Wineing Again

Yesterday I wrote about the categories of wines. Today I will cover the types of wines. I'll start with  dessert, then fortified, reds, rose, sparkling, and finish with whites.

Dessert wines:
Ice Wines: These are sweetened by the fact that they are left on the vine to freeze. Freezing condenses the sugar in the grapes before processing.

Noble Rot: The sweetness for this wine comes from a mold infection that effects ripe grades, increasing the sugar content of the grape.

Fortified wines:
Madeira: Has four sub- types:
- Bual: Is a rich wine with a raisin flavor.
- Malmsey: Is the sweetest of this kind.
- Sercial: Is dry and acidic.
- Verdelho: Is a medium wine that is dry.

Marsala: Can be sweet or dry.

Port: Has three sub- types:
- Ruby Port: A blending of younger lesser ports, it has a crimson red coloring.
- Tawny Port: A blend of ports aged a few years and up to thirty years.
- Vintage Port: Is from one year that has been aged for up to a decade.

Sherry: Has six different sub-types.
- Amontillado: Has a nutty flavor that is rich and dark.
- Amoroso: A sweet brown sherry. Better for after a meal, almost a dessert wine.
- Cream: A sweet sherry, Also best served after a meal.
- Fino: A dry pale sherry.
- Manzanilla: A kind of salty, pale, dry sherry.
- Oloroso: A dry rich flavored sherry that is a medium brown.

Red wines:
Barbera: Is full bodied, acidic but light on tannins. Used as a blended wine.

Brunello: The only grape made to Brunello di Montalcino, which is an expensive, rare, bold and fruity Tuscan wine.

Cabernet Frank: Is usually blended with other wines. It is light to medium bodied.

Cabrenet Sauvignon: This is used to make fine Bordeaux wines. It can age well for decades, is medium to full bodied, has many intense flavors and aromas, and ruby to dark purple in color. It is a dry wine that blends well with others.

Dolcetto: This wine doesn't age very long. It has flavors and aromas of almond and licorice that produce fruity wines.

Gamay: Is a fresh, fruity light wine that is meant to drink shortly after bottling.

Grenache: Is usually blended but can be bottled by itself. a medium to full bodied wine with tastes of raspberry.

Malbec: The acidity can very but is usually blended with other wines.

Merlot: Can be blended or bottled on its own. It has low acidity with rich fruit flavors of blackberry, cherry and plum.

Nebbiolo: A light dry wine with high acidity. Does very well with aging.

Pinot Noir: Has a light to moderate body with varied aroma and flavors.

Sangiovese; Has varied aromas and flavors. It is a complex wine that is often blended with Cabernet.

Shiraz / Syrah: Has many flavors of fruits and spices, with low to moderate acid which makes it very drinkable. Can also be blended.

Tempranillo: A full bodied red that is often blended.

Zinfandel: A very drinkable wine. With low to moderate acidity. Medium to full body with flavors of jam and spice.

Rose wines:
White Zinfeandel: Is the most popular of the rose types.

Sparkling/ Champagne: I had covered most of this information yesterday. So as to save space I will not go over again here.

White wines:
Chardonnay:  This is the most complex wine in the world. A golden color, with full velvety body. With flavors of butter, fruits, nuts, oak, spices and vanilla and a medium to high acidity. A very enjoyable wine. Different flavors are hich lighted depending on where it has been grown.

Chenin Blanc: Usually a light and fruity wine, with a high acid level.

Gewurztraminer: A German wine that is tricky to pronounce. A light bold flavor with a crisp acidity.

Pinot Grigio/ Pinot Gris: Has strong citrus aroma. The body and acid levels will depend on where it is grown.

Riesling: Strong flavors of flowers and fruit. Light to medium body with a high acid content.

Sauvignon Blanc:  Has fruit flavors with a light crisp acidity.

Semillon:  This wine can be treated as a dessert wine due to its rich flavor.

Viognier: Lacks the flowery flavor, but will have hints of apricot and peach. With a low to medium acidity it is very drinkable.

There are many more flavor combinations that will show up for each of these. With many variables that I covered yesterday effecting every part of the wine. I have had a South American wine that had flavors of grapefruit. It may sound awful but it was very good. That same wine produced somewhere else wouldn't have had that flavor.

So experiment, find out what you like. Just because some critic may have not liked a certain wine wont mean that you won. I'll uncork this one.

Raise your glass.
Cheers:
Steve Aniolowski / Spicy