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For those who are just starting to experience the wonderful world of wine, you may find yourself confused by the huge variety of wines – whites, reds, blends, bubblies – and the many choices within each of those broad categories. We’ll choose just one of those for this brief intro – white wines. We’ll provide a short tour of the most well-known varietals (types of grapes), tell you what you can expect from each of them and what sets them apart from each other.

Chardonnay

Chardonnay is certainly the most consumed white wine in America – in fact, it’s claimed to be the only white wine many wine fans consume. Chardonnay is quite often the first white wine a beginning wine fan will sample, largely because it is so easy to enjoy. Chardonnay tends to be on the dry side, meaning not very sweet, and it tends  to have flavors of apples, tropical fruit, vanilla, and butter, and a varying amount of oak, depending on how it was produced. “White Burgundy”, from France, is almost always 100% Chardonnay. Many other wine regions across the world produce Chardonnay, including Chile and Australia. There are many good choices of American Chardonnay available for under $20. Well-knownand consistently reliable producers include BV, Chateau St. Michelle, and Columbia Crest, and others.

Sauvignon Blanc

Sauvignon Blanc, sometimes called Fume Blanc, is another very popular white wine. Sauvignon Blanc is quite often characterized as “freshly mown”, meaning that it reminds the taster of freshly mown grass. It is a medium-bodied white wine with noticeably fruity aromas like grapefruit, melon, and peach, and is dry and refreshing with medium acidity. Sauvignon Blanc is a great wine for enjoyment in summer, especially good with seafood and it’s one of the best all around matches for light snacks and picnics. Babich (New Zealand) produces a very nice Sauvignon Blanc for under 15 dollars.

Pinot Grigio

Pinot Grigio, also referred to as Pinot Gris (the actual grape name), is Italy’s most popular white wine, and is popular throughout the world, although the Italian Pinot Grigios are typically a littlebland. Pinot Grigios are easy to drink, due to their crisp, light taste. The Pinot Gris offerings from Oregon tend to have more character, offering medium body, with more readily noticeable fruit and more acidity. Better bottles have fruity flavors of pear, apple, honeydew and some spice. A pair of very nice Pinot Gris from Oregon, available for between $12-$18, are Chateau St. Michelle and King Estate, among others.

Riesling

Riesling wines are generally considered the most popular German wine, and they are produced in two vastly different styles – dry and sweet. Rieslings are categorized by the ripeness of the grapes when picked. Kabinett signifiesnormally ripe grapes, and is a light to medium-bodied, mostly dry wine. You’ll sometimessee the word “trocken” on a bottle of Riesling, which is German for “dry”. “Spatlese” is produced from grapes picked later, and results in a bit richer, somewhatsweeter, wine. “Auslese”, which means late harvest, is made from an even riper grape, and is typically quitesweet. Rieslings are typically fruity, with peach, honeysuckle, and apple flavors and floral undertones. Rieslings are relatively inexpensive – you can find excellent offerings for under $10. One reliably very goodchoice is Strub Niertsteiner Riesling Kabinett, as well asChateau Ste. Michelle Riesling.

Gewurztraminer

Gewurztraminer is another very popularwhite wine from Germany, while also being produced in France, the U.S., Australia, and New Zealand. Gewurztraminer is also madein both dry and sweet styles. Gewurztraminers have a bold, full-bodied taste, much more so than most other whites. Typical aromas commonly found inGewurztraminer are rosewater and lychee nuts, and its flavors include apricot, honeysuckle, and honey. A nice, inexpensive Gewurztraminer is available fromTrimbach (France, under $15).

A final note

The best way to determine your preferencesin white wine is to just pick out a samplingof bottles, and just try them. For each varietal, you’ll want to choose a bottle that’s representative of the style you’re investigating. Websites like Wine.com can be immensely helpfulwith finding solid, yet inexpensive choices. Once you find a type and producer you find particularly enjoyable, you might want to buy a case to have handy for entertaining, or to just enjoy at home. Most white wines do not improve with age, so you won’t want to keep them around for years. You do, however,want to be sure to store your wine properly, so they maintainthe wonderful flavors and aromas you appreciate. You might think about investingin an inexpensive wine fridge, to keep all your wines at their best.

