne and Roussanne. Viognier is not the easiest grape to grow. It's early-budding and mid-ripening, and it's vulnerable to disease, which can result in uneven ripening. The grape is also high in sugar and low in acidity; producers need to strike a careful balance between maintaining freshness and controlling alcohol levels. Generally, Viognier does well in warm climates and well-drained vineyards, and particularly well in limestone, schist and granite soils. Viogniers are aromatic, with ripe fruit flavors like peach, apricot, melon and nectarine, as well as floral notes like chamomile. The fruit profile is riper and more exotic in New World bottlings. Lees stirring and malolactic fermentation are commonly employed to add weight, mouthfeel and complexity. Where it's grown Map by Henry Eng France: Northern Rhône's Condrieu; Southern Rhône; Languedoc-RoussillonAustralia: South Australia, New South Wales Viognier icons France: Yves Cuilleron, Georges Vernay, François Villard California: Alban, Tablas Creek Australia: Yalumba Suggested food pairings France: smoked trout California: coconut-chicken curry Viognier fans may also like Chardonnay Chenin Blanc Torrontés