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Red grapes shine in plenty of wines

Red grapes shine in plenty of wines

by | Aug 24, 2016 | UnCorked

If we judged wine based on what we see on the shelves at wine shops it would seem there are very few red grape varieties worth drinking. Cabernet sauvignon, merlot and pinot noir dominate the offerings in stores and on restaurant wine lists. And because of this strong presence many wine drinkers have a mistaken impression that the world’s other red grapes are inferior in quality and flavor. The good news is this simply isn’t true. There are many other red wines to explore.

Barbera is Italy’s second biggest variety but seems to get overlooked in the wine market. Because it’s a late ripener it can be very tart and astringent. But with careful harvesting it makes wines with lovely sweet plum and cherry flavors. It can be aged but the best time for drinking is when it is fresh and the most recent vintage.

Gamay is best known as the grape behind the famed Beaujolais wines of France. It can be made into a full-bodied wine but it really shines as the star of the famous Beaujolais Nouveau. Each year this wine is bottled and on retail shelves within months of production. This red wine is intended to be consumed within a year of bottling. It is truly a white-wine drinker’s bridge to trying red wines with its light taste of strawberries, raspberries and ripe cherries.

Pinotage is South Africa’s very own red variety. It’s a cross between cinsault and pinot noir. The name is misleading because most people assume it will have taste similar to pinot noir but oddly its taste is more in line with shiraz. In the past this wine was overproduced and had a bad reputation, but its image is changing. At its best it is a deeply colored red wine with layers of bold flavors of licorice, blackberry and plum.

Cabernet franc suffers from comparison to cabernet sauvignon. It generally shows up as a blending partner in Bordeaux wines. It is defined with its strong trait of perfume where even a drop added to a blend can change an entire wine’s aroma and flavors. It generally has fragrant aromas of black cherry and chocolate. Mostly seen in blends, there are a few brilliant bottles out there to explore this enticing wine.

Baga is a Portuguese grape, and its name meaning “berry” is an accurate description of this grape. It is a small thick-skinned grape that brings a tannic structure. If you like medium-bodied red wines similar to pinot noir and nebbiolo you will enjoy this wine.

THE VALUE

  • 2014 Steller Organics Pinotage, South Africa (about $10 retail)

THE SPLURGE

  • 2014 Louis Jadot Beaujolais, France (about $18 retail)
Surprise! Some white wine comes from red grapes

Surprise! Some white wine comes from red grapes

by | Apr 22, 2015 | UnCorked

Sometimes we forget that white wines are not necessarily made from white grapes.

Because the pigment is in the skin of the grape and not the pulp, white wines do not retain much color.

The grapes are generally pressed and skins are removed early in production, resulting in a light color, even if red grapes are used.

Champagne is a good example of this process. The famous bubbly is most often made from pinot noir (as red of a grape as they come), chardonnay and pinot meunier. Another example is Gewurztraminer, a grape that when you see it hanging on the vine is an awkward reddish gray color. One would never think this oddly colored grape would produce the beautiful golden color we see in the glass.

When a grape is pressed rather than crushed (like most red wines), the tannin from the skin is not released into the juice. This step in white wine making has the most impact, and unfortunately there are many aromatic substances we lose without the skin contact.

Lucky for us, there are a few grape varieties that hold many of the aromatic qualities in the pulp; Riesling and Gewurztraminer are among them, along with muscats. If you have ever focused on the smell of those wines, it’s easy to describe the glass as filled with layers of aromas. Chardonnay, pinot grigio and sauvignon blanc are generally less aromatic because their pulps are less intensely flavored.

These are a few wines showcasing the intense range of the aromatic complexity we can savor in white wines.

THE VALUES

  • 2014 Meli Riesling, Chile (about $13 retail)
  • 2014 Twisted River Riesling, Germany (about $12 retail)

THE SPLURGES

  • 2014 Hugel Alsace Gewurztraminer, France (about $28 retail)
  • 2014 Trimbach Gewurztraminer, France (about $28 retail)