Chilean Wine History & Style

Chilean Wine History & Style
The Buddhists say that life is suffering. The capitalists say that life is a struggle. The communists say that life is a team-effort. But the Chileans say that life is beautiful. Why? Because sometimes you are just born with a full deck of cards. Chile is perhaps the only wine making country on Earth that seems to have everything exactly where it wants it.
Spanning a formidable length of 2,700 miles, Chile is the poster child for geographic isolation. With the frigid Antarctic ice off its southern border, a desert off the northern one, and its heart squeezed between the Pacific Ocean on the western border and the epic Andes on the eastern border, it is quite literally a cradle for the choicest wine growing conditions on the planet.
In fact, the isolation has fostered a wine growing environment in which little or no pesticides need be used to ward off grape eating predators, an achievement that speaks most notably when Chile can claim along with Argentina to be one of only two countries in the world to not have been afflicted by the lethal phylloxera pest (this insect destroyed European vineyards in the late 19th century and reeked havoc on California vineyards in the 20th).
To add insult to injury, the grape-growing environment is so favorable, and the land and labor so cheap, that Chilean wine has developed a reputation for having the best value to price ratios on the market.
While Chile's wine history runs deep – the first vines were allegedly planted by Cortez in the early 16th century - it ran up against the same wall that colonized wine regions of high potential did like Argentina and South Africa. In all cases, poor political climate combined with restrictive taxes and local populations that favored cheap, unexceptional wines to force wine makers to keep their creativity relatively tame. And like these countries, Chile was ready to rise to the challenge when conditions finally shifted – in its case during the late 1980's.
In perhaps the most precocious growth spurt in wine making history, Chile went from wines that were nothing of note to wines that were first class in less than ten years. Vineyard establishments in Spain, Italy and the United States were ready to invest heavily when conditions were ripe, resulting in an amazing number of Chilean vineyards having the most up-to-date facilities around. As if the perfect wine growing climate wasn't enough.
These investments in the best equipment as well as select French and American oak barrels helped give a boost to wine makers that were already chopping at the bit to take advantage of the wine growing climate and make some truly notable wines.
Some places are just born to be great, but the beauty of it in this case is that the rest of us can enjoy it at a great value!
Chile is perhaps best known for its world-class interpretation of the Cabernet Sauvignon grape. A few bold souls have even claimed that there are certain Chilean vineyards that are more Bordeaux than Bordeaux!
A large part of Chile's fascination with the big four grapes – Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Merlot and Sauvignon Blanc – revolves around its targeting of the American market. During the late 80's and early 90's when the Chilean wine boom really came into full swing, the American market was devouring wines that were not only made from recognizable grapes like Cabernet and Chardonnay, but also were sold at a reasonable price. To this day, the United States remains the premier importer of Chilean wine.
One of the more important ingredients in the recent Chilean wine exploration was that while major vineyards upgraded their facilities, smaller, family owned vineyards decided to take the leap and market their own brands. The result was that more definitively unique wines emerged from the area, though at higher prices. This suggests that while a reasonably priced $10 Chilean Chardonnay will be pretty good, a more expensive $40 or $50 bottle will be great.
Anyone familiar with Chilean wines will not be surprised to hear the reference to Carmenere, a medium bodied grape that is the source of many smoky and bold reds. In fact, a Chilean Merlot might actually be crafted from the Carmenere grape. As more mature Chilean vineyards are able to distinguish between vines using DNA testing, consistency in labeling practices will become more dependable.
There is also an important labeling note to keep heed of regarding Chilean wines. Because of Chile's proximity to the Andes, there is often too much water introduced into the irrigation process (note from discussions in the Wine Growing categories of SavorEachGlass.com that, in general, the less water a vine receives the higher quality the final harvest will be). As a result, some higher quality vineyards have shifted to a drip irrigation system that controls the amount of water introduced throughout the growing season. If you note anything related to drip irrigation on the back of a bottle of Chilean wine, there is a good bet it will be a keeper.

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History of Wine

HISTORY OF WINE
Fossil vines, 60-million-years-old, are the earliest scientific evidence of grapes. The earliest written account of viniculture is in the Old Testament of the Bible which tells us that Noah planted a vineyard and made wine. As cultivated fermentable crops, honey and grain are older than grapes, although neither mead nor beer has had anywhere near the social impact of wine over recorded time. Wine and history have greatly influenced one another.
