Being the obsessive wine enthusiast that I am, I thought I would share for you all some info I've picked up recently from my first ever wine course. Currently I'm taking my Level 1 of the WSET or Wine Spirit Education Trust here in Vancouver. With the WSET being the most respected course in the world, I've tried my best to sit back and learn from the best.
Here are some interesting points that I've picked up so far.
- So some of you might already have known this so don't laugh at me just yet, but when making Champagne Wine in Champagne France, did you know that they turn the bottles everyday by HAND while the bottle is fermenting so as to help the yeast make its way down the bottle. This method is termed "method champenoise" a method so old in its ways that only a man can turn the bottle, yes only a man! The method itself calls for flat or regular wine to be made, generally from either pinot noir and/or chardonnay grapes. Then this wine is bottled. Yeast and sugar are then added. The bottle is then closed and put on a 45 degree angle. The bottle sits in this position until the yeast has eaten all the sugars while making its way down the bottle. As the yeast eat the sugars, the end result is CO2. This CO2 is what gives the wine its bubbles, thus making it champagne. Cool huh! As you read this you may be going, okay so what? But think about it, all bottles of champagne in the entire world are turned by hand, EACH AND EVERY ONE. That's what a couple million a year. Now that's nuts. Leave it to the french to stick with tradition.
- Wine will never have an alcohol level higher than 15%. Never. As yeast eat sugars found in grape juice during fermentation, the alcohol levels rise thus making the grape juice less sweet. However, yeast cannot live once the alcohol levels reach a certain point, they die off, therefore terminating fermentation. Now if you're ever looking to buy a dry wine, look for a high alcohol content, this generally will provide you with a wine low in sugars.
- The term "Noble grape" in reference to wine is used only for grapes that are grown from the highest quality. These grapes or vines tend to have been around for a long time, usually in France. There are only 6 types of noble grapes, 3 red and 3 white. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Pinot Noir for the reds, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Riesling for the whites.
- Syrah and Shiraz are made from the same grape but are two totally different styles of wine. Syrah wines are made in the old world style, they generally have a more earthy flavor, with higher amounts of oak being present. Shiraz wines tend to be more fruit flavored, with a strong berry "jammy" taste. They also tend to have a good oakyness to them as well. If you enjoy a good Aussie Shiraz and think a Syrah will be the same, you might be shocked at how different they can be.
- This one's for Gronz. Chardonnays most classic food pairing is Oysters. Go bye a good bottle of French Chablis, bring a little hot sauce and enjoy.
- When describing wines to a friend or customer, I find most people use the terms, full bodied, sweet, oaky, tannic, etc... But what I've learnt is that acidity is the one term that best describes a wines style and it's a term that I find is rarely used. Acidity is very important to wine, it's what gives it its refreshing quality. When your mouth waters, that's acidity. Too much acidity and you can have a wine that's too tart and too little and wine will fall flat and flabby.
- The four main components of wine are Acid, Tannin, Body and Sweetness.
- Tannins come only from the skins of grapes. A white wine cannot be tannic since the skins have no contact with the juice. Tannins are what give red wine its puckery taste.
- The optimal storage temperature of wines is 11 degrees Celsius.
- This was one I was surprised to learn, but as white wines age they darken in colour whereas with red wines they lighten in colour. I would have never thought that to be the case.
Okay so that's all I want to share today. I'll give you some more soon.
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