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Wine Tasting in Manhattan Beach with fellow consultants.
Flight of wines: Mariana Old Vine Zin, Evo Merlot, Talmage Merlot, Milano Sangiovese,Avalon Cellars Pinot Grigio. Yummmmmmm
Great day had by all. We have tuff jobs!!
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Monday, March 9, 2009
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
How To Read a Wine Bottle Label
Ok, so you are at your local store or wine shop...you zero in on your varietal only to be staring at this sea of wines, and you grab the one that has the prettiest or coolest label. You get home...you're excited..can't wait...mouth is watering.. the anticipation is killing you. You open it....you swirl....you smell.....you sip! Ahh! jeeze this is not what I wanted, you slump in disappointment! Did you know that there are indicators on a label that can tell you some of the characteristics of the varietal? I'm about to tell you some of them. So maybe the next time you get your wine home and it's just what you wanted.
Reading a wine label: Regions differ in what the law requires them to include on labels, but trend worldwide is toward giving more information. ?The most important thing to look for is: what sort of wine is it? Where does it come from? Is the style of wine or grape variety given? Is there an indication of an appellation grading? It’s age, shown by the vintage, is important to determine if it is ready to drink.
Alcohol level is the best indicator on any label as to the wine’s sweetness or dryness. Usually, the wines under 11% tend to be sweeter, while those from 11% to 13.5% tend to be dry. Those above 13.5 % can go either way, since residual sugar is often used to balance the slightly hot taste of alcohol. A tolerance of 1.5% over or under is allowed for wines under 14% . It is impossible to accurately predict final alcohol content in order to print the labels in advance of bottling.
Fining is a technique used for clarification of wine. It removes astringent tannins from reds and excessive bitterness from whites. You will sometimes see this word on the back of a label. When a wine has gone thru this process it will age better and last longer.
Region of the varietal: For example if the label reads Napa, Monterey, Paso Robles. 85% of that varietal must be from that region. So for instance if you have a wine that says California Chardonnay those grapes could have come from any where (Washington,Oregan, Calif.) they get to call it California if they bottled it in California.
Varietal designation: for it to be labeled “Chardonnay” it must contain at least 75% of that varietal. French labels seldom give the grape varieties. New world labels: not all countries have their own appellation system, but some wine labels often provide useful details about the grapes and wine style. Generic names like Chablis can be misused. A “Meritage” is thoroughly an American word derived from merging two words “Merit” and “Heritage”. It is always a blend. For a white it must be a blend of two or more of the following: Sauvignon Blanc, Sauvignon Vert, and Semillon. For reds it must be a blend of two or more of the following: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Petit Verdot, Gros Verdot, and Carmenere.
Vintage dating: A vintage year may be used on labels of wine produced in the U.S. when 95% comes from grapes harvested and fermented within that calendar year. In Australia and most of the European Union countries, the minimum required is 85%. Only a few specific regions, such as Bordeaux, require a higher standard of 95%. Chilli, So. Africa requires 75%. Canada is the same as U.S. 95%.
The back label: Always read the back label if there is one, since it may contain a fuller description of the wine. A lot of your wine makers are now using their descriptors on the back labels. Such as, Flavors and aromas of, Raspberry, Bing Cherry, Spice etc.
There you have it, I hope this helps in your purchasing process. Should you have further questions feel free to contact me at: dale.finewineonline@yahoo.com
Cheers!
http://www.finewineonline.net/
www.youtube.com/d4rossi
Reading a wine label: Regions differ in what the law requires them to include on labels, but trend worldwide is toward giving more information. ?The most important thing to look for is: what sort of wine is it? Where does it come from? Is the style of wine or grape variety given? Is there an indication of an appellation grading? It’s age, shown by the vintage, is important to determine if it is ready to drink.
Alcohol level is the best indicator on any label as to the wine’s sweetness or dryness. Usually, the wines under 11% tend to be sweeter, while those from 11% to 13.5% tend to be dry. Those above 13.5 % can go either way, since residual sugar is often used to balance the slightly hot taste of alcohol. A tolerance of 1.5% over or under is allowed for wines under 14% . It is impossible to accurately predict final alcohol content in order to print the labels in advance of bottling.
Fining is a technique used for clarification of wine. It removes astringent tannins from reds and excessive bitterness from whites. You will sometimes see this word on the back of a label. When a wine has gone thru this process it will age better and last longer.
Region of the varietal: For example if the label reads Napa, Monterey, Paso Robles. 85% of that varietal must be from that region. So for instance if you have a wine that says California Chardonnay those grapes could have come from any where (Washington,Oregan, Calif.) they get to call it California if they bottled it in California.
Varietal designation: for it to be labeled “Chardonnay” it must contain at least 75% of that varietal. French labels seldom give the grape varieties. New world labels: not all countries have their own appellation system, but some wine labels often provide useful details about the grapes and wine style. Generic names like Chablis can be misused. A “Meritage” is thoroughly an American word derived from merging two words “Merit” and “Heritage”. It is always a blend. For a white it must be a blend of two or more of the following: Sauvignon Blanc, Sauvignon Vert, and Semillon. For reds it must be a blend of two or more of the following: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Petit Verdot, Gros Verdot, and Carmenere.
Vintage dating: A vintage year may be used on labels of wine produced in the U.S. when 95% comes from grapes harvested and fermented within that calendar year. In Australia and most of the European Union countries, the minimum required is 85%. Only a few specific regions, such as Bordeaux, require a higher standard of 95%. Chilli, So. Africa requires 75%. Canada is the same as U.S. 95%.
The back label: Always read the back label if there is one, since it may contain a fuller description of the wine. A lot of your wine makers are now using their descriptors on the back labels. Such as, Flavors and aromas of, Raspberry, Bing Cherry, Spice etc.
There you have it, I hope this helps in your purchasing process. Should you have further questions feel free to contact me at: dale.finewineonline@yahoo.com
Cheers!
http://www.finewineonline.net/
www.youtube.com/d4rossi
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