Page 21 - Anna Doxie first new format

The best part is that you actually get to taste the wine be- most of us who graduated the sixth grade is wet, but not in
fore having to fork out the money to buy it. Before I could the language of wine. Sweet is the opposite of dry…go
attend one of these events I decided to obtain some basic figure. In a sweet wine only part of the sugar from the
knowledge so I could appear a bit more wine savvy. grapes has been converted to alcohol. These are usually
I decided to start at the very beginning. I felt if I could
understand the winemaking process then the rest would
be a piece of cake….hmmm maybe not, but that was my
original thought and I’m sticking to it.

The winemaking process includes 5 steps:
1. Harvesting the grapes.

2. Juicing the grapes (this means crushing
the grapes to get liquid out of them.)
3. Fermenting the grapes (a natural
process.)
4. Filtering the wine (removing sediment )
5. Bottling the wine.

This process has not changed very much over the years,
however the true art of winemaking comes from the
individual winemakers. These are the individuals who
decide all of the specifics which can greatly affect the
final product. Such things as how the grapes are grown,
where they are grown, what type of containers they will
be housed in while fermenting, and for how long, all play
a huge part in the final taste of that wine in your glass.

Most table wines contain less than 14% alcohol, which
is hard to believe considering the times when it only took San Diego Woman
one glass to make us feel a bit tipsy. The multitude of
wines available vary, and wines are often placed into
categories. The most common of these categories is the 21
one based on color. There are red, pink and white wines
to choose from, the main difference being whether or not
there was skin present during the fermentation process.

Some red wine favorites include Cabernet Sauvignon,
Merlo, Zinfandel, Pinot Noir. They earn their deep rich color lower in alcohol at about 11% whereas the dry wines are
from the red grape skins called anthocyanins. Grape skin more likely 12-14%.
also contains tannins, which is a substance that adds a dry So, how do you pick the perfect wine when you are enter-
somewhat bitter flavor to the wine, this is not found in white taining and you have no clue? I have one easy answer,
wines. The longer the skins stay in contact with the juice ask the wine sales person. I know this is cheating, but let’s
the deeper the color. Pinks wines, such as rose or blush face it, if you want the best… speak to a professional. It
are only briefly fermented with the skins. White wines such is helpful if you do have an idea what food you are serving
as Riesling, Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay, and Sauvignon and a general knowledge as to whether your guests like a
Blanc have no contact with the skin of the grapes that are red, white or blush wine and if they prefer dry or sweet.
used to produce these favorites. If you decide that you are more of the self starter type and
want to pick out your own wine take note of the wine labels.
Perhaps one of the most confusing terms for me when it These will generally give you some basic information about
comes to pretending to know about wine is the concept of the wine you are holding in your hand. Wine labels have
a “dry” wine. Okay, leaving aside the fact that wine is liquid information such as variety of grape, country of origin, re-
and therefore wet, how could a wet item be dry? Per- gion and the winemaker. You can generally find the alcohol
haps it’s the child in me trying to make sense of this new content as well, which will give you hints as to the dryness
language of wine. What I learned was that when a wine of the wine you are considering. Just remember it is okay
is dry it means that all the sugar in the grape has been to ask for help when trying to pick the perfect wine.
transformed into alcohol. Now, I know the opposite of dry to
March/April 2008