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TYPES OF WINE
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Wine should be thought of as
part of the meal, the point being
that good food carefully mated
to good wine can make a fine
meal long remembered.
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GENERIC WINE -
Typically named after a growing region in Europe or the United States, such as Chablis,
Burgundy (after French growing regions) or Sonoma Red or Napa White (examples of wines
named for American growing regions). Most often those wines named for French growing
regions do not resemble wines from those areas but are simply names. Those named for
American growing regions must contain grapes from those regions. Vin rose, translated from
French to English simply means "pink wine" and Blush is just another term for
pink wine.
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PROPRIETY WINE - A
wine which has been given its own private trade-name by the winery producing it. These
wines are not always named for a region, a grape or anything else in particular--although
they might be--but are simply given a name. Examples would be Le Blanc de Blancs, by Wente
Brothers and Assemblage by Concannon Vineyards.
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VARIETAL - means
that a wine is named for the grape from which it is made--Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon,
Chenin Blanc etc. To be labeled a varietal, a wine must be made from a minimum of 75% of
the grape named on the label. This refers to American labeling. In France, Germany, Spain,
Italy--wines are traditionally named for the area in which they grow, the chateau that
grew the grapes and made the wine or possibly the vineyard itself. In the past few years,
many countries have also begun the practice of labeling wines varietally. Wine laws in the
European countries regulate which grape-types can be grown where--therefore you can be
assured of typical wine-styles.
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CHAMPAGNE - White,
dry wine made naturally sparkling by a second fermentation in a closed container (the
bottle you open) causing the wine to absorb carbon dioxide which is formed by this
fermentation process. True champagne comes only from the Champagne region in Northeastern
France where this process originated. Wines produced by this method "methode
champenoise" in other parts of the world are known as Sparkling Wines. Here are
definitions of the different processes for making sparkling wine:
- METHODE CHAMPENOISE--Wine is made, placed in the bottle you have in your hand
along with yeast. The second fermentation begins and proceeds, the bottles are left to
rest "on the yeast" which gives the resulting champagne much of its character
and flavor. After a time period of one to three years, the wine is "riddled (the
periodic shaking and turning of the bottle), then "disgorged", that is, the cap
that was placed on the bottle originally is removed after the neck of the bottle has been
frozen. The pressure in the bottle forces the accumulated sediment and yeast out, the wine
is then topped with more champagne, a grape sweetner may be added to adjust the sweetness
level and the cork and wire hood are put in place.
- TRANSFER METHOD--The wine is fermented in a large bottle--not the one you open,
the wine is filtered in bulk and rebottled and corked.
- BULK or CHARMAT PROCESS--The wine is feremented in a tank or other large
container, filtered off and bottled.
By law, persons buying or receiving alcohol must be at least 21
years of age.
Select Vintage - Personalized Gifts of Fine Wine & Champagne
Avalon Mall - 2179 Fourth Street - White Bear Lake, Minnesota - 55110
Telephone: (651) 653-8717 Fax: (651) 762-5603
Outside Twin Cities Area - Toll-free: (877) 535-2436
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