wine tasting course

Wine Types: The Colors of Wine

May 19th, 2011

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Wine Types: The four primary colours of wine

Wine Types: Image by David Robert Wright via Flickr

You can see wine types made by focusing on colors. There are three main wine types based on the colors. Below, you will see wines of different colors placed in those three types.

White wines: Generally, the color of white wines is yellow, but we notice reflections, according to the age of the wine, which may be green or amber youngest to oldest. In between, there may be a wide variation of these two colors. Thus, a white wine will be pale yellow, straw yellow, golden yellow, topaz, old gold, honey, tawny, or amber.

Rose wines: The color of rose wines varies according to the grape used, methods of vinification, or age. The colors can range from skin color (very pale salmon) and red. It may be very light pink, eye of partridge, salmon, pink, orange, onion skin, or dark pink.

Red wines: Basically, three possible colors, the purple, ruby, garnet. But according to the varieties, methods of wine-making, terrier, wine and age, we can observe a wide combination of colors and reflections. Thus, generally, shades of violet (purple) indicate a wine of youth while the nuances garnets indicate rather advanced age of the wine.

In conclusion, we can say that generally, the color and hue of a wine, whether white, red or pink, are determined by the grape and the ripeness of the grapes, the region of production, the method wine-making and wine by age. Thus, light and dry wines from cool climates have the dress as clear, while more full-bodied wines from softer or warmer regions, and are deeper in color.

Wine Types: Organic Wine

May 14th, 2011

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The organic wine: why organic produce?

The wine, by definition, is a product obtained through the fermentation of grape costs. There are several wine types: white, red, pink, but as dry or sweet. Past twenty years, clusters have been victims of weeding wild, excessive use of fertilizers and pesticides are harmful to the environment. The goal was always to produce more to meet demand more and more flourishing. The result found by winemakers was alarming: the soil became less fertile, microbes and other parasites formed a colony, making it impossible to produce anything. So they took drastic measures to return to production using gentler methods, and friends of the environment.

The organic wine: the manufacturing process

A wine labeled “organic” is produced from grapes grown exclusively from farming. No fertilizer, no pesticide, no chemical synthesis is used to get fruit. Fertilizers are organic and made from manure, and weeding GMOs are categorically forbidden. The aim is to produce wines that have not undergone chemical transformations, and totally 100% natural made from grapes. Wineries biological argue that it is better than the traditional wines, since the organic vineyard gives a taste closer to natural tastes, stronger. Then pick the grapes is done exclusively by hand, which is the basis for a natural wine-making. Winemakers who have followed these steps for their wine types, certifications ECOCERT, and the affixing of AB logo on bottles of wine.

The organic wines: their status in France

In France, since 2001, some growers have advocated a method of producing organic wine. In 2009, 60,000 hectares of wines were “bios” and the sale of organic wines accounted for 254 million euros in terms of turnover, unlike the traditional wine, the sale is on the down slope. While producing this wine type represents an increase in charges for wine, success begins to emerge.

The 18th international exhibition “Vintage bio, France is ahead of Spain with 34.8% market share, but Italy is leading with 40.4%. These wine types are present in the maps of the finest restaurants in Paris, but the phenomenon has more scope in foreign countries. This boom is explained by the fact that the “eat organic” has demonstrated these benefits. Indeed, consumers are now demanding more environmentally responsible to the world, concerned about the future of coming generations.

Wine Tasting: How to Decant a Wine

April 23rd, 2011

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Decant a wine: Image via Wikipedia

A wine evolves better both in flavor and taste when you decant it. You can decant a young wine with less effort. You just have to pour it into another vessel or decanter. Then leave it to contact with ambient air for about 20 minutes. If you have lots of time, then you can leave it for a period of hours while tasting the wine at certain intervals. You will notice the improvement in the qualities of that wine.

When it comes to decanting older wine, the main purpose is to separate the sediment in that wine. Here, the wine is already aged on its own. Hence you must decant older wine quickly before serving. Otherwise, it will react with air and lose its qualities.

As said earlier, the purpose of decanting older wine is to separate the sediment in it. The easiest method is to place the wine bottle upright for a few days before serving it. Thus, all the sediment rests at the bottom. But this method is not applicable in places like restaurants, bars etc. In such places, there is another method to decant older wine quickly.