White wines are best served moderately chilled, so you may want to refrigerate them beforehand, then take them outabout 15-20 minutes before serving. Better yet, is topick up an electric wine chiller, which will chill (or warm) a single bottle of wineto the right temperature automatically – just set the pre-programmedwine varietal, insert the bottle, and the chiller will automatically cool (or warm) your wine to the optimal temperature, and maintain that temperaturethroughout your wine tasting.

Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 “Pale plonk packs an acidic punch!” says the BBC, Well, it does and it doesn’t. A tooth can withstand a level of acidity, and grapes do vary in acid levels. What is detremental to teeth is the time that they are exposed to this acid. People who taste wine are much more likely to suffer from rotting teeth than your normal wine drinker, this is because they hold the wine in their mouths longer. Loads of noise on twitter for the story on http://twitter.com/winewarecouk and http://twitter.com/thirstforwine.

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So what does White wine actually do to teeth?

It should be pointed out that the erosion of teeth by wine is the result of extensive wine use that would also lead to damaged liver and all sorts of other problems. The typical wine drinker who sips a glass of wine at dinner or with their evening meal should not be ‘scared off’ by the tooth decay headlines, remember 100 year old women in Italy swear that wine was the secret of their longevity.

White wine stains teeth:

I think that anyone who has drank a few glasses of Red would agree that, yes, it does. But have you ever thought how? “Red wine, unlike white, contains a highly-pigmented substance known as chromogen,” explained Dr. “The acids in wine create rough spots and grooves that enable chemicals in other beverages that cause staining, such as coffee and tea, to penetrate deeper into the tooth” says Dr Wolff or the University College of Dentistry New York.

Notice that Dr Wolff said wine and not simply White wine, all wine has the ability to cause dental erosion, only Red wine has the added ability to show this on your teeth.

Tooth erosion isnt a loosing battle?

1) Alkaline mouthwashes are highly recommended

2) Proper brushing of your teeth with a soft tooth brush is encouraged.

3) Food and drink go together very well, acid in your food and acid in the wine can both be combatted at once with your mouths natural mineralisation.

4) Don’t brush your teeth for at least 30 mins after food, this helps minerals to heal the tooths structure.

5) Cheese can also help as it contains calcium in a high concentration

I hope this is helped a little towards taking away the fear factor of White wine.

Anyone fancy a drink now

At Classic Wine Direct we’re pretty upfront about what we do – we can’t compete with supermarkets on price so we offer wines from off the beaten track instead. We believe that these wines are more interesting and quite simply, tastier. However, it can be difficult for wine drinkers to understand the true value of a wine.

Back in 2006, Jean-Manuel Spriet, the then chief executive of Pernod Ricard UK, sent shockwaves through the wine trade by admitting that many of the “half price” wine deals in supermarkets were actually a rip-off.

The fact that a leading player in the wine business had admitted that consumers were being conned caused many a raised eyebrow.

half price deals are not in fact deals at all according to Spiret. Put simply, a bottle reduced from £7.99 to £3.wines are more likely to be worth £3.99.99 in the first place.

they mark up wines at selected regional outlets for a short period to cover them legally then mark it down. wine customers will believe they are getting a bargain price. Confused? the general idea is.

the wine industry is believe the main wine drinker is obsessed with the £3.99 price tag.the cheap price to customers affects the ways the suppliers are producing their wines.

Spiret thinks consumers know they are getting misled and they get use to it. this leads to the wine trade not havng any money.

Spiret’s gives us an inside view of the true tricks in which wine is sold by the big retailers. More worryingly it gives us an insight into what the big retailers really view their customers to be, namely lazy and ignorant.

the wine industry is not the only industry where these marketing practices happen.

two thirds of the wine sales are taken up by the supermarkets.

If the regular wine drinker believes that he is getting £7.99 of value from a £3.99 bottle then it follows that it will be much harder for the independent wine retailer to sell something whose real value is (and always was) £7.99.

There is, of course, no end in sight to this type of price fraud – the subjectivity of a wine’s value leaves this particular sector open to all sorts of underhand practices.

However, if the political mood continues to be against discount selling for alcohol, it will be interesting to see how the big retailers find a real price for wines they have knowingly mis-sold for the last 10 years.

Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 “Pale plonk packs an acidic punch!” says the BBC, Well, it does and it doesn’t. It also depends on the types of wine grapes as to how acidic the wine is and how long the wine is held in the mouth, as to how much damage is done. People who taste wine are much more likely to suffer from rotting teeth than your normal wine drinker, this is because they hold the wine in their mouths longer. Loads of noise on twitter for the story on http://twitter.com/winewarecouk and http://twitter.com/thirstforwine.

Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4

So what does White wine actually do to teeth?

It should be pointed out that the erosion of teeth by wine is the result of extensive wine use that would also lead to damaged liver and all sorts of other problems. The typical wine drinker who sips a glass of wine at dinner or with their evening meal should not be ‘scared off’ by the tooth decay headlines, remember 100 year old women in Italy swear that wine was the secret of their longevity.

White wine stains teeth:

I think that anyone who has drank a few glasses of Red would agree that, yes, it does. But have you ever thought how? “Red wine, unlike white, contains a highly-pigmented substance known as chromogen,” explained Dr. Wolff of the New York University College of Dentistry, they goes on to explain that “The acids in wine create rough spots and grooves that enable chemicals in other beverages that cause staining, such as coffee and tea, to penetrate deeper into the tooth”.

Dr Wolff pointed out that all wine has the abilty to damage the tooths surface, red wine merely lets us know where that damage is.

Can we halt tooth erosion?

1) Alkaline mouthwashes are highly recommended

2) Proper brushing of your teeth with a soft tooth brush is encouraged.

3) A superb accompaniment to your vino, is a sandwich or a curry. After eating food your mouth goes into repair over drive.

4) To aide remineralisation of your teeth, please wait for 20 mins after food before cleaning your teeth.

5) Cheese can also help as it contains calcium in a high concentration

I hope this is helped a little towards taking away the fear factor of White wine.

Feel like i want to go brush my teeth now

One can choose from different varieties of white wine today. As long as you are even a bit educated on wine then you know to appreciate this, but to those who are not it can just be downright confusing. Now regardless of the reason that you are going to buy some white wine and whether or not you have a specific type in mind such as Italian white wine, there are a few things that you should learn first.

Being more educated on white wine first before you head out to the liquor store or any winery, is really going to play a major role and make sure that you are going to find it easy to choose the right white wine for any occasion.

Styles, Pricing, Food Pairing, Of White Wine

It can definitely be a bit overwhelming when you take a look at all that is available to you and start to wonder how on earth you are ever going to be able to pick just one, but there are a few decisions that you are going to have to make when you go to buy white wine.

You are going to have to choose the styleof wine that you want for one. This is going to depend on the type of grapes that are used, a few of the most popular being chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, and Pinot Noir. The type of grapes that are used in a wine are what really make all the difference, because grapes are the base to every wine.

The price of the wine to be taken into account. There are some very delicious, expensive white wines available, but if you can’t afford them, you can’t afford them, so what are you going to do. Choose a wine that is in between being out of your price range and so cheap that you are going to be able to taste it, and this should be a good compromise for you.

One should buy the white wine in combination to the meal to be served. Otherwise, of course you can pretty much go wild and choose whatever one you like, but pairing wine with a meal is really the best thing that you can do because they will complement each other and be even more delicious.

Friday lunchtime is nearly upon us. This week seems to have been very long and busy.

The hours are counting down to the weekend and that means a few bottles of my favourite wine will be drunk.

Well if the truth be told, it’s normally a few bottles on a Friday, then a few more on Saturday and unfortunately just the one on Sunday. On a Monday morning I have to be up bright and breezy ready for another busy week at work.

I am still a bit of an amateur when it comes to choosing the right wine and I will admit to sometimes getting it wrong. Occasionally I have been known to serve a white instead of a red.

For Friday’s dinner I was thinking about dishing up a nice cut of steak. To accompany this I think I should be choosing a nice Cabernet Sauvignon. However my predicament is I am an absolute lover of any sort of Shiraz, so perhaps I should get a couple of bottles of this.

This Saturday we have a family celebration and I will be laying on a nice finger buffet at my house. I find that when I host a party at my house my family never seem to bring their own wine with them, so I always end up having to get extra supplies in. Cava is my favourite wine, so I will probably go for this. My dilemma will be should I get Rosado Cava or Reserve Cava, or perhaps, as it’s a big event, I should just get a case of each.

On Sunday night there will be just be the two of us and I think after our weekend of heavy drinking we will just enjoy a nice cup of tea.

I can’t believe it but that is another weekend done and dusted. It will soon be Monday morning again, which means the alarm will be buzzing nice and early ready for another stressful week at work.  Oh roll on Friday.

