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Blended Wines and Varietal Wine
by Darby HiggsYou are a novice wine lover, sipping your wine, enjoying the new experiences that fermendted grapes are providing you, when at a nearby table, you overhear someone talking about blended wines and varietal wines. Questions that spring to mind “ What is the difference between the two types of wine?” and “How important is the distinction?”
At the basic level, the difference is quite simple. Varietal wines are made from a single grape variety. Blended wines are made using two or more types of grapes. For an example of the two catagories of wine we need look no further than the two great red wine styles of France:
-
Burgundy red wine is composed of single variety of grape - Pinot Noir. On the other hand, Bordeaux red wines
are most often
blends of up to five grape varieties, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Malbec and Petit Verdot.
Watch out though, the winemakers in Bordeaux will occasionally produce a few Bordeaux wines made from a
single variety, but that is what makes learning about wine so fascinating, the exceptions in production
along with drinking exceptional wines...
Looking at wines from Down Under, you may notice many other modest Australian wines, with lesser claims to fame, are also regional blends. A clue that an Ozzy wine is a regional blend can be found on the label: often the words “wine of South Eastern Australia” tells you that the origins of this Australian varietal wine used grapes from different vineyards.
Another unusual varietal wine is one made from a single variety of grape, but are blends of several different vintages (ie, wines made in different years). This is quite rare for table wines.
While on the topic of labels, you should be aware that many wines bearing a single varietal name can legally contain up to fifteen percent of other varieties. If the wine is labelled as a blend, then the variety with the largest percentage composition should be named first, for example, a wine labeled Cabernet Merlot, should contain a larger percentage of Cabernet than of Merlot.
Our second question is “How important is the distinction?” Well, if you find a wine that you enjoy
and it is a blend, then you should continue to drink it. However, if you wish to extend your wine knowledge
and thus enhance your wine experience you should try varietal wines whenever possible. Why? This gives you
the chance to explore the subtle differences of individual grape varieties. And then further see the
differences that occur when one type of grape is grown in, say, California as compared to Australia or Chili or France...
There are hundreds of varietal wines available, each with a special subtle difference waiting for
you to discover.
About the author: Darby Higgs is an expert on Australian wines made from unusual and rare grape varieties. He is the manager of the Vinodiversity website at www.vinodiversity.com
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News About Varietal Wine
Two Worlds of Argentine Wines Wall Street Journal It's another order of the varietal's intensity and depth. 'Mendoza' Malbec 2008 ($22) From four vineyards. Santiago Achával Becú calls this "Malbec as fruit ... |
Chile Quake Rocks Its Booming Wine Industry BusinessWeek "This wine is an experiment," said Torres. "We wanted to see if this old, widely planted varietal could work as a fine wine, and if it succeeds, ... |
 Times LIVE | Q & A: Running with the barrels Times LIVE Tempranillo is the major red varietal of Rioja, a Spanish appellation larger than the entire SA wine-growing region. We have over 65000ha of vines out of a ... |
 Pahrump Valley Times | Winery marks 20 years Pahrump Valley Times Barbera, an Italian varietal producing another robust red wine, is increasing in popularity with Americans. Loken said they will plant a vineyard in barbera ... |
The Chronicle Recommends: California Grenache San Francisco Chronicle 2007 Qupé Purisima Mountain Vineyard Santa Ynez Valley Grenache ($35): It's no surprise that one of our best examples came from Rhone-varietal pioneer Bob ... |
Sheila's Out Shopping: It's not just Manischewitz Naples Daily News The company has a wide range of wines from the simple to the complex in a variety of styles. They have pioneered the South African varietal Pinotage in ... |
Exploring the single vineyard wines of Niagara St. Catharines Standard I found the most profound sense of place was found in the Riesling flight, which makes the most sense because that varietal is all about pure expression of ... |
 Los Angeles Times | FOOD AND WINE Los Angeles Times And Seghesio's wine makes for excellent tasting. Its Sangiovese, from the oldest plantings in North America, made me regret ever maligning the varietal as ... |
STORE REVIEW Central Bottle excites the palate The MIT Tech The wine racks are categorized both by region and by varietal and present a vast variety. For those looking to explore new regions, labels, and even blends ... |
Back to wine school Houston Chronicle (blog) The upcoming one will focus on a different varietal each week so, for example, you'll get to taste cabs from California, Bordeaux, Australia, ... |
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