Tag: Variety
Albarino
I like to say that Albariño is Miguel Migs. If you know music, you know this is the cool dude who mixes it up for the dance clubs in SoMa, San Francisco. With notes of apple, pear, lemon, lemon rind and toasted almond, tropical fruit, and occasionally, a vein of chalky minerality, this delicious, dry, […]
Cabernet Franc
Cabernet Franc is a very old variety believed to have origins in South West France. It is the overlooked parent (along with Sauvignon Blanc) of Cabernet Sauvignon, and is used quite often inBordeauxblends. It is, along with Merlot, the dominant grape of St. Emilion, on the right bank of Bordeaux, and produces one of the […]
Malbec
Malbec, one of the five varieties used in red Bordeaux, is thought to have originated in South West France, though in Cahors, the appellation it is most famous for today, the local name is Auxerrois, suggesting origins in Northern Burgundy. The grape is sensitive to frost, downy mildew, and rot, and has therefore come to […]
Merlot
Chateau Le Pin, arguably the world’s most expensive wine, is a Merlot. Who knew? Merlot, reportedly named after the ”merle” bird which eats the grapes, is a major player in Bordeaux, where it is actually the most widely planted red varietal and responsible for its priciest wines. Merlot comes to the fore in the Right […]
Grenache
Grenache is the fourth most planted variety in the world, and the first most planted in Spain, where it is known as Garnacha. Early-budding and late-ripening, Grenache is notorious for producing round, high alcohol wines if not planted in the right areas or cropped back. It loves the Mediterranean climate. In sandy, devigorated soil or where […]
Nero d’Avola
Nero d’Avola is the grape with the highest quality potential of Sicily. It is also known “Calabrese,” suggesting origins in Calabria on the mainland. It also may be, according to another theory, an ‘italianization’ of the ancient vernacular name of Nero d’Avola, being ‘Calaurisi,’ which literally means ‘coming from Avola’. This “black grape of Avola, […]
Super Tuscan Blend
Super Tuscan wines are either Sangiovese-dominant (Sangiovese is the mainstay of the area and most famous for Chianti), blended with the international Cabernet Sauvignon, the opposite, or somewhere in between. A Super Tuscan may be Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, or even Chardonnay for that matter, single varietal or blend. It is not an official, regulated […]
Barbera
Barbera is an ancient variety with historical roots in Italy. Today it remains the second most widely planted red variety, after Sangiovese. This vigorous, hearty, late ripener excels in Piedmont, where gentle fogs and undulating hills provide the ideal microclimate. This is a very dark-skinned, high acid grape, similar on paper to Nebbiolo. However, at […]
Nebbiolo
Best known as the red varietal behind Barolo, the wine of Kings and the King of Wine in Piedmont, Italy, Nebbiolo is a site sensitive, high tannin, high acid varietal. Tannins, those compounds in a wine which cause the mouth to pucker and dry out, are either from grape skins, or, much more commonly from […]
Pinot Noir
This noble red variety from France’s Burgundy region makes an intensely flavored, complex, high acid wine with incredible longevity. As the climate gets warmer, the fruit becomes riper and more obvious, and the acid softens a bit. The net result in any case is a wine that will not overpower your meal. It is called […]
Sauvignon Blanc
Sauvignon blanc is a green-skinned grape variety which probably originates from the Bordeaux region of France. It is now planted in much of the world’s vineyards. Sauvignon Blanc, is, without a doubt, one of the most versatile of grapes. Sauvignon derives from “sauvage”, or “wild”, and is also the “mother” of Cabernet Sauvignon. In fact, […]
Chardonnay
Believed to be of Middle Eastern origin, Chardonnay is the world’s most popular white varietal, and one that loses itself completely to wine making techniques. More a type of wine than a vine variety (with some definite exceptions), Chardonnay is made in every imaginable style. In the last 50 years or so, plantings in Australia […]
Semillon
Semillon seems to have originated in the Bordeaux region of South West France, where it was well recognized in the eighteenth century. In Australia the variety was probably brought out in the Busby collection of 1832 (as Groendruif). It is known that wine was being made from Semillon grapes in the Hunter Valley area of […]
Viognier
The precise historical origin of this varietal is unknown, but many believe it dates back to the Roman Empire. According to one story, Emperor Probus imported Viognier into Condrieu from Dalmatia (in present-day Croatia) in 281 AD as a means of replacing the vineyards destroyed by Emperor Vespasian. Legend has it that Vespasian tore up […]
White Rhone Blend – Marsanne/Roussanne
Marsanne originates in France’s Rhone Valley, where it is the mainstay of the whites of this area. It is one of eight white grape varieties allowed in the Côtes du Rhône appellation and forms the foundation of white Hermitage. Unlike Roussanne, it is an aggressive producer with no significant growing problems, and has gradually taken […]
Gewurztraminer
Gewürztraminer is one of the most pungent wine varietals, easy for even the beginning taster to recognize by its heady, aromatic scent. While the French have achieved the greatest success with this grape, the history of Gewürztraminer began in Italy’s Tyrollean Alps, near the village of Termeno (Tramin) in Alto Adige. Since the Middle Ages, […]
Pinot Gris/Grigio
Pinot Gris is one of the many mutations of Pinot Noir. Its skin ranges from white to pink to black, and occasionally the wine will have a “gris” or gray, even pink hue. The grape adapts amazingly well to its site. As a result, it is hard to believe that a rich, honeyed, tangy, minerally […]
Riesling
The world’s greatest white variety, Riesling, has very vibrant natural acidity, giving it longevity and the potential to make a very balanced sweet or dry wine. Misunderstood and for the most part unappreciated, the brilliant Rieslings of Germany, Austria, and Alsace are tremendous values for those who appreciate them. Riesling has thrived in Germany since the […]
Muscat
Muscat is an aromatic grape which leads to the production of excellent dessert wines and interesting dry whites. Fresh or aged, natural or fortified the dessert Muscat wines are appreciated by experienced and young palates alike. It is the world’s oldest known grape variety, and probably originated in Greece, where it is still cultivated today. […]
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