MIDDLE EASTERN ORIGINS
An ancient Persian fable credits a lady of the court with the discovery of wine. This Princess, having lost favor with the King, attempted to poison herself by eating some table grapes that had spoiled in a jar. She became intoxicated and giddy and fell asleep. When she awoke, she found the stresses that had made her life intolerable had dispersed. Returning to the source of her relief, her subsequent conduct changed so remarkably that she regained the King's favor. He shared his daughter's discovery with his court and ...Certainly wine, as a natural phase of grape spoilage, was "discovered" by accident and is not an invention of man. It is established that grape cultivation and wine drinking had started by about 4000 BC and possibly as early as 6000 BC. The first developments were around the Caspian Sea and in Mesopotamia, near present-day Iran. Texts from tombs in ancient Egypt prove that wine was in use there around 2700 to 2500 BC. Priests and royalty were using wine, while beer was drunk by the workers. The Egyptians developed the first arbors and pruning methods. Archeological excavations have uncovered many sites with sunken jars, so the effects of temperature on stored wine were probably known.
GRECO-ROMAN CONTRIBUTIONS
Wine came to Europe with the spread of the Greek civilization around 1600 BC. Homer's Odyssey and Iliad both contain excellent and detailed descriptions of wine. Wine was an important article of Greek commerce and Greek doctors, including Hippocrates, were among the first to prescribe it. The Greeks also learned to add herbs and spices to mask spoilage.The foundation and strength of viniculture in Western Europe are primarily due, however, to the influence of the Romans. Starting about 1000 BC, the Romans made major contributions in classifying grape varieties and colors, observing and charting ripening characteristics, identifying diseases and recognizing soil-type preferences. They became skilled at pruning and increasing yields through irrigation and fertilization techniques.The Romans also developed wooden cooperage, a great advance for wine storage which had previously been done in skins or jars. They may also have been the first to use glass bottles, as glassblowing became more common during this era.
ECONOMICS, POLITICS, AND RELIGION
By the first century AD, wine was being exported from the Empire (Italy) to Spain, Germany, England and Gaul (France). It wasn't long before these regions began developing their own vineyards and the Roman Emperor forbid the import of French wines to eliminate their competition with the local wines. Over the next few centuries, France would become dominant on the world wine market. Monastic wineries were responsible for establishing vineyards in Burgundy, Champagne and the Rhine Valley. Sacramental usage preserved wine industry methods and traditions through the dark ages.By 1152, during the reign of Henry II, Britain had become the principal customer of Bordeaux. The end of the Hundred Years War in 1453 left the city of Calais as the only French territory still under British control and trade between England and France nearly cut off. So the English "discovered" and developed a great love of Port.Exploration, conquest and settlement brought wine to Mexico, Argentina and South Africa in the 1500s and 1600s. Although there were many attempts during this period to plant European wine vines along the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts of North America and in the Mississippi River basin valleys, none were successful. Each vineyard planted would die off within two or three seasons. No one apparently sought to determine why, even though little difficulty was encountered in Mexico or California vineyards. In the late 1800s, one answer to this mystery would ultimately prove fatal for nearly all the vineyards of Europe.
WINE MISSION FOR CALIFORNIA
Hernando Cortez, as Governor of Mexico in 1525, ordered the planting of grapes. The success was such that the King of Spain forbid new plantings or vineyard replacements in Mexico after 1595, fearing his colony would become self-sufficient in wine. This edict was enforced for 150 years, effectively preventing a commercial wine industry from forming.As in Europe, however, vineyards survived under the auspices of the church and the care of the missions. In 1769, Franciscan missionary Father Junipero Serra planted the first California vineyard at Mission San Diego. Father Serra continued to establish eight more missions and vineyards until his death in 1784 and has been called the "Father of California Wine". The variety he planted, presumably descended from the original Mexican plantings, became known as the Mission grape and dominated California wine production until about 1880.California's first documented imported European wine vines were planted in Los Angeles in 1833 by Jean-Louis Vignes. In the 1850s and '60s, the colorful Agoston Harazsthy, a Hungarian soldier, merchant and promoter, made several trips to import cuttings from 165 of the greatest European vineyards to California. Some of this endeavor was at his personal expense and some through grants from the state. Overall, he introduced about 300 different grape varieties, although some were lost prior to testing, due to difficulties in preserving and handling.Considered the Founder of the California Wine Industry, Harazsthy contributed his enthusiasm and optimism for the future of wine, along with considerable personal effort and risk. He founded Buena Vista winery and promoted vine planting over much of Northern California. He dug extensive caves for cellaring, promoted hillside planting, fostered the idea of non-irrigated vineyards and suggested Redwood for casks when oak supplies ran low.
