Like all of the world’s best wine growing appellations, the soil in Bordeaux is relatively poor, inhospitable soils that while not great for growing most types of agriculture, they are perfect for growing grapes. The type of soil and terroir is the most important factor that will determine the quality of the wine. Read more at:https://www.thewinecellarinsider.com/wine-topics/dirty-little-secret-soil-terroir-bordeaux/ Like all of the world’s best wine growing appellations, the soil in Bordeaux is relatively poor, inhospitable soils that while not great for growing most types of agriculture, they are perfect for growing grapes....

Pinotage is a red wine grape that is South Africa's signature variety. It was bred there in 1925 as a cross between Pinot noir and Cinsaut (Cinsaut was known as "Hermitage" in South Africa at that time, hence the portmanteau name. It typically produces deep red varietal wines with smoky, bramble and earthy flavors, sometimes with notes of bananas and tropical fruit, but has been criticized for sometimes smelling of acetone. Pinotage is often blended, and also made into fortified wine and even red sparkling wine.  Pinotage is a grape...

Beaujolais is the name of a little area in France just south of Burgundy. It’s one of the few wine regions of France that doesn’t pretend to be fancy. In fact, much of the Gamay wine Beaujolais produces is sold before the harvest year is over. What’s confusing to new drinkers of Beaujolais is the disconnect between how Beaujolais is described and how it actually tastes. What is Beaujolais? Beaujolais is a light red wine made with Gamay Noir grapes. Primary Fruit flavors Raspberry, Tart Cherry, Cranberry Other flavors Mushroom,...

Merlot and Cabernet, they’re the two most popular red wines in America, but many people don’t know what makes each of them different and unique, or why you might prefer one to the other, so we’re here to help. Both Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon originated in the Bordeaux region of France in the 15th century; however, the grapes that are used in these two wines thrive in very different conditions. Cabernet Sauvignon thrives when planted in the gravely soil as was found in the Médoc region along the Left Bank....

German wine law officially regulates three categories which measure the sweetness of a finished wine based on the amount of residual sugar (“restzucker”/rest-tzūk-ur/) and acid (“säure”/zoi-rǝ/) in the finished wine. The three regulated categories are “trocken” (/trō-ken/), “halbtrocken” (/hallp-trō-ken/), and “süss” (/zūs/). When a German wine is either trocken or halbtrocken, it will be labelled as such. When it is sweet, however, usually the label will be blank in that regards. Trocken is the German word for “dry” and Germans use it in exact same way English speakers do to...

Mourvèdre (also known as Mataró or Monastrell) is a red wine grape variety that is grown in many regions around the world including the Rhône and Provence regions of France, the Valencia and Jumilla denominaciones de origen of Spain, California and Washington State and the Australian regions of South Australia and New South Wales, as well as South Africa. In addition to making red varietal wines, Mourvèdre is a prominent component in "GSM" (Grenache, Syrah, and Mourvèdre) blends. Mourvèdre is a funky grape name to pronounce. It’s French, and if...

As the kids prepare to gather tons of Halloween candy, the adults want some Halloween fun too. Halloween candy and wine is the perfect adult Halloween pairing. Any parent who has taken the kids’ trick or treating knows that wine or a cocktail after that evening ordeal is a requirement. But, the bags and buckets of Halloween candy are calling. Who hasn’t sneaked or stolen a piece or twelve by the end of the night. Since you know that you will be eating that candy, why not make the perfect...

Terroir is how a particular region’s climate, soils and aspect (terrain) affect the taste of wine. Some regions are said to have more ‘terroir’ than others. ‘Terroir’ is one of the most used and least understood wine words. Originally it was associated with earthy notes in many Old World wines. Back in the 1980’s, many of these ‘terroir-driven’ wines were actually affected by wine faults including cork taint and wild yeast growth. Nowadays, terroir is used to describe practically every wine region (e.g. Napa’s Terroir, Bordeaux’s Terroir, Priorat’s Terroir, Washington’s...