Forget the snobbery (Red Wine in General)

Member Name: pjs21

Product:	Red Wine in General
Date:	10/12/01 (1246 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Huge variety available, Affordable, Fun!

Disadvantages: Some Can be nasty, Some can be over priced

Now, let it be known that I like red wine. I may have mentioned it once or twice before? I don't however consider myself to be wine expert/bore, just someone who has a real love of the stuff and likes to find out as much as possible about what I'm drinking, and maybe even advise others if asked. I won't however lecture people on what wine should be drunk with what food type.

So this category is perfect for me. I can now rant and get it all out of my system, hopefully without boring the pants off anyone.

This here is my guide to red wines and what the labels mean, and also a list of my recommended bottles, some of which I've already written a full opinion on, but also a few others, there is also a list of what I avoid drinking.

What I hope to gain by this is...When I was first asked to choose the wine in a restaurant I was made to feel incredibly stupid and ignorant by the wine waiter, so I read up on the stuff so that I could order with confidence...this is where I pass the information on to you guys.

Unlike most wine buffs I disagree with the white wine/red wine dilemma every time I cook a meal. I choose a red wine that I think will go well. None of this, you shouldn't have red with fish thing. Nonsense. A light red wine more than compliments a delicate meal. What I'm saying is - drink whatever you want with whatever you want!

So here we go, sit tight, pour yourself a large glass of red wine (any excuse) and whatever you do, don’t stop till you're completely bored.

There are now so many wines available on the market ranging in price from £2.00 to thousands of pounds. Now a £2.00 bottle of plonk is ideal to take to a party at a strangers house, but if it's a real treat for yourself then it's really worth spending a little bit more. The difference in quality and taste from a £3.00 bottle and £5.00-£6.00 bottle is huge, while the difference between a £8.00-£1
0.00 bottle and a £300.00 bottle can be completely unnoticeable! I once had the rankest bottle of wine that cost £280.

So many countries produce wine these days, including the good old UK giving it a go, to varied success. But undoubtedly the finest producers of Red Wine are France, with Spain, Australia and California right behind them. Obviously there are other producers too from Italy, Corsica, Greece, Lebanon, Germany, Chile, Argentina etc.

But I want to talk about the first three I mentioned, as these are probably the producers of some of my favourite wines.

France.

Where to start on this one? France is governed by so many rules when it comes to growing wine, naming, bottling, pretty much everything has a rule or regulation.

There are different levels of grading for the wines. Here they are in their simplest form.

The lowest of these is Vin de Table, after this comes Vin de Pays and then A.O.C. (Apellation d'Origine Controlee). All those wine snobs who scoff at Vin de Pays, well, some of them really aren't that bad. And they can be very exciting - if you get excited by this sort of thing!

Vin de Table will only have the country of origin on the label, they are not allowed to show a vintage date, and most are sold under a brand name, i.e La Piat Dor.

Vin de Pays come under the umbrella of Vin de Table but there is a big difference. They are made in specific places and to strict rules. Growers of Vin de Pays can use grapes varieties which are forbidden in AOC’s, Chardonnay is a good example of this – banned from the use in AOC wines, but can be used in Vin de Pays. Unlike Vin de Tables, Vin de Pay may label with the region/place where it was made and it can name the grapes used, something which AOC’s cannot. However, Vin de Pays are forbidden to use words like "Chateau" or "Clos" which are only allowed on the AOC’s.

A
OC is the most highly regarded of French wines, and therefore the one with the strictest rules. AOC's are areas making wine according to local criteria. There are more than 400 of these in existence. Once a an AOC has been defined, the rules are laid into place. Boundaries are drawn up around the area and unsuitable land is excluded, how much wine can be made, what grape varieties can be used, what strength the wine must reach/not exceed. The grape varieties allowed are those which were being grown when the AOC was decided by the Institut National des Appelations d'Origine. To give you an example, Rhone reds from Cornas must be 100% Syrah and Chateauneuf which is slightly further down the same valley, no fewer than 13 grape varieties can be used.

Obviously this is an abridged account of the rules and regulations, to go into it any further would be far too dull and a little unnecessary!


Spain

Spanish wines are very different from French, and if I'm honest, a good Spanish wine is probably my favourite. I'm sat now drinking a bottle of Vina Albali Tinto Reserva 1995, which I picked up for £5.99 at Threshers, and it's gorgeous.

Probably the most famous of Spanish wines is Rioja. This is made with the Tempranillo grape, which is the largest produced grape variety of the country. You can buy bottles of Tempranillo in most supermarkets and it's usually a little cheaper than the Rioja, but it can be just as good.

Spain has four levels for the quality of its wine:

Vino de Mesa is the basic, and is placed in the same category as the French Vin de Table.

Vino de la tierra is "country wine" and would be placed at the same level as a Vin de Pays.

Denomination de origen (DO) is the first quality wine category, comparable with the AOC wines of France. This is for wines that meet international standards for grape varieties, method of production and geographi
cal origin. My £5.99 bottle of Vina Albali is labelled in this category.

Denominacion de origen calificada is a higher category for wines which meet a specific criteria. The only wine so far that can be used as an example is Rioja.

Australia.

Australia comes under the New World Wines, this is because they are fairly new to us. Australian Wine only went international during the 1980's, hard to believe that before then we were forced to drink Blue Nun, Liebfraumilch, Matheus Rose and Black Tower at family dinners. Oh, the shame!