BLINDED WINE WITH SCIENCE
For centuries wine was produced and enjoyed, thought to evolve through "spontaneous generation", with no true understanding of its true underlying science. French chemist Louis Pasteur, among many discoveries relating to his germ theory of diseases, first proposed and proved, in 1857, that wine is made by microscopic organisms, yeasts. This led to discovering different yeast types and properties and ultimately to better hygiene, less spoilage and greater efficiency in wine production.In 1860, Dr. Jules Guyot published the first of three treatises describing regional traditional vinicultural and viticultural practices as well as his own observations and arguments on the economy of grape growing. Before these documents, viniculture was a practice that had been apprenticed from generation to generation for over 5000 years, without written records or formal instruction.
YANKEE VINE-KILLER BUG
In 1863, species of native American grapes were taken to Botanical Gardens in England. These cuttings carried a species of root louse called phylloxera vastatrix which attacks and feeds on the vine roots and leaves. Phylloxera is indigenous to the Mississippi River Valley and was unknown outside North America at the time. Powdery mildew, a fungal disease, also indigenous to North America, had previously migrated to Europe and caused problems in some areas. No one, however, had any idea of the wide-reaching destructive potential of Phylloxera.Native American varieties developed resistance to phylloxera by evolving a thick and tough root bark, so that they were relatively immune to damage. The vinifera vines had no such evolutionary protection and phylloxera ate away at their roots, causing them to rot and the plant to die and driving the pests to seek other nearby live hosts, spreading inexorably through entire vineyards and on to others.By 1865, phylloxera had spread to vines in Provence. Over the next 20 years, it inhabited and decimated nearly all the vineyards of Europe. Many methods were attempted to eradicate phylloxera: flooding, where possible, and injecting the soil with carbon bisulfide, had some success in checking the louse, but were costly and the pests came back as soon as the treatments stopped.Finally Thomas Munson, a horticulturist from Dennison, Texas, realized that native American vines were resistant and suggested grafting the vinifera vines onto riparia hybrid rootsocks. So, there began a long, laborious process of grafting every wine vine in Europe over to American rootstocks. It was only in this manner that the European wine industry could be retrieved from extinction. Downy mildew, another fungal disease in American grapevines, unfortunately probably migrated to Europe on some of the rootstocks imported for grafting. One tragic consequence of the Phylloxera devastation is that many of the native species indigenous to Europe, since they were of negligible commercial value, were not perpetuated by grafting and became extinct.There was some debate generated by this replanting that the quality declined in "post-phylloxera" wines. Whether this was indeed the case and whether this was due to the rootstocks themselves or to the relatively sudden and nearly universal youth of the vines, or to changes in vinification techniques, or to some other concurrent factor or variable, is unknown. Undoubtedly, it will remain a matter of theory and opinion and provide animated conversation at wine tastings, but ultimately never be proven.The blight resulted in shortages of wine for many years, so that fraud and adulteration became problems, eventually leading French wine growers to the form the system of Appellation Controlée, which has become the model for all wine producing countries to both protect wine trade reputations and authenticate products for consumers.During the period when the Europeans were contending with phylloxera, the American wine industry was ironically flourishing. By 1900, America had a fully developed and proud commercial wine producing business. Leading brands from California, New York, Ohio, Missouri and New Jersey were appearing on many of the best restaurant wine lists alongside French, German and Italian listings. Barrels of California wine were being regularly exported to Australia, Canada, Central America, England, Germany, Mexico and the Orient.
