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Wine Types
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Understanding the characteristics of different types of wines is essential to fully appreciating a fine wine.
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Barbera
Tangy, ripe currant and cherry flavors with herbal and tomato hints; medium to light bodied.
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Cabernet Sauvignon
Black cherry, current (cassis). Cedar and vanilla, if oak-aged. Rich, medium to full bodied and strong dry tannins.
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Cabernet Franc
Medium bodied, dry berry, cherry and olivey herbal flavors. Aromatic and fruity, but dry.
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Gamay Beaujolais
Light bodied with fresh fruity cranberry flavors; tangy.
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Merlot
Medium-bodied, dry and smooth with fruity black current, berry and fresh flavors. Hints of mocha, cedar and vanilla, if oak-aged. Lush, plummy, velvety wine.
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Mourvèdre
Quite dry with berry-plum fruit with hints of nutmeg and wild herbs. Spicy, peppery, herbal and tannic. Medium to full-bodied.
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Pinot Noir
Light to medium bodied; flavors of cherry, with truffle and clove-spice, smoke notes.
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Sangiovese
Produces well-structured, often high-acid wines.
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Shiraz/Syrah
Full-bodied smokey and peppery, with sweet blackberries, prunes and smoke. Strong tannins.
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Zinfandel
Hearty, robust and tannic with jammy berry-like flavors and a touch of pepper and spice.
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WHITE/BLUSH |
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Chardonnay
Buttery, creamy, appley, lemon and pineapple; medium-dry to full-bodied. Vanilla, butterscotch and smoke notes if oak-aged.
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Chenin Blanc
Fruity aroma of peach, pear and melon with a slight sweetness. Soft and light-bodied.
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Gewürztraminer
Crisp and spicy flavors of cloves and nutmeg with fragrant floral. Varies in sweetness from dry, medium to late harvest. Deeply colored, extravagantly aromatic, and fuller in body than most white wines.
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Johannisberg Riesling
Fruity flavors of peaches and apricots. A flowery bouquet and a long finish, light-bodied and often tangy and sweet.
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Pinot Grigio
Medium full bodied, crisp and dry with forward fruit.
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Riesling
Produces some of the world's great sweet wines, particularly ice wines as well as wonderfully crisp. light, dry wines.
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Sauvignon Blanc
Lemony, grassy, herbal aroma. Crisp, tangy, citrus and melon flavor. Usually quite dry.
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Sémillon
Full-bodied, low acidity and mild aroma. Often blended with Chardonnay/Sauvignon Blanc.
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White Zinfandel
Made from the Zinfandel grapes. Usually sweet, fruity, crisp and fresh. |
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