Wines Basic

Wine Booklet

TOPICS

A. STUDY OF WINES AND THEIR CLASSIFICATION

B. WINE PRODUCTION

v RED

v WHITE

v ROSE

v SPARKLING

C. SUBTLE ART OF WINE TASTING

v APPEARANCE

v NOSE

v PALATE

D.  COMMON VARIETALS & PRONUNCIATION

E. WINE ETIQUETTE FOR THE TABLE

v TEMPERATURE

v ORDER OF SERVICE

v GLASSWARE

v STORAGE

v POURING WINE

v HOW TO ORDER WINE IN A RESTAURANT

v CORKED WINE

F. SEDIMENTS IN WINE

G. WINE & HEALTH

H. COMMON WINE TERMS

I.  FOOD & WINE PAIRINGS

J. POPULAR WINE QUOTES

A. STUDY OF WINES AND THEIR CLASSIFICATION

The study of wine and wine making is called Enology.

Wine can be simply defined as an alcoholic beverage obtained from the fermentation of freshly gathered grapes

There are various ways of categorizing wines.

1.    Based on color: Based on color there are three types Red, White & Rose

2.    Based on Nature: Still-Wines without fizz, otherwise called table wines or natural wines, Sparkling- wines with fizz or induced with CO₂ gas, Aromatized- flavored and sweetened wines, Fortified Wines- Wine to which alcohol is induced in the form of grape brandy during or after fermentation.

3.    Based on sweetness: It can be Dry (very little sugar), Medium or Sweet

4.    Based on Grape Variety: Depending upon which grapes are used in production like in case of Whites: Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon etc. and in case of Reds: like Merlot, Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon etc.

5.  Based on Countries: France, Italy, Spain, Portugal and other European countries form the old world countries where strict traditional methods are employed and the New World in which countries like Australia, US, South Africa, New Zealand, Chile, Argentina, China and India where modern techniques are used in wine production with various styles.

Besides these, there are some other classification like Light and Full Bodied; Vintage and Non- Vintage etc.

B. WINE PRODUCTION

White wine: Grape juice is normally colorless. The color of the red wine is obtained by soaking the skins of black grapes in the fermenting juice. If the skins are removed at an early stage, the juice will remain colorless. Therefore white wines may be made from either black or white grapes.

The grapes of white wine are first crushed and then pressed. The skins are then discarded and do not form part of the fermentation. The pressed juice is called must. The must is pumped into the vat, which are made of either stainless steel, cement lined with glass or oak wood. To this must cultured yeast are added to initiate the fermentation process. The fermentation process last between two to three weeks, at a temperature range of 15- 20°C. The temperature is strictly controlled during fermentation so that the aromas are not vaporized and yeasts are not killed. The resultant liquid is wine, which will then be matured for a further period of 6-12 months to allow the wine to develop essential characteristics. The matured wine is then filtered and treated to remove the solid particles and unstable colloids. Thereafter the wine is bottled and final resting period is given called aging before it can be released in the market.

Red Wines: Red wine is made from the juice and the skins of black grapes. The color comes from the pigments in the skins. When the grapes reach the winery, the stalks are removed in a destalking machine and the grapes are crushed to break the skins. For red wines, both the must and the skins are transferred into the vat for fermentation between 25-30° C for a period of 1-2 weeks. As fermentation creates alcohol, the alcohol itself extracts first color and then tannin from the skins.

The amount of color and tannin in the finished wine will depend on how long the new wine is kept in contact with the skins. This can be as little as 5 days for light wines. For mature and richly flavored reds it can last a few weeks. When color and tannin are sufficient the “free run” wine is drawn from the skins in to a clean vat. The skins are then pressed, yielding a further quantity of wine know as the “ press wine”. Press wine contains a high level of tannin and is blended all or in part with the free run juice to produce the character required. Then follows maturation, filtration, bottling and ageing

Rose Wines: Rose wines are made from black grapes, which are crushed and fermented with the skins until a pinkish color is extracted. This could take place between three hours to 12 hours. The rose is then drawn off the skins and completes its fermentation at low temperatures.

Sparkling Wines- Champagne: Champagne has launched thousands of ships, toasted billions of weddings and special occasions, attended countless parties and shared untold special moments between two people. Champagne is the wine of celebration. Its meaning and appeal are universal. Champagne is a sparkling wine, which is made in the Champagne region of France.