You will need two things for this method to work. First is a light source (a candle or a small flashlight) and a wine cradle. Once you have them, carefully follow below given instructions. They are as follows;

1. Position the wine bottle inside the cradle at 20o angle from the horizontal level. Then open the bottle.
2. Clean the bottle’s neck with a clean dry cloth.
3. Now rotate the cradle gently so that you can pour the wine into the decanter. The light must be shining on the neck, and you must watch for any sediment while pouring the wine.
4. Stop pouring the wine when you see sediment flowing toward the neck. This happens when you reach the end of the bottle.
5. The decanted wine is now free of sediment and ready to be served.

You can pour the leftover wine in the bottle into another vessel using a filter. Though it is not as tastier as the decanted wine, but you can still drink it.

Sometimes, you may find a young wine with sediment. This kind of wine is usually unfiltered when produced. If you get such young wine, then follow the procedure applied for decanting older wines. But you also have to allow the wine to contact with ambient air so it can be evolved. This is how you decant both young and older wines.

Wine Tasting: Decanting the Wine

April 20th, 2011

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Image via Wikipedia

Before you begin to decant the wine, ask yourself the question: Is this wine needs it? The purpose of decanting is to improve the taste and aromatic qualities of a wine through contact with ambient air.

What is decanting?
Decanting is nothing but transferring the contents of a wine bottle into another vessel (the decanter) before serving. Though it seem ridiculous (how can pouring wine from one vessel into another make it taste better?), it really works.

Why do we have to decant?
We decant the wine for two most important reasons. First, the sediments in the wine (especially older wine) must be removed. Otherwise, you will experience a very clear bitter, strong flavor while tasting the wine. Hence, we slowly and carefully decant the wine. Secondly, when we decant the wine, the wine mixes with oxygen and evolves both in aroma and taste. This is process is very important for younger wine.

Tips and tricks:
A few hours before tasting or a meal, pour in a glass 2-3 cl of wine. Then smell and taste over a period of 3 / 4 H. For this, all 1/4H, enjoy a sip of wine. If the evolution of smell and balance are better while tasting wine, then you pour the wine into carafe. You serve the wine directly also, if ventilation does nothing. Each bottle of wine is unique, for my part, I prefer to serve the wine directly into the glass and enjoy its aromatic range, knowing that it will evolve as it is in contact with ambient air.

Wine Tasting – An Introduction

July 3rd, 2010

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Since ancient times, wine has been an integral part of human life. It has been being used in houses and inns, festivals, celebrations, medicines etc. Its history is as long as of human civilization. Today, there are many varieties of wine produced in wineries all over the world in several different regions.

As use of different varieties of wine in daily life became regular, one interesting aspect related to wine attracted some people. That aspect was wine tasting. They began to taste different varieties of wine and noted down the features of each type. As time passed, wine tasting became a hobby for some people while for others, a job.

Now-a-days, wine tasting is being considered as an elite class hobby by the people, especially by wine lovers. Actually some facts have made wine tasting a sophisticated hobby. However, wine tasting is easy to learn if a person understands few basic facts about wine.

In modern terminology, wine tasting is the sensory assessment and evaluation of wine. During 14th century, a certain methodology was formed which had described the standard varieties of flavors, aromas and basic characteristics of wine. Since then, the methodology for wine tasting has been continuously developing.

During wine tasting, a wine variety is evaluated by three simple factors namely; appearance, aroma and taste. These three factors can easily lose their originality due to outer influences. This alone makes wine tasting process a bit complicated. Hence, for a wine taster, it becomes very important to know almost everything related to wine.

Any person can become a wine taster. Now-a-days, there are many wine schools and wine clubs which provide wine tasting lessons. Through these lessons, people can enhance their wine tasting skills. In addition, they can also learn about wine accessories, scoring wine, serving wine etc. It is very beneficial for people who want to take wine tasting as a profession. All these things points out that wine tasting is just not a process of tasting a wine.

Wine Tasting With Food

July 3rd, 2010

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Tasting a wine variety with different types of food can give varied experience. Though there are many types of wine available in market, you cannot simply pair a wine type with a food. It is because some elements both in a food and a wine may spoil the fun if not properly paired.

The sommeliers in a restaurant or a wine club are there to pair the food you like with the perfect wine type. But you too can experiment a particular wine and food pairing for fun or knowledge. Knowledge of pairing wine with food becomes essential when you want to be a sommelier or a wine taster. It is an essential part of wine tasting.

As I said earlier, some elements decide the pairing of wine and food. I will explain those elements in brief below. The first element is;

1. Flavor: It may surprise you to know that grapes can have a flavor of other fruits or spices or flowers. It depends entirely on the type of grape. Hence, red wines give out the flavor of berry, cherry, plum or peach fruits and white wines usually contain apple, citrus or pear flavor.