VINE-KILLER POLITICS
The destruction of the American wine industry would come not from an entomological pest, but from a political one. While it took a hundred years instead of 20 to complete its course, the results were even more devastating. It didn't spread from vineyard to vineyard, but from town to county to state to the entire nation.Alcohol abuse and alcoholism and their related problems were much more widespread and affected a radically larger share of America's population in the early and mid-1800s than they do at present day. Excessive use, rather than moderate use, was the norm in an era of fewer entertainments and diversions.The first Prohibition law went on the books in Indiana in 1816, forbidding the sale of any alcohol on Sunday (still enforced to this day). By the 1840s, towns and counties in Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, New Hampshire, New York and Ohio had gone legally "dry". In 1851, Maine enacted the first statewide law prohibiting the manufacture and sale of liquor and, by 1855, thirteen of the thirty-one United States had followed suit.The Industrial Revolution led from local to large-scale brewing and mass marketing, with intense competition. A proliferation of saloons drove owners to seek side profits by pursuing illegal and unsavory vices such as gambling and prostitution. As another beverage containing alcohol, wine began to suffer the successful excesses of beer.In 1880, Kansas became the first entirely "dry" state, followed by Iowa, Georgia, Oklahoma, Mississippi, North Carolina, Tennessee, West Virginia and Virginia. Although the laws allowed winemaking to continue for sale elsewhere, few wineries in these states could compete without selling their wines locally. Most closed their doors and abandoned their vineyards.The Drys went so far as to have any mention of wine expunged from school and college texts, including Greek and Roman classic literature. Medicinal wines were dropped from the United States Pharmacopoeia. They even tried to prove that praises for wine in the Bible were actually referring to unfermented grape juice. Thirty-three states had gone dry at the outbreak of World War I. Wartime Prohibition was enacted in 1919, followed by the Volstead National Prohibition Act and the Eighteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution in 1920, forbidding the "manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors."Through a loophole allowing each home to "make 200 gallons of non-intoxicating cider and fruit juice per year," thousands of otherwise law-abiding citizens became home winemakers and bootleggers. Prices for fresh grapes shot up, because of the increased demand and a railroad shortage of refrigerated freight cars in which to ship them.Growers began replanting fine wine variety vineyards to juice grape varieties that shipped well. Planted acreage nearly doubled from 1919 to 1926. Vineyard land climbed from $200 an acre in 1918 to $2,500 an acre in 1923. Prosperity for the growers lasted five years. In 1925, the railroads finally had enough cars, too much fruit was shipped and it rotted on the Eastern docks. In 1926, vineyard land fell back to $250 per acre. The massive plantings produced a constant surplus of California grapes that persisted until 1971.By the time of National Repeal, effective December 5, 1933, the industry was in ruins. Although some wineries managed to survive by obtaining permits to make wines used for medicinal, sacramental and non-beverage additive purposes, production dropped 94% from 1919 to 1925.
REPEAL WITHOUT RECOVERY
Even after Repeal, several states stayed dry: Kansas until 1948, Oklahoma until 1957, and Mississippi until 1966. Seventeen states chose to obliterate free-market capitalism by establishing monopoly liquor stores with limited selections and plain-as-dirt merchandising that discourages respectable housewives from shopping.There remain local prohibitions that are arbitrary, inconsistent and niggling, with such manifest foolishness as streets lined door-to-door on one side with taverns and "package stores" and nary a one on the opposite side where the dry boundary runs down the middle of the roadway. Today 10 percent of the nation's area and 6 percent of the population remain dry.Anticipating Repeal, speculators and quick-buck artists soon flooded the legal market with quickly and poorly made wine. Dilettantes published books and articles warning Americans about rigid rules that must be followed to serve the proper wine with the proper food from the proper glass at the proper temperature. Faced with bad-tasting products with which to risk committing social blunders and while remaining uncertain about the social acceptance of any alcohol, most Americans stayed away. Hard drinkers stuck to hard liquor.The only group of wines that sold well were the fortified dessert wines. Taxed at the lower rate of wine as opposed to distilled spirits, but with 20 percent alcohol, this group made the cheapest intoxicant available for derelicts and winos. Before 1920, there were more than 2,500 commercial wineries in the United States. Less than 100 survived as winemaking operations to 1933. By 1960, that number had grown to only 271. California had 713 bonded wineries before Prohibition; it took more than half a century, until 1986, before that many were again operating.Before 1920, table wines accounted for 3 of every 4 gallons shipped. After 1933, fortified wines were 3 of every 4 gallons shipped. It wasn't until 1968 that table wines sales finally overtook fortified wines, regaining the status of most popular wine category.Prohibition left a legacy of distorting the role of alcohol in American life, ruining a fledgling world-class wine industry, weakening the U.S. Constitution, and boosting the success and profitability of Organized Crime (the price of whiskey rose over 500% during the 1920s). The maze of confusing and conflicting laws that currently vary widely between states impedes commerce, sustains distribution monopolies, casts aspersions of greed on tax coffers, and mocks the American sense of fair competition.More police officers were killed during the decade of the 1920s than in any decade in history. The "Grand Experiment" implanted moral ambiguity and disrespect for authority in an entire generation of Americans, while it deprived them of potential social and health benefits, and brought the character and term "wino" into the streets and the lexicon.The one positive remainder is the lingering Congressional hesitance to pass Constitutional Amendments, especially regarding restrictions on individual liberty and personal moral choice. We can only hope for the future that our representatives don't commit such folly when powerful special interests clash with the shared individual freedoms that make up the public interest.The forces of prohibition are not dead yet. They are more insidious, combining moralist and monopolist factions, pursuing an agenda of obstructionist legislation, that includes preventing or encumbering direct sales of wine to consumers , preventing health information from being printed on wine labels and spreading disinformation about potential benefits and studies related to wine and health.WORK IN PROGRESSIn spite of the political workings, table wine has grown in popularity in America. U.S. per-capita consumption of wine still lags far behind most countries of the Western Hemisphere. Although America wine-consuming growth is on pace to become the number one wine consuming nation within this decade, more than 85% of that consumption is accomplished by less than 8% of the total population.Research in the past thirty years has led to developments in both agriculture and technology that have greatly improved overall wine quality. The stature of California and American wine has never been better and worldwide demand continues to grow. In America's Bicentennial Year of 1976, the world of wine was shocked when two Napa Valley wines (Stag's Leap 1973 Cabernet Sauvignon and Chateau Montelena 1975 Chardonnay) bested the top French wine counterparts in Paris, at a blind tasting judged entirely by Frenchmen, all experts in wine! Now, in the first years of the New Millennium, it is only surprising when French wines win at similar events.

