How Old Does Wine Have to Be to Be a Vintage?
One of the biggest challenges the wine industry has is its web of complicated terms. Like the term “vintage”, which has nothing to do with a wine’s age. This is unhelpful. A vintage wine isn’t a certain age. A “Vintage Wine” is a wine where the grapes used to make it all came from the […]
Easiest Appetizers for Wine Tasting: 14 Great Picks
If you’re in the habit of hosting last-minute wine tastings, or just not that into cooking, then you’ll want super easy appetizer options. The easiest appetizers for wine tastings are pre-packaged, shelf-stable, or easy to grab and go. Foods like popcorn, chips, cheese, olives, and even sushi are great appetizer options that complement wine tastings. […]
21 Winning Wine Tasting Food Ideas For Your Next Event
Looking for food ideas for your next wine tasting? The best foods for wine tasting have protein, salt, and fat. These elements help keep your palate fresh while you sip. Great foods to eat with wine tasting include olives, charcuterie, cheeses, and even french fries. Helpful Tip: If you’re doing a red wine tasting specifically, […]
How Is Sherry Made: A Complete Guide
Comparison of Sherries Sherries Comparison Type Aging Regimen Biological or Oxidative Aging Sweet or Dry Flavors Fino Under flor (yeast layer) Biologically Dry Crisp, almond, green apple Amontillado Biological aging followed by oxidative aging Both (starts biologically, then exposed to air) Dry Nutty, caramel, dried fruit Oloroso Oxidative aging Oxidatively Dry Rich, toffee, walnut Pale […]
Is Sparkling Wine the Same as Champagne?
Who doesn’t love bottles of bubbles? Alas, the confusing classifications and label names put pressure on you to sort things out for yourself. Unhelpful – or is it? Sparkling wine isn’t the same as Champagne. Sparkling wine is an umbrella term that describes all bubbly wines no matter where they’re made in the world. Champagne […]
Which White Wine Is Sweet: 14 Great Options
Individual tastes in wine are, well, individual. One of the enduring challenges when it comes to buying wine is that you have no idea what’s in the bottle if you’re new to wine. Here to help. There are sweet white wines like Liebfraumilch, Moscato d’Asti, Riesling, and Demi-sec Vouvray. Late harvest Riesling, Icewine, Sauternes, Passito […]
Sparkling Rose Wine
Sparkling rosé is many things, but above all, it’s just plain fun. Sparkling rose is a category of pink wine. Prosecco, Champagne, and Moscato can all be made in a sparkling rose style. Sparkling rose wines can be sweet or dry. Rose sparkling wines make excellent mimosas and great pairing partners for light summer foods. […]
How Is Rose Made?
Who doesn’t love an uncomplicated glass of chilled rose wine on a lazy afternoon? There are four ways to make rosé wine: maceration, direct press, saigneé, and blending. Winemakers choose one method over the other based on the pink wine style they want to make, and in some regions, tradition. Here’s what you need to […]
Wine Flights: Everything You Need to Know
If you hang around wine people long enough, you’re going to run across the term “wine flight”. A wine flight is not, in fact, an airplane full of wine nerds – though I’d be up for that! A wine flight is a set of different but related servings of wine. Typically a wine flight is […]
Chablis Wine
Wine naming conventions can be confusing, especially when the wine goes by a growing region and not a grape. Chablis (shah-blee) wines are made from 100% Chardonnay grapes in north-central France. Chablis is a dry white wine with high acid, green apple and citrus notes. Chablis is typically unoaked with a mineral quality making it […]