At one of the corporate parties, I had a very unusual conversation with a colleague. In the company, one of the interlocutors said such a thing that, they say, red wine is all the same, it has the same taste, no matter what brand you take.
It hooked me a lot. Clearly an amateur. Has he even tasted wine at least once to make such a claim? I can safely tell you that red wines differ from each other in many ways. Now I will prove it to you.
This story was sent by subscriber Alex.
Manufacturing technology
How can wine be the same if it is at least made from different grape varieties that differ in taste? With regards to red wine, the most commonly used varieties are: Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Shiraz.
I have tasted some of them. All of them are sweet and tasty, that is, it is not necessary to make wine from them, although these varieties are considered wine varieties.
The cooking process has both common features and some differences depending on the expected result. With regards to the first, it all starts with the grape harvest and sorting it out, when green and rotten berries are removed.
Then it is crushed, and the resulting pulp is placed in a large vat. It can be concrete, wood or steel. There it begins to wander. At this stage, the process may already be different. We are talking about adding sugar and other ingredients for taste.
On the right are the containers where the wine ferments, and on the left are the barrels where it is aged.
At the end of fermentation, the wine is placed in oak barrels for aging. There it becomes gradually lighter, gaining the desired aroma and taste. A wine is considered young until it has been aged.
You have to wait at least 1 year for it to be considered aged. Vintage is aged up to 4 years, and collection wine becomes after 10 years spent in barrels or bottles.
Important! The longer the aging of the wine, the better it is. However, we are only talking about exposure to appropriate conditions.
Top producer countries
I think many people already know these countries, but just in case, I will devote time to this. As you know, the quality of wine depends primarily on the grapes themselves. That is, where the highest quality grapes grow, there are the best wines.
Map of leaders in wine production.
The leaders in this ranking are, of course, Italy and France:
- In Italy, grapes grow in any region of the country, which is why there is such a wide variety of Italian wines and their tastes.
- France is probably the most favorable region for blue (dark) grapes. It is this country that is number one in the world in the production of elite wine. She also dictates fashion in this area, if I may say so.
- Spain is in third place. At least that’s what the statistics of the International Organization of Vine and Wine say (here is a link to Wikipedia, if necessary).
There are many more countries that make good wine, but no better than Spain and Italy. These are Moldova, Romania, Chile, Australia, New Zealand, Georgia. I know that in the USSR, Moldovan and Georgian wines were held in high esteem among the population. And now in Russia they are very fond of.
Important! Recently, the US has joined the race with their vineyards in California.
What to look for when choosing
There are many criteria by which you should choose red wine. I will talk about the most important ones. The first step is to determine the sugar and alcohol content. Dry wine is made by fully fermenting the must without the addition of additional sugar.
Such wines are typical for regions with a large number of sunny days a year. Then the grapes have time to pick up sugar and the wine ferments perfectly on its own. Its sweetness is not more than 0,3%. Alcohol can be from 8 to 15% vol.
Semi-dry wines contain sugar in the region of 4-18 g / l (grams per liter) and alcohol – 8,5-15% vol. Semi-sweet wine contains sugar 18-45 g / l, and alcohol 8,5-15% vol. Sweet more than 45 g / l of sugar and 8,5-15% vol. alcohol.
Another classification should also be noted. In Europe, the whole variety of wines is divided into three categories – Wine without Geographical Indication, wine that does not have a geographical index (table), PGI – wine made in a certain workshop and PDO, wine made from grapes of a certain area under strict product quality control.
You should also pay attention to the bottle. It must be dark glass. When sunlight (ultraviolet) hits the wine, it will begin to oxidize and gradually turn into wine vinegar, which will greatly spoil its taste.
Dark glass prevents this from happening, or at least slows it down.
The difference is in the color of the bottle glass.
Important! Above it was indicated what the exposure times are. This can also be taken into account when choosing.
Top Marks
There are many brands of wine that are very similar in quality. Here, the choice can already be made taking into account the personal preferences of each. But I will share my thoughts, and you can follow my advice.
Betaneli Kindzmarauli wine.
In my opinion, the best red wine is semi-sweet. Betaneli Kindzmarauli is an excellent representative of it. For a bottle of such wine, you will have to pay about 500 rubles. It is easy to distinguish shades of taste of cherry pit and blackcurrant in it.
Entrecote Merlot Cabernet Sauvignon.
Entrecote Merlot Cabernet Sauvignon from France will cost more, about 550 rubles. for a bottle. Here you can hear notes of roasted coffee and vanilla.
Chateau Taman Cabernet-Merlot is a Russian representative of red wines. The grapes are grown on the Taman Peninsula in the Kuban. The taste is very acceptable, given the cost of 300 rubles. for a bottle.
Chateau Taman Cabernet-Merlot.
The only thing, as long as I live, I have never tried Crimean wine, although everyone praises it. Not surprising, because, in my opinion, this region is perfect for growing good grapes. Therefore, I ask you to advise specific producers, if you have experience of acquaintance with Crimean wines.
*Alcohol abuse is dangerous for your health!