Wine knowledge

Why are red wines generally enjoyed best at room temperature and white wines chilled?

Bear in mind room temperature refers to a room's temperature prior to artificial environment. Lighter red wines are best served at 58-62o F while fuller reds are better at 62-65oF. White wines contain very little tannin and have a higher acidity than red wines. Chilling white wines brings out the fruity flavor of the wine, and makes the acidity more pronounced and the wines more enjoyable and refreshing. Be careful not to over chill, 46-48o F for Champagne and sparkling wines, 47-52o F for lighter whites, and 52-55o F for fuller whites. Always remember to ask the guest how they like the wine, as they are the final arbiter of proper service temperature.

What does "vintage year" mean?

Since grapes are harvested every year, there is a vintage every year. An exceptional vintage is the result of a year of exceptional weather when all factors have been especially favorable.

Finish

The wine's ____ is the aftertaste, or the residual flavors and impression after tasting a wine.

Vintage

A wine's ___ means the year that the grapes were harvested for making wine.

Aroma

A wine's ____ refers to individual smells a wine emits, such as fruits, spices or floral flavors.

Bottling

Bottling is a delicate procedure, requiring absolute cleanliness to avoid spoilage. Special equipment is used to avoid causing damage to the wine. Once wine is bottled and corked, it continues to develop and age, each one at its own pace. Some wines, especially most dry whites and light reds, are best when young. Most fine and complex wines will continue to improve in the bottle until they reach maturity.

How champagne is made

Champagne is a uniquely French product, although makers of sparkling wines all over the world, who use the same process, have borrowed the name. Despite its worldwide fame, French Champagne comes from a rather small area in northeastern France where it is made by a slow, methodical process. The grapes that make Champagne are the white Chardonnay and two red grapes: Pinot Noir, and the area's major grape, the Pinot Meunier. Champagne begins as a white table wine (no carbon dioxide), though two of the grapes that comprise the wine, typically 75% of the blend, are red. The most commonly encountered Champagne is not from a single vintage; rather it is a blend of several vintages. Hence, no vintage appears on the labels of Veuve Clicquot Yellow Label, Moët & Chandon Whitestar, or Mumm Cordon Rouge. Most multi-vintage, often incorrectly referred to as non-vintage, Champagnes contain 75-90% wine from the year in which the Champagne was produced. The remaining10-25% is from the preceding 2 -5 vintages and has been held in stainless steel tanks, large neutral oak casks, or magnum bottles. This is known as reserve wine. Thus Champagne is truly a blended wine. Three different grapes from five different regions and wine from as many as five different years combine to create the non-sparkling cuvée. The non-sparkling cuvée is then portioned in the bottles, which are eventually shipped around the world. To create the second fermentation in this bottle, the heart of the Methode Champenois, a precisely measured amount of sugar, grape must, yeast and yeast nutrients are added. The bottle is then sealed either with a crown cap (pop bottle top) or cork (very rare these days). Fermentation then takes place under pressure. The result is the addition of .5 - 1.0% alcohol and carbon dioxide infused into the wine. We now have Champagne. Bottles of completed Champagne are stacked in horizontal tiers or large boxes for a few months to several years. The sediment from the second fermentation in the bottle must eventually be disgorged from the bottle. Champagne laws states thatthis sediment must remain in the bottle for 15 months for a multi-vintage blend and 36 months for vintage Champagne. Vintage Champagne is simply that, Champagne produced from a single year, which must be stated on the label. In less expensive champagnes the second fermentation occurs in large stainless steel tanks instead of the original bottle. To enable the consumer to differentiate these from the more expensive bottle- fermented product most countries require the terms Classic Method, Method Traditionelle for bottle fermented wines and Charmat or Cuve Close for bulk fermented wines. The following are the major designations on a champagne label which will tell you how sweet or dry it is: Ultra-Brut - Brut - Extra Dry - Demi-sec - Bone dry Dry Off-dry Sweet Champagne should be served chilled and in a tulip shaped or tall flute glass. Saucer- shaped glasses should not be used since they will dissipate the bubbles too quickly.