Wine making in French

Wine making in France

It is difficult to speak of winemaking. The saying goes in France there are as many wines as vineyards. Every winemaker brings his one touch before, during, and after the wine making process. Each choice in the successive steps of the elaboration of wine has repercussions on the taste and the quality of the wine :
The choice of the terroir
The climate (and the date of harvest)
The choice of the grape-variety, it is determinant
The type of container in which the fermentation will take place
The temperature at which the juice of grape is maintained during the fermentation
The fermentation period
The type of container in which the maturation will take place
Nobody can pretend there is only one unique method of making wine. That is the beauty of wine as winemakers are also responsible for the incredible diversity of wines we can choose from. Needless to say that winemaking requires "savoir-faire" and experience. A winemaker is not only an artisan but also an artist.

11 steps to make wine
The following steps are informative only! They give an idea how wine is made:
plantation (or grafting) of a vine stock
growing of the grape-bunch
harvesting the grapes
de-stemming* and crushing the grapes
alcoholic fermentation of the liquid
maceration*
raking the wine
malolactic fermentation
maturation of the wine
bottling the wine
tasting the wine
* : only for red wine, normally

Must : it is the grape-juice produced by crushing.Alcoholic fermentation : the juice becomes wine under the natural action of yeast which changes sugar in alcohol.Maceration : the pomace (skin, pips and stems) impregnate the must giving body and color.Raking : pomace and must are separated. The must becomes "vin de goutte", the pomace becomes "vin de presse".Malolactic fermentation : under the action of natural bacteria, the harsh malic acid changes itself in lactic acid supple and stable.Maturation : the wine is clarified and put in casks/barrels to stabilize and perfects itself.
Red wine making

The steps in the red wine making process are:Crushing and destemming the grapesThe grapes just arriving in the cellar are crushed and destemmed to release their juice and pulp.The must obtained that way is put in a tank to go trough the process of fermentation.Alcoholic fermentationFermentation is a natural process. Yeasts living in the grapes - the addition of selected yeasts is generalizing - change the sugar contained in the must in alcohol and carbonic gas (see also the composition of Wines).The winemaker assist the action of the yeasts by maintaining the temperature around 25 to 30°C and by ventilating the must regularly. Under 25°C the wine will not have enough body, above 30°C, the wine will be to tannic.The fermentation process goes on for 4 to 10 days until the maceration and then the malolactic fermentation.
MacerationIt is the period when the tannic elements and the color of the skin diffuse in the fermented juice. The contact between the liquid (must) and the solids elements (skin, pips and sometimes stem) will give body and color to the wine.At this stage, complex operation will prove the talent of the winemaker: dissolution, extraction, excretion, diffusion, decoction, infusion.For "Vins primeurs" or "Vins nouveaux" (new wines) the maceration is very short. The vines are supple and contain little tannin. Wines destined to be kept long need a lot of tannin, so the maceration needs to be long. The wine will macerate for several days, maybe several weeks.RakingThe wine is separated from the solids, the pomace. The wine obtained by raking is called "free run wine" (vin de goutte).Sometimes, the pomace is pressed in order to extract the juice it still contains. This wine is called "press wine" (vin de presse). It is richer in tannin.Depending on the winemaker taste or the local habit, free run wine and press wine are blended or treated separately.Malolactic fermentationIt is the process during which the malic acid of wine changes into lactic acid and carbonic gas under the action of bacteria living in the wine. Malic acid is harsh, it is changed into lactic acid supple and stable.This fermentation is obtained in a tank during a few weeks at a temperature between 18° and 20°C.StabilizationThe wine making process is finished but the wine is not. To be able to age and to improve the wine must be clarified again. After that the beverage will be put in oak casks where it will stabilize.The diversity of red wine is such that it can match any type of food. But you must absolutely not conclude from this that all red wines taste the same
White wine making
White wine is not really white but, in fact yellow. But the expression being universal one says of a yellow wine that it is white.Vinification of white wine is more delicate than vinification of red wine.Two methods coexist to make white wine:1. The first one is to use white grape ( which is in fact green, greenish yellow, golden yellow or pinkish yellow!). That way the white wine is the result of the fermentation of the juice of white grapes juice only.2. The second method is more complex. One uses the juice of red grape-variety cleared of it skin and pips, with which it must absolutely not get in contact as they contain the coloring substances. It is possible to get white wine that way but it is seldom done (see also 11 steps to make wine).

