General Knowledge

Temperature

• Most red wines taste best at room temperature – between 60 and 65 degrees Fahrenheit. Red wines served too cold often taste bitter, metallic, or tannic. If served too warm, red wine can taste flabby, dull, or overly alcoholic.
• A bottle of red wine should feel cool to the touch.
• White wine should be served cool, between 50-55 degrees Fahrenheit, but not too cold as this inhibits the aromas and flavors of the wine.

Storage

• The weakest part of a wine bottle is the neck, so storing bottles of wine completely upside down can cause problems.
• Strong light, particularly sunlight, can be harmful to wine if the bottle is exposed for a long period of time. For this reason most wines are packaged in green or brown bottles.
• Wines should rest quietly. Constant vibration can damage their flavor, and storage areas should not be located adjacent to dishwashers, air conditioners, heat exhaust ducts, etc.
• Wine racks should be designed so that wine bottles are stored horizontally, allowing the cork to remain in contact with wine, ensuring that it will stay moist and pliable. If the bottle is allowed to stand upright for prolonged periods of time (two months or longer), the cork will dry out, allowing air to enter the bottle, which eventually causes oxidation, and finally spoilage. An exception to this rule is bottles that are sealed with plastic corks and/or metal screw caps; these can be stored upright.

Cabernet Sauvignon

Definition

• A superb red grape responsible in large part for the great wines of Bordeaux, for California’s finest red wines, and for outstanding wines from many other countries.
• Accounts for a quarter of the world-wide red-grape acreage.

Taste Profile
Black tea, herbs, black or green olives, cedar, bell pepper, blackberry, black currant.

Food Pairings

• Dishes with a single focus are most successful with Cabernet.
• Good with steak, lamb, pot roast, veal, duck, game birds, walnuts and pecans.
• Cheese pairings include aged Jack, Camembert, Gorgonzola, and Parmesan.

Chardonnay

Definition

• Often considered the very finest of all white-wine grapes; is widely planted throughout the world.
• An appealing balance of fruit, acidity, and texture.

Taste Profile
Apples, figs, green apple, peaches, tropical fruits, light lemon citrus. If aged in wood, a certain buttery flavor.

Food Pairings

• Dishes with some richness help underscore Chardonnay’s fuller body and creamy mouth feel.
• Good with most appetizers, rich seafood, shellfish, poultry, veal, and pork.
• Cheese pairings include Brie, Jack, Parmesan, and Swiss.

Gewurztraminer

Definition

• A native of the Pfalz region of Germany, this grape produces distinctive white wine with a pungent, perfumed aroma.

Taste Profile
Apricot, green apple, spicy peach, rose petal, honeysuckle.

Food Pairings

• Pair with foods that are smoky, salty, slightly sweet, or spicy.
• Avoid pairing with dishes that have too much acidity.
• Good with crab, mussels, pork, poultry, shrimp, turkey.
• Cheese pairings include Jalapeno Jack, smoked Gouda, and smoked Cheddar.
• Outstanding with hot, spicy, Asian foods as well as Cajun dishes.

Merlot

Definition

• A distinguished red-wine grape that accounts for more than half the total acreage of red grapes in the Bordeaux region of France.

Taste Profile
Hints of green olives, black pepper, plum, blackberry, vanilla, spicy clove, cinnamon, and toasted oak.

Food Pairings

• Good in marinades or sauces.
• Pairs well with beef, duck, lamb, pork, tuna, veal.
• Cheese pairings include Camembert, Cheddar, Parmesan, and smoked Gouda.

Pinot Grigio

Definition

• “Pinot Gris” and “Pinot Grigio” are produced from the same grape, Gris being French and Grigio being Italian.
• Pinot Grigio is a light-skinned mutation of Pinot Noir.
• It is called Gris/Grigio because it is gray, the meaning of the term.

Taste Profile
Lemon, melons, fresh herbs

Food Pairings

• Matches better with foods that are high in acid.
• Fresh seafood, Cajun chicken, veal, cream sauces, eggplant.
• Cheese pairings include Cheddar, Gruyere, and Goat cheese.

Pinot Noir

Definition

• A distinguished, but fragile, red grape that produces fine wines only in certain wine districts.
• Pinot Noir wines have a subtlety, complexity and finesse unmatched by any other wine.
• This is the red wine that has made Burgundy famous.

Taste Profile
Mint, black cherry, earthy, mushroom.

Food Pairings

• Ideal with fine cuts of beef, herb-roasted poultry, grilled salmon, roast pork, game, grilled mushrooms, rosemary, mint, and basil.
• Cheese parings include Brie, aged Goat cheeses.

Riesling

Definition

• One of the great white-wine grapes that originated in Germany.
• Riesling grapes yield exceptional wines, especially if grown in relatively cool districts.

Taste Profile
Flowery, fragrant aroma and a distinctive, fruity acidity; tropical fruits, peaches and apricots, fresh floral aromas.

Food Pairings

• Good with most appetizers and is a good “set up” wine for fuller wines to follow.
• Good as summer, outdoor wine.
• Pair with delicate, more subtle dishes – chicken, ham, seafood.
• Cheese pairings include Blue cheese, Cambozola and Feta.
• Pairs well with spicy, hot foods.

Sauvignon Blanc

Definition

• An important white grape in Bordeaux and the Loire Valley that has now found fame in New Zealand, Chile, and California. It performs well in the Loire Valley and particularly on the well-drained chalky soils found in Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé, where it produces bone dry, highly aromatic, racy wines, with grassy and sometimes smoky, gunflint-like nuances.

Taste Profile
Grassy, or herbaceous; hints of green olives, green apple, hay, lemon, melon, vanilla, and fresh-mown grass.

Food Pairings

• Good with fresh herbs, lighter dishes.
• Pairs well with salads, soups, vegetarian dishes.
• Good with chicken, game hens, seafood, turkey.
• Cheese pairings include Feta, Goat, Parmigiano-Reggiano and Swiss..

Zinfandel

Definition

• The most widely planted red-wine grape in California, accounting for nearly 20% of the state’s red-grape vineyards.

Taste Profile
Spicy and berrylike; dried berry, clove, spice, chocolate, tobacco, ripe jammy berry flavors and black pepper.

Food Pairings

• Pair with beef, duck, game hens, lamb, pork, sausage and veal.
• Cheese pairings include Cheddar, smoked Gouda, dry Jack and Parmesan.