Racking

During the aging, the wine musts be drawn off periodically from the sediments and moved into a clean cask. This process is called "racking". As the wine matures, many producers complete the aging in smaller oak barrels.

How wine is made

Harvesting Crushing Fermentation Aging Racking Bottling

Aging

Immediately after fermentation, the new wine is placed in large storage tanks to begin aging, which could take months or years depending on the wine involved. As the wine is aging, the grape solids (sediment) slowly settle to the bottom of the tanks. The aging tanks can be large or small, oak or stainless steel.

What is varietal wine?

In the United States, a varietal wine is labeled according to the predominant grape from which it is made. Examples of varietal grapes are: Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon and Chenin Blanc. A v arietal wine in the United States must be comprised of at least 75% of the grape stated on the label. In Europe, wines are normally not named after the grape variety, but rather after the region where the grape was grown.

Why should some wines be decanted?

Many old and increasingly younger red wines tend to throw sediment or a deposit. This can cloud the last few glasses poured from the bottle. This wine should be poured slowly and steadily into another container and stopped when the sediment is coming to the neck of the bottle. A light source, typically a candle though a pocket flashlight is acceptable, is placed below the bottle to allow a translucent view of the wine. More importantly decanting allows contact with the air. This contact greatly benefits full flavored reds.

Harvesting

Most grapes ripen in late summer and early autumn. The earliest picking of wine grapes starts in the warmest regions in early August, but the main harvest, or vintage, comes in September and October. Frequent tests determine when to pick the grapes. This determination is predicated on sugar ripeness and increasingly over the last decade, flavorful ripeness and balance. As grapes mature, they gain in natural grape-sugar sweetness and decreasing fruit acidity. For wines in which tartness is desired the grapes may be picked earlier, while their fruit acid is still high

Crushing

Most quality wines are no longer de-stemmed and crushed. A more gentle process of juicing and whole berry fermentation is now employed most often, even the more thick- skinned varietals such and Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah, receive gentle treatment.

Why is it important to let red wines "breathe"?

Red table wines generally will benefit if uncorked and decanted then allowed standing at least 20 minutes before serving. Wine is a living body and when the bottle is decanted, the wine absorbs oxygen from the air. Simply removing the cork does little, as the dime sized surface area in the neck of the bottle is insufficient for oxidation. Oxidation activates the development of the bouquet and aroma and gives depth and smoothness to the wine. Older wine (20 years+) should be opened just before decanting and drinking.

Table wine

Red, White or Rose. Most have an alcohol content of below 14% and are made to accompany any food

Acidity

The ____ naturally found in grapes contributes to its overall ____. Low _____ wines are described as "smooth" or "round" while high _____wines taste more "crisp." ______ is essential and natural in wine, but too little will make the wine taste dull, and too much can make the wine bitter or sour.

Varietal

The ____ refers to the type, or variety, of grape used to make a wine.

Bouquet

The _____ refers to the combination of aromas a wine produces, usually noticed by smelling the wine just before tasting.

Astringency

The degree of ___ of a wine depends primarily upon the amount of tannin it has absorbed from the skins and seeds of the grapes. Moderate ____ is a desirable quality in many red wines. Though dryness refers to a lack of perceivable residual sugar in the wine, guests will often describe a tannic wine as very dry.

Legs

The dripping lines on the inside of a glass after a wine has been swirled. ____ indicate viscosity or thickness of a wine, and more ___ typically indicates a higher alcohol content.

Fermentation

The grape must (juice) is pumped into fermenting vats. Complete fermentation takes from a few days to a few weeks. When some sweetness is desired, the fermentation is stopped while the desired amount of residual grape sugar remains. Expert control during fermentation is one of the most important factors determining the wine's quality.

What gives wine its color?

The juices of nearly all grapes are white; the color comes from the skins.

Why does one bottle of wine cost twice as much as another same size bottle of the same type of wine?

The location, soil, drainage elevation, etc. where the grapes grow is probably the most important factor when producing quality grapes, which, with superior wine making skill produces great wine. Great vineyards are a limited resource and therefore great grapes typically have a greater cost. Other factors could be that the wine may have been aged for many years in small casks to develop complexity or additional character. Supply and demand plays an important role in the determination of the value of a wine.