Time is counted :Immediately after their arrival in the cellar, the grapes are crushed but not destemed. The juice (free run must) is sent to settle in containers. The rest of the grapes is pressed as quickly as possible. Air is the enemy of white wine. At its contact the wine oxidizes or becomes colored. The must from pressing is added to the free run must.Preparation of the must :After six to twelve hours the particles and impurity of the grape separate from the must and float on the surface. They are removed by the raking of must. The must is ready to be clarified. The clarified juice is poured in a tank, ready to ferment.Alcoholic fermentation :White wine results of the fermentation of must only.No solid (stem, skin, pips...) intervenes.The control of the temperature is essential. It has to be maintained around 18° C. The winemaker regularly cools the must to allow the yeast to work correctly.The fermentation goes on for two to three weeks. The winemaker daily checks the evolution of the process.When fermentation is over, the wine is put in cask and raked, just like a red wine then it is bottled.Winemakers often choose oak casks which gives the wine the tannin it needs. But it will not be sufficient, tannin is the essential element for aging. It is why white wine does not keep as long as red wine. On the other hand white wines present a larger variety of tastes: very dry, dry, semi-dry, mellow, syrupy, petillant, sparkling, madeirized...White wine can be drunk on any occasion: before, with or after a meal, and even between meals.White wines are often considered as aperitif wines, sometimes as desert wines. Many people like to drink white wine in hot weather. Its refreshing qualities are very well known. White wine is served fresh but not chilled.
Rosé wine making
First of all Rosé wine is not a blending of red and white wine (abstraction made of the exceptional case of Champagne Rosé.Rosé wine is made from red grape-varieties. And, nowadays, many winemakers mix a certain amount of white grapes with the red.The elaboration of rosé wine is delicate. It is probably why the amateur is sometimes disappointed by the quality of a rosé. Particularity, European rosé is "dry". On the contrary, American rosé is sweet and similar to white wine.There are at least three methods of making rosé wine:Gray or pale rosé wineThe grapes are pressed as soon as they arrive in the cellar. It allows a quicker diffusion of the color in the must.The juice is left a very short time in contact with the skin. No more than a few hours! That way the must is delicately colored.Rosé wine is then made in the same way as a white wine, fermentation of the must cleared of solid elements with out any more maceration. The winemaker obtains a gray or pale rosé wine (for Gris de Bourgogne or Rosé de Loire).Colored pink wineTo obtain a colored pink wine the grapes are put in the fermentation tank after having been crushed. The juice quickly enriches itself in alcohol with the temperature going up (in the tank).At the contact of the solid element the color quickly diffuses. The winemaker chooses the intensity of the color by controlling a sample every hour. When he is satisfied he devattes.The wine is evacuated in another tank to finish fermenting. The must left in the original tank is evacuated and not used for rosé any more.The bleedingTo obtain an even more intense color, once an hour, during the initial fermentation the winemaker takes out of the tank a certain amount of juice.When the color is satisfying, the wine making process goes on as for a white wine. Rosé de Provence are obtain by that method.
Why wine does not turn into vinegar ?
Sulphur dioxide, in spite of its barbaric name, is an element indispensable for the quality of the wine (see composition of wine).It is composed of sulphur and oxygen. Fermentation naturally produces small amount of it.Winemakers add more to the wine. Sulphur dioxide is to wine what aspirin is to human beings: the miraculous remedy which cures all sort of diseases and avoids others.Sulphur dioxide is a bactericide which prevents wine from changing into vinegar. It inhibates the action of yeasts; it is why sweet wines do not go on fermenting after bottling.On top of that it is an antioxidizer. It allows wine to keep all its freshness and avoids its alteration by its enemy: the oxygen.