Wine country

For a lot of people, wine country is virtually uncharted territory. What wines go with what foods, when to drink each kind of wine and what are the best wines; these are mysteries to many people. Of course, it is impossible to know everything about wines, but this article will help uncover some of the mysteries about food wine. Knowing about dinner wines does not have to be obscure knowledge.

The idea that white wine is best with white meats and that red wine goes with red meats is an old idea, but still has validity in today. That is the most basic rule for wine. Another basic rule for food wine is to pair tastes that counteract each other. Each taste of food should be overridden by the wine’s flavor and vice versa. Food and wine together should act as a palate cleanser for each other. Being able to taste the flavor of the wine or food over the other means that your wine is not a good match for that food. It has become more difficult to match wines and foods in recent years because dishes have become more flavorful. In these cases, matching the body of the wine to the body of the food is the best option. Light-weight foods pair best with light-weight wines and so on.

The main determination for food wine combinations is the balance of sweetness, acidity and bitterness of both the food and wine. It is pretty easy to figure out what wine should go with what foods by considering the wine and food characteristics. If a sweet food is being served, pair it with a sweeter wine. For bitter foods, a more bitter wine is in order. The best way to determine the acidity of a food is to determine if it would go better with more acid added. For example, adding lemon to a fish means that a more acidic wine should be consumed. Some common white wines that are acidic are: Rieslings, most sparkling wines and white Bordeauxs. Acidic red wines include: Gamays, Pinot Noirs and Sangioveses. Sweet white wines include: White Zinfandels, other forms of Rieslings and Chenin Blancs. Sweet red wines can include: Port and Lambrusco. There are not many bitter white wines, but there are some bitter red wines. These can include, red Zinfandels, Merlots and Cabernet Sauvignons.

So there you have it, an overview about the very basic elements to food wine parings and how to determine which wines should be paired with what foods. The world of wine is very broad, but these simple rules can definitely help keep newcomers to the world of wine on the right track. If you are interested in learning more, then join a wine club or check out some books that cover the subject. You will be glad you did.

White zinfandel is a favorite wine for many people because of its fruit-filled makeup and general attraction. The wine is thought of as “white” and many folks feel that this is a mistake because of its pink hue. However, this is the right term for the product. It is not in truth a blush because the procedure of designing the ultimate product is dissimilar in a white zin than in a blush wine.  Have you ever wished to sit back with a pleasant glass of wine after a hard day of niche marketing?  If so, check out more about the bracing taste of white zin.

The zinfandel grape is actually red and it normally produces a red wine as its final outcome. The creators of white zinfandel transform the winemaking approach a touch in the course of making the pink-colored favorite among conventional wine drinkers. The skins of the grape contain the shade. When the outsides are left in throughout the fermentation procedure, the final product is a red-hued beverage.

The white zinfandel is pink in hue because the outsides are left in the mixture for a small bit of time then they are taken out. Removing the skins in the fermentation phase results in a product that has a pink tone because only some of the ingredient that holds the hue (the outsides) are only there for a minute span of time. Once they are removed, the shade is also. Only a hint of the red grape is visible in the final creation.

This pink wine has become a preference among the mainstream but the majority of wine lovers in the know are a bit turned off by the poor little white zin. Many wines are of superior quality and flavor but these wines additionally have to be acquired to suit the appetite. A small number of people like their very first glass of fine wine. White zin is a perfect link between the casual wine drinker and the experienced wine enthusiast.  For instance, like getting a personal trainer certification is the first move to building a profitable training company, so white zin is the first step to a life of wine appreciation.

After the feel for a respectable white zinfandel is gotten many propose progressing to a new palatable wine. Riesling is my first option as it is extremely nice and smooth on the tongue. It is not entirely as sweet as a port wine or a white zin but it provides a great way to explore more intricate wines.  They are a wonderful way to calm down if you are tense, for example by yeast infection symptoms.

Once you acquire a taste for a decent Riesling you might turn your nose up at the humble white zinfandel but this would be a mistake. There are a lot of fantastic wines produced by way of this special method. In reality white merlot has emerged on to the marketplace. Pink is a hue for all times after all.