In the traditional method of making champagne, a second fermentation is created by adding yeast and sugar to a dry wine, which is then bottled. This dry wine called a cuvee´ and is made from a blend of three different wines from three different grapes.

The secondary fermentation produces Carbon- dioxide, which gets infused with the wine in the bottle leaving a sediment, which is subsequently removed by a process of Riddling and Degorgement. The bottles of wine are then topped up with a mixture of similar wine and sugar syrup- a process called dosage. Voila! You have a bubbly that’s waiting for celebration.

C. THE SUBTLE ART OF TASTING

There are 4 steps to tasting wine like an expert.

Appearance: Always fill your glass one third full, never more than half full. Always handle a wine glass by its stem, as you will not affect the temperature of the wines when held in your palm. Focus on the color, hue, intensity and clarity of the wine. True color can be observed best by tilting the glass and looking at the wine through the rim to see the variation from the deepest part of the liquid to its edges. Check for clarity- whether the wine is brilliant or cloudy with particles (this indicates a poor wine).

Swirling: Besides stirring up a range of colors, it lets the wine breathe a little and releases the aroma and volatile flavors trapped inside the wine. The easiest way is to swirl is to rest the base of the glass on the table, hold the stem in between the thumb and the forefinger and gently rotate the wrist. Right- hander will find a counter-clockwise motion easiest, left- hander the reverse.

Move the glass until the wines is dancing, climbing nearly to the rim. Then stop. As the liquid settles back to the bottom of the glass, a transparent film will appear on the side of the bowl, known as ‘Tears’ or ‘Legs’. This is an indication of the amount of alcohol in the wine. Incase of high alcohol wine the tears form slowly and trickle down very slow.

Nose: When you stop swirling, the next step is to nose the wine. Swirling vaporizes the wine and the thin sheet of liquid on the sides of the glass evaporates rapidly; the result is the concentration of aromas. At this stage stick your nose right into the bowl and inhale. Some serious tasters advocate two to three quick inhalation; others prefer one deep, sharp sniff. With practice and keen attention, you’ll learn how to maximize your perception of aromas and how to decipher them.

The world of smell is very vast and confusing. Our sense of smell is very sensitive; we can distinguish between various aromas, but no laboratory can measure them. Aromas are of different types: floral, fruity, nutty, vegetal, spice, oak, mineral etc. In any of these cases, the participant should identify specific fruit, flower, and spice to create interest. As with wine’s color, the aromas offer insight into character, origin and history of the wine. Very few know the fact that the tongues can only taste Sweet- Salt- Bitter- Sour, hence aroma is the most revealing aspect of our examination. Just don’t simply sniff for the clues. Revel in the magic sensation. Wine aromas can evoke a specific place and time with uncanny power.

Palate: While the aromas are reverberating through your senses, place the glass to our lips and take some liquid in, enough volume to work it all around your mouth. First, as you hold the wine in your mouth, purse your lips and inhale gently through them. This creates a bubbling noise. It enables vaporization and intensifies the aromas. Roll the wine around your mouth as if chewing them, bringing it into contact with every part of your mouth, because each part decodes a different aspect of the wine. The astringency of tannins are perceptible on the inner cheeks; the alcohol burns the back of the throat; the acidity on the sides of the tongue.

The body of a wine is the “heaviness” or “weight” in your mouth. The more the sugar or alcohol a wine contains, the more full bodied it is.

After you swallow, you will realize that some part of the aroma still linger on the senses. You’ll find that better the wine, the more complex, profound and long lasting these residual aromas can be. It’s a moment of meditation and eternal bliss that no other beverage can create.

A fine wine is a good balance of acidity, tannin, body, and alcohol with complex characteristics called aroma giving a taste that is harmonious, refreshing and long lasting with a special characteristic of a particular grape.

SOME COMMON RED GRAPE VARIETIES

·        MERLOT:                                 Mair- Lo

·        SHIRAZ:                                 Shee- Raz

·        CABERNET SAUVIGNON:     Cab- Air- Nay So-veen -yawn

·        PINOT NOIR:                         Pee- No- Nwahr

·        MALBEC:                                 Mahl- Beck

·        ZINFANDEL:                          Zin- Fan- Dell

SOME COMMON WHITE GRAPE VARIETALS

·        CHENIN BLANC:                    Sheh-Neen-Blawn

·        CHARDONNAY:                      Shar- Doe- Nay

·        SEMILLION:                           Say- Me- Yawn

·        VIOGNIER:                             Vee- Ohn- Yerr

·        SAUVIGNON BLANC:            So- Veen- Yawn   BLawn

·        MUSCAT:                                Muhs-Cat

D. WINE ETIQUETTE FOR THE TABLE

Temperature

Wine always tastes better at the right temperature. For the wine to be appreciated, it is essential that it should produce a sense of freshness in the mouth. This will be depending on the color and type of the wine.