Wine components
Nearly one thousand components have up to now been identified.Wine contains 85 to 90% water.It also comprises ethyl acid resulting from yeasts fermentation. All wine incorporate some acidity from organic acids among which is tartric acid characteristic of grape.The mineral composition of wine is special as it contains potassium, calcium, magnesium, sodium, iron, sulfates, phosphoruses, all of which necessary to cover daily needs of human beings.Potassium salts and sulfates are known to facilitate diuresis. Wine also comprises polyols among which glycol which gives the sweet taste. Wine contains a small amount of azoted substances as well as 20 amineted acids among which proline can be found.It is surprising to notice that the concentration of amineted acid in wine is very close to that of human blood!Wine contains vitamins of the group B, and, above all vitamin P which reinforces the cell-wall of capillary vessels, lessening the risks of hemorrhage and oedema.Wine also comprises more specific components which give it its personality (aroma components) such as phenolic components. The phenolic component is an element whose molecule incorporates several phenolic functions among which are phenolic acids, anthocyanes and tannin.
Wine varieties Red
Cabernet Franc
Cabernet Franc is grown mainly in the Bordeaux region. In Pomerol and Saint-Emilion it is known as "Bouchet". This grape-variety is also present in the Madiran vines as "Bouchy". Further north, in the Loire Valley and, particularly in Touraine and in Saumur it sometimes appears as "Breton".Cabernet Franc is a grape-variety which gives small bunches of tiny blackberries. Vine growers appreciate it because it is not demanding and any soil is convenient.Cabernet Franc wine, as well as Cabernet Sauvignon wine, is of a bright and shinny color. It brings strawberry and blackberry aromas. However because it is less perfumed and structured, it is often associated to other vine-varieties.

The only terroirs to supply pure Cabernet Franc are the red wines from Loire Valley : Bourgueil, Chinon and Saumur-Champigny red only.
Aromas: strawberry, blackberry
French wines: Pomerol, Saint Emilion, Bourgueil, Saumur, Madiran, etc
Cabernet Sauvignon
First of all a typically Bordeaux vine-variety, the Cabernet Sauvignon also grows in the Loire Valley, in Languedoc Roussillon, Provence and in the South West.In Bordeaux region, mainly in Graves and in Médoc, where vine growers sometime calls it "Petit Cabernet", Cabernet represents over half the planted grape-varieties. In wine, Cabernet Sauvignon is traditionally associated to Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Petit Verdot.
Cabernet Sauvignon small bunches give a strong in tannic wine with aromas of blackcurrant and green pepper. Therefore the wine is harsh when young but develops a very delicate bouquet in aging.Californian vine growers have managed to produce very good wines of the Cabernet Sauvignon variety which up to now seemed to be exclusively reserved to Médoc terroirs.
Aromas: black currant, violet
French wines: Médoc, Graves, Margaux, Bergerac, etc
Carignan
Carignan is widely present in the south of France, in Languedoc-Roussillon and Provence.It is used mainly to produce strong "Vin de Table" in large quantity. But Carignan is also associated to varieties such as Grenache, Mourvèdre and Syrah.Carignan is a hot country vine-variety, it does not like damp. It is why it is grown in Spain and Algeria.Carignan enters in the composition of famous Roussillon sweet wines such as Banyuls and Rivesaltes.
Aromas: black fruits, black pepper, licorice
French wines: Cotes du Roussillon, Corbières, Saint Chinian, etc
Cinsault
Cinsault (or Cinsaut) is one of the oldest south of France variety. Even nowadays it is impossible to determinate its origins, between Provence and Languedoc.The Cinsault is a hill-side grape-variety. It is the reason for which it is always associated to other varieties: Carignan, Grenache, Mourvèdre, Syrah.Cinsault produces large grains, very sweet and juicy.Although not well known, this variety contributes to the production of excellent wines such as Saint-Georges d'Orques (Languedoc).
Aromas: red fruits
French wines: Coteaux du Languedoc, Cotes de Provence, Chateauneuf du Pape, Cotes du Ventoux, etc
Gamay
Gamay is the only grape which comes in the Beaujolais wines. In fact it gets its name from a hamlet near Puligny-Montrachet.Gamay reaches perfection in the granitic soil of Beaujolais region. Gamay produces red grapes with white juice, smooth and fruity. The wine can be consumed young.Else where, Gamay grape-variety does badly on light soils. However one can find admirable examples of acclimatisation, specially in Touraine and in the counties of Napa and San Benito where the wine is sold under the appellation "Gamay du Beaujolais"(?).
Aromas: strawberry, cherry, spice
French wines: Beaujolais, Touraine, etc
Grenache
Grenache grows in the Rhône Valley and the Languedoc-Roussillon. It particularly appreciates sun.The sweet grape give colored wines rich in alcohol.In the past, one liked pure Grenache wines which could reach 17° proof. Today Grenache is associated to Syrah and Mourvèdre.Grenache is a grape-variety essential in the excellent sweet wines of the Languedoc-Roussillon, such as Banyuls.