Mouthfeel

The texture of a wine when sensed on the mouth and tongue. For example, a sparkling white wine will have a much different ___ than a still red wine

Body

The wine's _____ is the impression the taster gets from feeling the wine in the mouth. Light-____wines feel lighter in the mouth, while full-____ wines might feel heavy, or big, when tasted. Medium-___ wines are somewhere in between.

How is sweet wine made?

There are two commonly encountered wines with sweetness, fortified and late harvested. Fortified wines, Port, Sherry and Madeira, plus a world of imitators, are produced by adding neutral grape spirit to a fermenting wine, thus raising the alcohol environment t o a mortal level for the yeast. Port and some Madeiras are naturally sweet as the residual sugar comes only from the grapes while Sherry and some Madeiras are sweetened after being fermented to dryness by the addition of sweetening agents. Late harvested wines contain only natural residual sugar from the harvested grapes. Late harvested wines as the name suggests are produced from over-ripe, late picked grapes, most famously Sauternes from France or Beerenauslese from Germany. In the United States a wine labeled late harvest must state grape sugar at harvest and residual sugar in the finished wine. Most late harvest wines contain 9-12% alcohol by volume. Fermentation is typically halted naturally as the sugar rich environment causes difficulty for the yeast.

Sparkling wines

These wines contain carbon dioxide as a result of a second fermentation either in the bottle, Champagne most famously, or in large closed tanks, Asti, Prosecco, inexpensive brands.

Fortified/dessert wines

They have an alcohol content of 15% to 24% and have had neutral grape spirit added at some point during vinification.

Nose

When talking about wine, the nose refers to the bouquet, or the aromas present when smelling a wine.

What are the different categories of wine?

Wine fits into the following categories: Table Wine Fortified /Dessert Wines Sparkling Wines

What is wine?

Wine is the pure, naturally fermented juice of ripe grapes or other fruits. In ferment ation, yeast, which forms naturally on the grape and is most often added to the juice, converts the natural sugar of the juice into alcohol and carbon dioxide. Fermentation is stopped when the alcohol in the newly created wine reaches a level, typically above 12.5% by volume, mortal to the yeast. When all the natural grape sugar is converted to alcohol, a wine is described as dry, once again typically over 12.5% by volume. When a wine has residual or unfermented sugar still in solution it is described as sweet. The level of sweetness is determined by the percentage of residual sugar.

Tannins

___ refers to the bitter, acidic substance found in grape seeds and stems. ____ is a preservative, so wines with more tannin can generally be stored, or aged, much longer before it is opened and enjoyed. Red wines are typically higher in _____ than white. ____ contribute smooth and mellow flavors to aged red wines, but harsher, puckery aftertastes to younger reds. _____ is an organic acid present in the grape skins and seeds, responsible for the astringent quality in a young wine. It is more pronounced in red wines because it is extracted from the skins during fermentation. The amount of tannin often relates to a wine's aging potential; it is deposited as sediment, along with other substances, as the wine ages in the bottle. Tannin is felt on the gum line, inside the cheeks, and when very powerful on the roof of the mouth and tongue. It is the chewy, puckery, dusty quality in a red wine.

Balance

___ refers to the taste of the wine with regard to characteristics like acidity, sweetness, tannin and alcohol content. A quality wine is typically described as well-___, meaning no one dominates the others.

Fermentation

____ is the process by which natural grape juice sugars are converted to alcohol by wild or cultured yeast. _____ usually takes place in a barrel or tank.

Lees

____ refers to the sediment that often forms in the bottom of a barrel after fermentation. This sediment is composed of particles of grapes and leftover yeast cells from the fermentation process.

Depth

_____ is a term often used when referring to the complexity, or multi-dimensional flavors of wine.

Complexity

_____ is a term used to describe the depth of a wine, or the characteristics produced by the flavors and aromas in combination.

Rose wine

is fermented with the skins for a short time and then the juice is drawn off to finish the fermentation alone.

Red wine

is fermented with the skins of the grapes, thus the natural pigment from the skin enters the wine and gives it the color.

White wine

is fermented without the skins, which is removed right after crushing.