The choice of Aussie wines is huge and I would imagine that it's probably the most popular wine purchased from Supermarkets and Offies. This is mainly due to the variety available, the quality and the reasonable prices. It's one of the big boys now.

Now, I have been unable to find any information on levels of grading for Australian wine, but I do know this much:

An agreement with the EC means that certain names will be/have been phased out. "Chablis", "Champagne", "Burgundy" and "Claret" are not allowed on labels.

There are four main producers in Australia who make up 80% of the countries wine, they are (you may recognise some of these!); Southcorp (including Lindemans, Penfolds and Seppelt), BRL Hardy, Orlando and Mildara Blass.

No producers have to reveal on the label the origins of the grapes, but if they do then 85% of the grapes used must come from that district. Also, they do not have to reveal what grapes were used, but if they do then 85% of the wine must be made from the named variety. If a mix of varieties or districts was used then they must be listed in order of importance.

And there, for those who care, is a little bit of history from each of the the three countries.

Now for the grape varieties themselves. I will only list the major grapes used in red wine.

Syrah, this
grape is grown in various countries but will only be called Syrah in France, you will see it as Shiraz on Australian wines. Has a spicy peppery taste and is often mixed with Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.

Cabernet Sauvignon. Probably the biggest produced grape and is the foundation of a Bordeaux wine. It is often mixed with other grapes to improve it's flavour.

Gamay. The grape used in Beaujolais, the only other country to grow it successfully outside of France is California.

Merlot. This is another hugely popular grape. It is grown to be drunk young, not left to mature in it's bottle. Pomeral is the only exception to that rule! Often mixed with other varieties, it is very plummy in flavour. I like it mixed, but not a great fan of Merlot on it's own.

Pinot Noir. Possibly equal to Tempranillo as far as I'm concerned. Hard to find nice Pinot Noir as it is notoriously hard to grow (apparently!)

Tempranillo. The grape behind the fantastic Rioja of Spain. Cheap bottles can be nasty, but for £5.99 (see above) it's fantastic and full of flavour.

Still here?

Blimey, well done.

So now for my tips on tasting. And don't worry, you don't have to spit - official tasters only spit in order to stay sober!

This is one of those things that most people are so embarrassed to do in restaurants. Believe me though if you're spending £10.00 or more on a bottle of house red wine or more on something else from the wine list, take your time to make sure that it tastes okay.

The waiter should hopefully pour a small amount into your glass. There should be plenty of space to swirl the wine around the glass. Swirling the glass releases the scent of the wine and the flavours. Take a sniff! Do you like what you smell?

Next take a sip. Swirl it around your mouth to get a taste. This is called "Chewing" though I don't know why!? Swal
low this and take another mouthful. Swirl it around in your mouth again and suck in a small amount of air through your teeth two or three times. This will release even more flavour and aroma.

It may sound a bit poncey, but it takes a couple of seconds and if you're paying for it you should know that it's okay. Would you keep a video that cost you £13.99 if the tape was broken when you got it home? No, you'd want a replacement or a refund! Well, wine’s no different.

Now, the important bit, how do know if there's something wrong with it?

Here’s a few little tips.

If your wine is oxidised then it will be browner than usual in colour and slightly sweet and sour, or caramelly in taste and smell. Send it back!

Volatile wines have a really vinegary smell and taste and will be very sharp. Send it back!

Reduced wine – this is caused by Hydrogen Sulphide and it will smell slightly eggy or rubbery and will taste the same. Give it straight back to the person who poured it!

Corked wine. This will smell kind of damp and mouldy. The cork has reacted inside the bottle causing this to happen. Once again, give it back and ask for a replacement.

Don't be bullied into paying for something that doesn't taste right.

One thing that forgot to say originally, and was advised to say by the lovely Caro is this: You cannot send wine back simply because you don't like it.

If you're not sure what wines should taste like then practice at home with a few different types. Get to know what they're like, make notes. This will also help you find the wines you do like and make ordering at a restaraunt easier, you will then have a rough idea what they should smell and taste like too and will find it easier to pick up and problems.

My wine rack consists of about 70 bottles of wine at the moment and is forever being drunk and topped up.
I will always try new wines by new or different producers and from different countries, but it will always contain bottles of the following:

Hardy's Cabernet Shiraz Merlot (Australian) £8.49 a bottle
Arriero Mendoza (Argentian) £5.49 a bottle
Marthinus Merlot Ruby Cabernet (South African) £6.20 a bottle
Villalta Temprinillo/Cabernet Sauvignon (Spanish) £5.40 a bottle
Serret Oak Aged Merlot (French) £5.40 a bottle
Les Planols Syrah (French) £5.50 a bottle
Palacio de Monsalud (Spanish) £6.99 a bottle
Domain Capicorsine Pinot Noir (French) £5.49 a bottle
Andrew McPherson (Australian) £6.59


And what wouldn't I have? Well, wines I have tasted and hated include:

Corvo (Italian) £13.00 a bottle in my localy Italian - this was sent back purely for being disgusting and tasting of vinegar.
Mount Hope Merlot Cabernet (Australian) £6.20
Les Lauzeraies (French) £5.80

Other than that there are so many wines to be tried and tested, each slightly different. It really shouldn't be seen as a snob thing any more as it's so widely available. I started off buying a bottle a month that I wouldn't touch and built it up from there. Your tastes will probably be different to mine, but I hope I've given some pointers in what to look for. And if you got here – well done, pour yourself another glass of wine!

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