ZINFANDEL
ZINFANDEL RED WINE While Zinfandel is grown many places, its most popular and successful region is California. Appellations producing delicious Zinfandel wines include Sonoma, specifically Dry Creek Valley, Napa, the North Coast, the Central Coast, and the Sierra Foothills. Zinfandel stands out with its very berry intensity and exotic spice notes....
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TEMPRANILLO RED WINE Tempranillo features flavours of red fruits like sweet strawberries and tart cherries, backed by a rustic edge. Tempranillo takes well to oak, and many Spanish wines from this grape will spend a few years in barrel and bottle before reaching the consumer. Spanish wine laws are very specific...
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SYRAH (SHIRAZ) RED WINE Like many world-popular grapes, Syrah (also known as Shiraz) can differ in style depending on the climate, region and winemaking techniques. Typical aromas and flavours from most Syrah-based wines include pepper, blackberry and leather or smoke. Australian Shiraz and central or southern California Syrah tend to be...
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SAUVIGNON BLANC WHITE WINE Sauvignon Blanc’s home is the Loire Valley of France, where it produces the crisp, grassy mineral-tinged wines of Sancerre and Pouilly Fume (not to be mistaken with Pouilly-Fuisse in Burgundy – that would be Chardonnay). The wine of this region is crisp and grassy, with delicious minerality...
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SANGIOVESE RED WINE Sangiovese mutates easily, and therefore has many clones – the most notable being Brunello, of Brunello di Montalcino fame. Sangiovese is a slow-growing, late-ripening grape. It has high acidity and a thin skin, which makes it difficult to master. If not cared for correctly, the grape will produce...
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RIESLING WHITE WINE Riesling has an extremely high level of acidity. That acidity is matched by the intensity of the grape’s floral and fruit aromas. A number of descriptors are associated with Riesling due to its tendency to adopt the characteristics of where it is grown. Riesling of the Mosel is...
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RHÔNE WHITE BLENDS WHITE WINE The whites blends of the Rhône are usually rich in fruit flavours and aromatics. Three of the primary grapes, Viognier, Roussanne and Marsanne, are intense on aromatics & texture. The fourth primary grape used in the blend is Grenache Blanc, a fairly neutral grape with crisp...
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RHÔNE RED BLENDS RED WINE Rhône blends are a wonderful combination of rustic and ripe – showing their flavours and delicious character upon release. Some Rhône wines, particularly those with a good amount of Syrah, are able to age for a few years. Australia’s Rhône blends are often called “GSM” or...
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PINOT NOIR RED WINE Other than Burgundy, Pinot Noir has been successful in areas like Oregon, California and lately, New Zealand – the Central Otago region to be exact. Burgundian Pinot Noir typically offers flavours and aromas of red fruit, summer pudding and baking spices. As the wine matures – and...
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PINOT GRIS/GRIGIO WHITE WINE Pinot Gris from Alsace creates rich, stone fruit-laden wines. They are perfumed and aromatic, and typically dry. It has round body and medium acidity. Take the grape a bit south to Italy, and it creates a very crisp, high-acid, citrus noted wine. Both are flavourful, but wine...
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