White Wines

 Having invested possibly hundreds of dollars in your latest bottle of vintage wine (ah well, we can but dream), the next important decision is part to store this prized possession? The main issue when it crucial period to storing wine is that it needs to be maintained at a cool temperature of between 12 and 16 degrees Celsius. Shoved under the bed won’t do.
 
 Many modern wines do not need to be aged over a great period of time; therefore extensive cellars are often unnecessary. Having said this, if you have the time, space and resource to excavate a cellar, your wine will surely benefit. A purpose built cellar is not normally an option for most households and so suitable alternatives must be explored.
 Ideal areas for storage include a corner of a garage, garden shed, an unused fireplace or a cupboard that is against an outside wall.
 Wherever you choose to store your wine, a few basic criteria are worth keeping in mind.
 Choose an area that is less likely to be subjected to fluctuating temperatures caused by household heating systems.
 Wines benefit from being kept in dark conditions. Although this is not always practical, wine should certainly be stored in an area that is not exposed it to direct sunlight.
 As a final point, always store your red wine bottles on their side. Corks are designed to be kept moist, so that they remain airtight and do not crumble when a corkscrew is inserted.
 Bear in mind that some wines do not benefit from being stored at all. If you have poor or no storage facilities available, consider purchasing wine that matures quickly such as most white wines or new technology reds or, possibly, a new Beaujolais.
 Move white wine as little as possible once it has been placed in storage, unless of course it is being moved into a glass!
 
 If you have a particularly special wine collection, it may be worth engaging a specialist company to store your wine for you. Good storage has been recognized as vital for many wines and as such, many companies now provide storage facilities. Of course, this does not come cheap and is best reserved for those very special bottles or for those experts who are considering selling their wine on, at a future date.
 
 Decanting is a strange word to many dwarfs. Some do not fix know what it means exactly. Taking the sophistication out of it, decanting literally means pouring the wine from the bottle to a special glass container. This is done in order to expose the wine to oxygen and enrich it.
 
 What is the meaning of this process? Do all wines benefit from decanting or not? The wine experts are not in agreement. Some say wine should be decanted in order to allow it to “breathe” and develop fully before consumption. Others claim decanting does not contribute to the quality of the wine.
 
 So who is right? Well, the truth is somewhere in the middle. Decanting does seem to benefit certain wines more than others. Max* red wines, except for the superlatively aged and some white ones would definitely benefit from decanting 1-2 hours former serving. Fledgling red wines, on the other hand, which are low in tannins, light and fruity, would not improve if allowed to oxidize. There are also wines that would actually suffer from decanting. Those are the aged reds. Their quality if possible worsen if allowed too loads* contact with air.

If you’re serious about your wines you have probably joined a wine club. If you are a wine club member you can be assured you will have frequent wine spills, and the following information will be valuable for you

Nothing strikes fear and dread into the heart of any spot-fearing individual than a red wine stain. This classic spot has ruined more than one garment. It has been the cause of dread for homeowners who own light-colored carpeting and it has left many smiles dingy-purple.

Not every wine stain is red. You might find yourself wondering how to get rid of a white wine stain as well. The initial step is to pour some cold water on the affected area quickly. This little task needs to be done as quickly as possible. These types of spills usually occur during a special occasion like a party and you may feel a bit rude, but it is crucial to get that cold water to the wine spot as soon as you possibly can in order to assure that it will be removed promptly.

If the white stain is on clothing or other material that can be turned inside out, pour the water from the back of the area instead of the front. Of course, this approach can’t be used on most rugs so pouring from the top is the only option for these materials. However, a blouse or a shirt should be turned inside out when addressing the area.

The second stage in the white wine stain removal process is to rub the fabric with laundry detergent. After applying the laundry detergent, let the garment stand for about ten to twenty minutes. Dish detergent will work very well with this, too. If you are looking at a white wine stain on a rug, it is definately best to use a carpet spot cleaner. These can be found at your local supermarket in little time but it is always a good idea to keep some on hand for just such an emergency.

If the wine stain is still visible then let the fabric soak in cold water for at least thirty minutes at the bare minimum. This can be quite inconvenient but it is a must if you want to save the garment. Wash the fabric as you normally would after the soak but be sure to look for the wine stain before putting the garment into the dryer. If the spot is visible, try a laundry stain remover and rewash the item.

Your rug may need to be professionally cleaned if the white wine stain is still prevalent after a few hours. This professional cleaning needs to be arranged as soon as possible to assure that the white wine stain will be removed completely.