Lighter White, Rose Wines

& Champagne:                  7-10 °C

Heavier White Wines:        10-13 °C
                                               

Heavier Sweet Wines:        6-8 °C

Light bodied Red wine: 13 °C
                                                      

Full bodied Red wine:         15 -18 °C
                                                      

Dry Sherry, Dry Madeira:   10-13º C
                                               

Sweet Sherry, Ruby &

Vintage Ports:                 18-20ºC.
                                              

Tawny Ports:                   12-16 ºC

There is no rigid set of rules for serving wine. Some people take them too literally. However a Logical order of progression through a meal is

ü  White before Red

ü  Dry before sweet

ü  Light-bodied before full-bodied

ü  Young before old

ü  Good wine before a great wine                                             

                             

GLASSWARE

ü  A good wine deserves a good glass.

ü  Ideally wine should be served in a goblet with a bowl, stem and a base. The sides of the glass should be thin, uncolored and transparent without any designs to show off the color and general aspects.

ü  In form, the glass should have bulging sides with its top curving slightly inward so that the aromas are concentrated, while swirling and the bouquet can be appreciated.

ü  The size of the glass should be rather large for reds so as to allow serving a reasonable quantity without filling the glass more than two third full.

ü  The standard measure of wine served in a glass is 125-150 ml. For fortified wines it is 50-60 ml as the alcohol content is very high.

ü  Champagne is better appreciated in and elegant tulip glasses, which has a long stem and a narrow bowl.

ü  Fortified wines are served in much smaller and fancy glasses.

STORAGE

·        The temperature should be maintained in between 10° & 15°C, as extremes in temperature can cause instability.

·        Store wine horizontally on a rack so that the cork remains in contact with the wine- this prevents the cork from not drying out resulting in air entering and oxidizing the wine.

·        Away from strong light both natural and artificial as this may heat the wine causing a chemical reaction.

·        Keep wine away from vibrations, in order for it to lie undisturbed.

·        A bottle once opened should be consumed within a period of 3-4 days.

How to Pour Wine

Still wines should be poured towards the centre of the glass, while sparkling wines should be poured against the side to preserve bubbles. To control drips, twist the bottle slightly as you tilt it upright.

When pouring wine, fill the glass no more than two-thirds (about 5-6 oz). This will allow your guests to swirl the wine, smell the bouquet and check out the wine's "legs." A glass can always be refilled if desired. Finish pouring the wine tilting the tip of the bottle upwards and slightly rotating your hand, so that the wine doesn’t drip.

At a dinner party, serve wine to the women and older guests first, then the men and end with your own glass.

HOW SHOULD I ORDER WINE IN A RESTAURANT?

v Make use of the advice of the wine waiter, if there is one. First, choose your food and then decide on your wines.

v When the bottle arrives, check the following; vintage (often changed without warning), name of the wine, producer.

v Check that the temperature is satisfactory. It is better for both reds and whites to be too cold than too warm. Don't be embarrassed to ask for an ice bucket to chill both whites and reds.

v Make sure that each bottle is opened in front of you and that red wines are decanted at the table if required.

v When invited to taste the wine, do so. Don't be rushed, do the following: look at it (it should be clear and bright), smell it (it should smell clean and fresh), taste it (it should have no off-flavors).


v If there is anything wrong, don't hesitate in saying so immediately.

Restaurants (especially good ones) are in the habit of pouring a small glass of wine to the 'head' of the table or the host to test it. Usually what follows is an embarrassing charade in which the tester takes a sip of the wine, nods meekly to the waiter or waitress and says 'That's lovely, Thanks.'

Many people think that it is to give you a chance to check that you like the wine and send it back if you don't. But this has nothing to do with it No restaurant is going to open an expensive bottle only for you to say it's not to your taste and can they open another for you! In fact, it is to give you a chance to confirm that the wine has not been corked. It is estimated that one in twenty bottles of wine (throughout the price range) are corked, and it effectively ruins a wine. The other reason is to check if the wine is maintained at the correct temperature.

