Wine Selection: 101
I just returned home from a hard day's work and a full day of class......I want to relax......I need a DRINK! So, I head to the kitchen and pop a bottle of wine gifted to me by my "friend" for my big day..... I took one sip of it and all I have to say is ewwwwww [he's a true sweetheart and it's totally the thought that counts - he's the bomb]. So, for my education, I looked up a wine-how-to lesson. Hopefully the breakdown will be good for you guys; in fact, maybe it will be good enough for you to print out and remember for when your wine selection day arrives. Whether it be in a restaurant or a wine cellar - hopefully these tips will come in handy. Also - if you are a connoisseur, please provide any comments or feedback - we all need to learn. Yes - another reason to drink! And for the record, my fav is Pinot Noir :) Cheers!
Wine pairing
Pairing up wine is somewhat of a cliche', red with beef and white with salad. However, below I listed a few lessons I learned on Pairing wine:
Chardonnay: The most popular white wine in America, Chard grapes generally produce full-bodied wines. California, Burgundy (France) and Australia’s Margaret River all produce world-famous Chardonnays.
- Foods to pair with Chardonnay: grilled cheese sandwiches, vegetable lasagna, steamed lobster or crab, chicken tamales
- Names to try: Louis Latour (France), Ruffino Libalo (Italy), J Lohr (USA), Kim Crawford (New Zealand)
- Foods to pair with Pinot Noir: anything in mushroom sauce, grilled salmon or tuna, pumpkin soup
- Names to try: Dehlinger (USA), Mount Riley (New Zealand), Drouhin (France), Byron (USA)
Gamay: Learn this name, for it represents some of the best bargains in the red wine world. This fruity red is most famously the grape used in France’s Beaujolais wines, but Gamay is also becoming better known in California and Canada.
- Foods to pair with Gamay: potato dishes, spicy sausage, roast chicken, pizza
- Names to try: Jadot (France), Preston (USA), Mommessin (France)
Cabernet Sauvignon: The most popular red wine grape in the Unites States, Cabernet is the one you’ll need to know to impress the average man. Most California cult wines are made from Cabernet or are Cab blends.
- Foods to pair with Cabernet Sauvignon: pot roast, wild game, chicken and mashed potatoes, hamburgers and fries
- Names to try: Joseph Phelps (USA), Penfolds (Australia), Clos du Val (USA), Montes Alpha (Chile)
Sparkling Wine: Champagne is sparkling wine, but not all bubbly is Champagne. Confused? In order to be called Champagne, a wine must come from the Champagne region of France. But that doesn’t mean that other bubbles are inferior. Great sparkling wines come from Spain, Italy, Australia and the United States.
- Foods to pair with Sparkling Wine: There are two types. For Blanc de Blanc, try popcorn, potato chips, caviar, bacon and eggs. Brut Champagnes are great with cheeses, fish in cream sauce and even chocolate chip cookies.
- Names to try: Perrier Jouet (France), Iron Horse (USA), Gosset - pronounced Go Say - (France), Gloria Ferrer (USA)
9 comments:
The easiest way to know wine is to know what you like.
Many people will order a wine that they've heard others order and get it all wrong (i.e. Zinfandel when they meant to order White Zinfandel)
White Zin is the easiest wine to transition from drinking beer or coolers towards a proper wine.
Merlot is generaly the easiest red for which to develope a taste.
But it comes down to; If you like Boones Farm drink Boones Farm - otherwise your wasting your money on a pretence. Try different wines - usually if you sit at the bar, the bartender will let you sample many varieties. Write down the brand and variety - usually other brands of the same variety or different varieties by the same brand will be to your liking.
Drink what you like.
OMG THANK YOU!!!
First off I love wine. Secondly, I like drinking it because it makes me feel bougie! Pathetically, I know nothing about it. I have drank enough good wine to have refined my palate enough that i now i know bad wine but i know nothing about picking good wine. So i have become a fraud.
Thanks again. I will go back and read the post now but I was so excited that I had to come and comment first!
So true uglyblackjohn! However, I needed a change, the more drinks, the merrier :) I love boones and alize and all, but i like trying new stuff too! At PF Changs the other night, I noticed they had a wine sampler for like $10. You already know I tried the heck out of some wines!
MP - you're about as crunk as I was. I LOVE wine too - but I've been perpetrating for the past year or so and it's time to know what the hell I'm drinking! lol My ex used to open a bottle, pour a glass for me and make me GUESS the grape used in the wine.... um I almost never knew what the grape was! lol Time for a change! lol
I LOVE wine!!! My favorite right now is Black Chook. So dang good, its a Shiraz, but not too acidy.
I've been hitting wine festivals all summer and hope to hit a couple more in VA. The wine maker at Berrywine Plantations told everyone on the tour that wine is not that complicated, find what you like and so for it. Why? Because everyones taste buds are different.
This is good information. Thanks for sharing. :-)
I am a sparkling wine type of chick... give me a moscato d'asti or a jaillance and I can drink the whole bottle myslef...
I'm into sweet wines more so than bitter ones but someone told me that's because I am new to wine drinking... that as I drink more that will change so we'll see
Great recap and great blog. You've got a new reader!
Now this post is right on time.
Im a beer and hard liquor man my self but Im switching to wines to get the beer off me. Great post.
I love white wine...Red wine (although it looks very appealing on TV) tastes so wood-sy and "dry". Never thought a liquid could taste dry..but to me it does.
Chardonnay and Pinot are my picks but a good ole mason jar full of Boone's Farm ain't bad either...lmao!!
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