Dining Room Training – Red Wines
Handout
Red wines
get their color and body from the skins of the grape, and not the juice
inside. Some grapes have thin skins and
produce light wines like Pinot Noir, and some grapes have thick skins making
heavy wines like Cabernet or Syrah. Red
wines should be served at room temperature.
The heavier, and more expensive wines need more time to “breath” to open
up the flavors in the wine. This is why
we Decant the more expensive wines in the decanter. We also use the decanters to spate
sediment of solid particles that collect in the bottom of the bottles.
sediment of solid particles that collect in the bottom of the bottles.
Body:
the body of a red wine can be heavier because of the ripeness and
quality of the fruit, higher alcohol content, as well as the presence of more
tannins. Tannins: come naturally from the skins, seeds, and oak
barrels. Tannins are what you “feel” in
the mouth when your mouth dries out, and your tongue sticks to the roof of your
mouth and the wine feels gritty like sand-paper.
Pinot Noir: (light body) - The red grape of the
Burgundy district or France. Strong cherry and strawberry aromas sometimes with
spice and cola flavors. Food Pairings with Pinot Noir: Duck, Turkey, Chicken,
Coq au Vin, Rabbit, Pheasant, Salmon, and other fishes. Gamay:
(light body) - The grape that makes Beaujolais Village. Only grown in the southern part of Burgundy,
it is a lighter, fresher, and more fruity version of Pinot Noir.
Merlot: (medium body) - A close cousin of Cabernet
Sauvignon, but lower in tannins and makes wines that mature faster, and softer
in texture. The second most popular grape from Bordeaux. It usually has ripe berry components in the
bouquet, and tends to be soft, fruity and smooth in flavour. Food Pairings: Red meats, pastas, almost
anything.
Cabernet Sauvignon: (medium to heavy body) - The king of
red wine grapes is the main grape in Bordeaux, France. It is also very popular in Napa Valley,
California as well as Australia. Its
classic flavors are currant, plum, black cherry and spice. It is often blended
to produce wines of increased complexity. Taste characteristics include dark
cherry, cedar, tobacco and black currant. Food Pairings: Steak, lamb and other red
meats.
Meritage: (medium to heavy body) - Is not a
French word, it is not even an English word.
It is a made up word to identify wines from California that use the same
grapes as those in Bordeaux. It must be
a blend of at least two of the Bordeaux grape varieties: Cabernet Sauvignon,
Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, and Petite Verdot.
Claret: Is a
name used in English,
primarily in Britain, for
red wine from
the Bordeaux
region of France (USA
calls it Meritage).
Syrah / Shiraz: (heavy
body) - Genetically the same grape, just called two different names in
different countries. This grape thrives in France, Australia, America and
other regions with ease. While the grape varietal is referred to as Syrah in
France and America, it is called the Shiraz (shih-RAHZ) in Australia. This
grape makes the Cotes du Rhone wine from France, as well as the Chateauneuf du
Pape. Rich and complex with pronounced pepper, spice, black cherry, tobacco,
leather and roasted nut flavors. Food Pairings with Syrah: Beef fillet with
tomato based sauce, Rich spicy dishes, Kangaroo, Spiced duck, Roast game, Sharp
cheddar and Roquefort cheeses. Petite
Sirah: is related to, but different than, Syrah. Petite Sirah is a smaller grape, making a
darker and heavier red wine.
Zinfandel: (heavy body) - Produced almost
exclusively in California, and can produce solid red wines, with good fruit and
structure. This is the same grape that makes White Zinfandel where the juice is
in contact with the skin for a much shorter time making it a pink wine instead
of red. To be called an “Old Vine”
Zinfandel it means that the grape vines (plants) are more than 50 years
old. Wines produced from this grape have
forward fruit flavors and spicy overtones. Food Pairings with Zinfandel: Steak,
Lamb, Venision, Ripe Brie and aged cheeses.
Italy: Most wines are labeled by the region instead of
the grape. Chianti is the name of
a region where the Sangiovese grape dominates.
Barolo and Barbaresco are regions in the north where the Nebbiolo
grape dominates. Amarone is a
blend of red grapes that are dried on straw mats after they are harvested
giving the resulting wine a raisin like flavor, slight sweetness, and higher
alcohol. Brunello is the name of
a grape from the Montalcino region.
France: France
is thought to be the beginning of the wine industry as we know it today. France has very strict laws on quality that
govern what types of grapes can be grown in specific regions. They do this because certain varieties of
grapes grow better in different climates and soils. Cabernet and Merlot grow
better in the warmer region of come from Bordeaux. Pinot Noir grows better in cooler areas like
Burgundy and Champagne.
European Wines vs. New World Wines: Wines from the old world (Europe) generally
have flavors that are more earthy and spicy, have higher acid and lower
alcohol. New World (USA, Australia,
Chile) generally have heavier fruit flavors, more alcohol, and more oak. European wines are generally named for the
region that they come from, and USA (new world) wines are generally named for
the grape that the wine is made from.
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