What is a corked wine?

A corked wine is not one that has bits of cork floating in it - that is just due to a crumbly cork and won't affect the flavor. Corked wine has been stopped with a moldy cork, which leaves a musty, dank smell and flavor in the wine. It cannot be predicted, and it is not the fault of the grower - it is simply due to the unreliability of cork, one of the reasons behind the move toward screw caps.

How do you tell if a wine is corked?

This is pretty easy. A fully corked wine will smell pretty awful and taste bad. A mild case of corking will flatten and deaden the fruity qualities of the wine. If you're not sure if a wine is corked, swish it around the glass, as contact with the air oxidizes the wine and exaggerates the corking effect. Wine can also be over-oxidized if it has been exposed to air or stored in a warm location. As a result it will smell nutty and look faded and brown.

How do you know if a wine is good or not?

A good wine is one that you enjoy. Please do not let others dictate taste to you.

E. SEDIMENTS IN WINE

Sedimentation in wine bottles is a natural process and is quite harmless and unavoidable sometimes. Sediments are a result of the maturing process.

When red wines age, their coloring pigments combine with their tannins and fall to the bottom of the bottle.

Sediments are separated from wine by a process called “Decanting”. Decanting is the simple process of transferring clear wine into another container. Prior to decanting, bottles are made to stand upright for a day or two before consumption.

Use a lit candle or lamp if you can't see where the sediment is in the bottle. Hold the bottle at the base and bring it over the decanter so that the area just below the neck of the wine bottle can be seen through the candlelight while pouring. Ever so slowly begin pouring the wine into the decanter. Be patient. Hold the bottle as much as possible perpendicular to the candle. As the last one-third of the wine is poured, carefully watch for sediment. Stop pouring when any sediment appears in the neck of the bottle

F. WINE AND HEALTH

G. SOME COMMON WINE TERMS

Acidity: The quality of wine that gives it its crispiness and vitality.

Ageing: As wine ages, one of the natural chemical components in it, called tannin, binds together and makes the wine taste smoother

Alcohol: 
Generally refers to ethanol, a chemical compound found in alcoholic beverages. It is also commonly used to refer to alcoholic beverages in general

Aroma: The smell of a wine. The term is generally applied to younger wines, while the term Bouquet is reserved for more aged wines.

Barrel: 
A hollow cylindrical container, traditionally made of wood staves, used for fermenting and aging wine. Sometimes called a cask.

Blanc de Blanc: 
A white wine, usually sparkling, made exclusively from white grapes, often Chardonnay. 


Blanc de Noirs: 
A white wine, usually sparkling, made from red grapes.

Body: The sense of weight imparted by a wine to the mouth of a taster. A wine may be light bodied or full-bodied.

Brut: A French term for a very dry champagne or sparkling wine. It is drier than extra dry. 


Corked: A tasting term for a wine that is off and has cork taint. 


Crisp: A wine with fresh, brisk character, usually with high acidity.

Complex Wines with a combination of flavors and aromas.

Cuve: 
A large vat used for fermentation. 


Cuvee 
The pressing or a blending of several wines

Dry: Wines with zero or very low levels of residual sugar. The opposite of sweet, except in sparkling wines, where dry means sweet.

Fermentation: The conversion of grape sugars to alcohol by yeast.

Fortified wine:  A wine to which alcohol has been added, generally to increase the concentration to a high enough level to prevent fermentation.

Hearty: Robust, zestful, warm and alcoholic

Herbaceous:  Between grass like and flowery. Pleasant, open, fresh, appealing usually found in younger white wines.

Light: Wines light in alcohol but also in texture and weight. It also describes how the wine feels in the mouth.

Mature: The wine is fully developed and ready to drink.

Medium Dry: Containing some residual sugar, but not dry.

New World wine: Wines produced outside of the traditional wine growing areas of Europe and North Africa.

Oak: The number one choice of wood for wine barrels. It imparts toasty, vanilla, and smoky aromas to the wine.

Old World wine: Wines produced inside of the traditional wine growing areas of Europe and North Africa.

Oxidation: The destructive action of oxygen on a wine.

Palate: A tasting term for the feel and taste of a wine in the mouth.

Rich: High flavor concentration with balanced astringency, alcohol and fruit.

Round: Smooth and well-developed flavor, without angularity or rough edges.

Still wine: Wine that is not sparkling wine.