2. Acidity and Sweetness: This is another element which influences on pairing wine with food. For example, if you are having a dessert, it is suggested to order a sweet wine. But the wine should be sweeter than the dessert or else, the sweetness of dessert will make the wine bitter or thin in taste. For acidic foods, it is recommended to have wine which is equally acidic. The easiest way to balance this element is pairing traditional recipes with wines from same region.

3. Alcohol Content: This is the last element which you should consider before pairing wine with food. In general term, wine is labeled as ‘light’ or ‘heavy’ depending on its alcohol content. A wine is labeled as light if it has lesser alcohol content or heavy if it has higher alcohol content. As per thumb rule, it is better to pair a light wine with a fine dish and a heavy wine with richly flavored food.

Although those above are rules for pairing wine with food, you are completely free to enjoy your wine with your favorite food no matter what.

Wine Tasting And The Types Of Wine

June 26th, 2010

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Now-a-days, there are many types of wine to satisfy wine lovers all over the world. This factor has made wine tasting process bit complicated too. It is not easy to evaluate several types of wines in a single wine tasting event. Is it? To a potential sommelier too, it has not been an easy task to pass tests related to wine tasting as they were before.

Today, wine tasters and sommeliers are expected to have thorough knowledge of wine types such as origin, region, climate, type of grape, wineries etc. All wine types are classified based either on grape variety or region. The wines fall in Varietals are classified by the type of grape used. The wines called by the region names are classified by the particular cultivated region.

A particular wine type can further be classified based on its flavor, texture and other characteristics. Hence there are more than hundreds types of wine produced every year in wineries all over the world. Still wine is categorized into one of five basic wine types only. They are:

1. Red wine
2. White wine
3. Rosé wine or Blush wine
4. Fortified wine or Dessert wine or Liqueur wine
5. Sparkling wine

In every wine club, these five basic wine types can be found. Each of these wine types contains some popular wine types. I have listed them below under each category. They are:

1. Red wine: Shiraz or Syrah, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Pinot Noir, Zinfandel, Sangiovese, and Barbera.
2. White wine: Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, Muscat, Pinot Grigio, Riesling, and gewürztraminer.
3. Rosé wine or Blush wine: True Rosé, Blanc de Noir, White Zinfandel, Blush Blends, and Sparkling Pinks.
4. Fortified wine or Dessert wine or Liqueur wine: Sherry, Madeira, Marsala, Port wine, Vermouth, and Vins doux naturels.
5. Sparkling wine: Champagne, Asti, Sekt, Cava, Prosecco, Cremante, and Vins Mousseux.

Each one of the above wine types is different from each other whether it is in color, flavor or taste. Hence, a wine taster or sommelier has to remember all the details regarding a particular wine type during wine tasting. Of course, anyone can become an expert or at least a good wine taster if he has high skills, thorough knowledge about wines, and put well effort.

Wine Club And Its Benefits

June 21st, 2010

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Wine is one of the popular breweries all over the world. There are hundreds of thousands of wine lovers who always strive to taste the best wine brands. Here, a wine club can act as an easy access for these wine lovers. Today, there are many wine clubs which are contributing for wine popularity in their own ways.

The wine clubs are different from each other based on their member types, fee, service and other factors. Many wine clubs allow skilled vintners and sommeliers only. But in most of the wine clubs both experts and amateurs are invited to join. It is always suggested to collect as much information as possible of the wine club you like to join.

First of all, you should look for the wine club’s area coverage ability, amount of fee, additional activities for its members, and other things. In some wine clubs, you will find a membership option called “open-ended membership”. This option will allow you to terminate your membership at anytime.

Also, you must look for whether that wine club sends bottles of wine to its members every month or allows buying wines at discounted rates. This not only allows you taste some of the best wine products but will also help you to enhance your wine tasting skills from time to time. However, the quality of wine products you receive per month will depend on your membership type.

Last but the least thing to check is whether the wine club is legal and promptly following local laws. Otherwise you may get yourself into unexpected problems. It is not difficult to get the required information on a particular wine club since you can see lots of wine club websites online.

The other benefit of joining a wine club is the information that you will get about different types of wines exist in the market. In addition, you will also learn things related to wine such as wine accessories, wine serving, wineries, wine tasting etiquette etc. Hence joining a good wine club is very essential for an aspiring wine taster.