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Wine 101
While many of us love to sip a glass, wine talk can be intimidating. Hence our handy guide to the most common wines today. Read, print, then enjoy.
By Claire Smith
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The basics
As you no doubt know, wine comes in red and white form. There is also that alluring and new-again rosé, or blush. Sparkling wines are usually white, although they are available in both rose and red, too. Dessert wines are sweeter than table wines and while fortified wines have additional alcohol, most commonly brandy, added to them during fermentation, creating a sweeter, heavier wine suited for after dinner quaffing. Here are the most common examples of the six main categories of wine, along with tips for getting the right bottle.
Whites
White wine is usually made from white grapes (really, more like green). Sometimes, darker, red or purple grapes are used, though the winemaker removes the skin before it can colour or flavour the grape juice.
White wines can be dry or sweet, with aromas and flavours of everything from grass and straw to minerals, peaches and other fruit, vanilla, butterscotch, oak and so on.
Chardonnay
• A dry white wine, considered the king of the white wines
• Commonly paired with fish, chicken, ham, pasta with butter
• Grown throughout the world, top regions include Burgundy and Chablis, France; California and Oregon, United States; New South Wales, Australia; Piedmont and Tuscany, Italy; and the Niagara Peninsula in Canada
Sauvignon Blanc
• Lighter and less dry than Chardonnay
• Commonly paired with freshwater fish, chicken, turkey or roast pork loin
• Grown throughout the world, with the best producer regarded as New Zealand, though Bordeaux, France and Italy's Tuscany region also earn raves,
Pinot Grigio/Pinot Gris
• herbaceous wine with an exotic fruit bouquet
• Commonly paired with fish, chicken, turkey, seafood pasta
• A renowned Italian wine, though produced internationally, with Frances Burgundy and Loire regions, America's Oregon and California, and Canada's British Columbia regions earning kudos from fans
Riesling
• Classic German wine, available dry and off-dry (sweeter) with fine balance between fruit and mineral flavours
• Lovely paired with Chinese and other Asian foods
• Produced in a number of countries, most notably Germany, Austria, the Alsace region of France, as well as Canada's Niagara Escarpment (where it can appear as a table wine, or, if the grapes are left to freeze on the vine, pricey ice wine)
Can't tell the difference between a woody Cabernet and a flabby Merlot? Find out here!
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