Tannin: Poly-phenolic compounds that give wine a bitter, dry, or puckery feeling in the mouth.

Terroir:  French for "soil", the physical and geographical characteristics of a particular vineyard site that give the resultant wine its unique properties.

Vinification: The process of making grape juice into wine.

Vintage: The year in which a particular wine's grapes were harvested. When a vintage year is indicated on a label, it signifies that all the grapes used to make the wine in the bottle were harvested in that year.

Yeast: A microscopic unicellular fungi responsible for the conversion of sugars in must to alcohol. This process is known as alcoholic fermentation.

H. WINE & FOOD PAIRINGS

When pairing food and wine, the goal is synergy and balance. With modern fusion cuisine and wines from new regions around the world, the choices – and confusion – are great.

When the marriage of food and wine works well, each enhances the other, making the meal greater than if you had consumed them separately. Always the aim should be to pair the wine and food, that neither overpowers each other. Think that wine is a condiment and it should compliment the food.

Wine drunk by itself taste different than wine with food, because wine acts on food similar to the way a spice does. The acids, tannins and sugars in the wine interact with the food to provide different taste sensations.

Remember that there are no perfect food and wine pairing. The best pairing is good food, good wine and good company.

Here are some guidelines to ensure that your meal is not a disaster.

v   Follow the logical order of progression when you are serving more than one wine at a meal, its customary to serve

·        White before Red

·        Dry before sweet

·        Light-bodied before full-bodied

·        Young before old

·        Good wine before a great wine

v If you are taking wines as a gift to a dinner party, don’t worry about matching the food unless you have been requested to do so.

v Balance flavor and intensity. Pair light bodied wines with lighter food and fuller bodied wines with heartier, more flavorful, richer and fatty dishes.

v  Consider the food preparation.

Cooking Methods

·        Fried and Oily food also needs to be cut by the sharpness of acidity.  Example Vinaigrette

·        Steamed foods need a lighter bodied wine example. Chenin Blanc

·        Fried foods will need good acidic wines. Example Sauvignon blanc

·     Braised or steamed slow cooked dishes will need full -bodied wines as the flavors are intensified by the method of cooking. Example Chardonnay and Shiraz etc.

·        Smoked food should be paired with wines of character example Smoked salmon with Champagne, smoky barbequed flavors suit powerful Oaked wines like Shiraz etc.

·        Tandoori food accompanies Bubbly, and Zinfandel Rose etc.

v Match by geographic location. Regional foods and wines, having developed together over time, often have a natural affinity for each other.

v Consider pairing opposites. Very hot or spicy foods — some Thai dishes, or hot curries for example — often work best with sweet desert wines. Opposing flavors can play off each other, creating new flavor sensations and cleansing the palate.

v Spicy Asian foods like Thai, Curry go well with acidic wines with a hint of sweetness like Sauvignon Blanc, Zinfandel, Bubbly or a Merlot

v Salty food like Olives, Oysters, Shellfish go with dry crisp, acidic, light bodied wines like Sauvignon Blanc or Champagne / Sparkling win etc. Salty foods can also go with sweet late harvested wines

v Acidity in food is to be matched with acidity in wines.

v Sauces- Pair Chardonnays with butter and cream sauces to marry similar textures and flavors.

v Remember: “ a meal without wine is like a day without sunshine.

v Some Don’ts

·        Tannic wines with oily food

·        Tannin wines with salt

·        Dry Acidic wines with sweet foods

J.  WINE QUOTES

v "Wine improves with age. The older I get, the better I like it." - Anonymous

v "Men are like wine - some turn to vinegar, but the best improve with age." - Pope John XXIII

v "Wine cheers the sad, revives the old, inspires the young, makes weariness forget his toil." - Lord Byron

v "Wine... the intellectual part of the meal." -Alexander Dumas, 1873

v When it comes to wine, I tell people to throw away the vintage charts and invest in a corkscrew. The best way to learn about wine is the drinking. - Alexis Lichine

v "If food is the body of good living, wine is its soul." - Clifton Fadiman

v A man, fallen on hard times, sold his art collection but kept his wine cellar. When asked why he did not sell his wine, he said, “A man can live without art, but not without culture.” --- Anonymous

v "Anyone who tries to make you believe that he knows all about wines is obviously a fake.” -Leon Adams, The Commonsense Book of Wine

v Making good wine is a skill; making fine wine is an art. - Robert Mondavi