Aromas: red fruits, lavender, thyme
French wines: Chateauneuf du Pape, Cotes du Rhone, Coteaux du Languedoc, Cotes de Provence, etc
Merlot
Merlot is a Bordeaux region grape-variety. Merlot is the most important grape in the Bordeaux region. It is classified in the Cabernet group.
It is a fragile grape, sensible to dryness as well as cold. Merlot gives a richly colored wine, with body and softness.Merlot matures quickly. This grape has less tannins than Cabernets. It is one of the most productive grapes. Merlot is the perfect variety to accompany Cabernets.Merlot can be found in several countries... as far as in Russia.
Aromas: blackcurrant, blackberry
French wines: Pomerol, Saint Emilion, Cahors, etc
Mourvèdre
Mourvèdre grape is very well known in the Rhône Valley. It is one of the older grape-variety present in France. One can consider it was born in Provence.This grape variety resists very well to high temperatures and prefers stony soil. Mourvèdre produces a bluish juicy berry. It is used to make full-bodied and deep wines. This is why it is associated to Cinsault and Grenache.The Mourvèdre variety was destroyed by the too famous Phylloxera. Thanks to the Mediterranean vinegrowers efforts, it has regained its importance.
Mourvèdre is known in Spain as Monastrell where the grape variety is widely used.
Aromas: black fruits, licorice
French wines: Bandol, Gigondas, Chateauneuf du Pape, Coteaux du Languedoc, etc
Pinot Noir
Pinot Noir (Black Pinot) is very popular in Burgundy. It is an admirable red grape-variety. We owe it the Big Bourgogne ... and Champagne wines. In Champagne it is associated to Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier!The grapes of Pinot Noir are tiny and very tight around the stem. The juice is sweet uncolored. It is the colored component of the skin which dissolving in contact with the juice gives the wine its glistening colour. It brings summer fruit aromas.Pinot Noir comes in the composition of Jura and Alsace wines as well as in rosé de Sancerre.Pinot Noir cluster looks like a pine cone, from which it gets its name!
Aromas: cherry, blackcurrant, licorice
French wines: Vosne Romanée, Clos Vougeot, Pommard, etc
Syrah
Syrah (or Serine) is supposed to have been brought in the south of France from the region of Syracuse by the Roman.The vine-variety is the principal grape in the north of the Rhône Valley. Syrah appreciates poor soil and hot climate.The Syrah wine is strong, rich and colored with aromas of pepper, violet or raspberry, depending up on the soil.We owe to Syrah the big Côtes du Rhône such as Côte Rotie or Hermitage and also Languedoc-Roussillon wines.Syrah perfectly acclimated itself in California, Australia and South Africa.
Aromas: raspberry, black pepper, licorice, violet
French wines: Chateauneuf du Pape, Cote Rotie, Hermitage, Coteaux du Languedoc, Cotes de Provence, etc

Wine varieties White
Chardonnay
Chardonnay is the most famous grape-variety throughout the world. For several centuries it has been the only grape used for white Bourgogne. It is also one of the main variety used in the elaboration of Champagne. In The Champagne region, Chardonnay vinified on its one is called "Blanc de Blanc".The grains are shiny and golden. Chardonnay are among the best white wines, thick and delicate, traditionally dry. Depending on there origin some of them can be aged for several years.Chardonnay grows in most wine producing countries. Its name is borrowed from a village of the region of Macon (Burgundy)!
Aromas: apple, linden, almond
French wines: Chablis, Meursault, Montrachet, Pouilly-Fuissé, Anjou, Saumur, etc
Chenin Blanc
Chenin Blanc or Pineau de la Loire is the grape-variety which produces the best white wines of Anjou and Touraine. It has nothing in common with grapes of the Pinot family.The variety gives all its fullness in the Loire Valley, elsewhere it did not acclimate.Chenin Blanc is used for dry and sweet wines. It is subject to noble rot and for that reason is harvested as late as possible, sometimes in november. Chenin Blanc wines such as Vouvray and Saumur age very well.Rabelais, already, wrote about Chenin!
Aromas: apple, cinnamon, quince
French wines: Vouvray, Saumur, Anjou, Coteaux du Layon, etc
Clairette
Clairette is a southern grape-variety. It is one of the oldest. It is used with others in white and rosé wines of Languedoc-Roussillon, Provence and Rhône Valley.Clairette is used for some "muscats" and for sparkling wines such as the famous Clairette de Die in the Drome. It happens to be associated to other varieties in the white wines of Provence and, even in the red wine of Châteauneuf du Pape.Clairette gives a high degree of alcohol. And it madeirizes quickly. In the past it was considered one of its best points, nowadays it is regarded as a fault.
Aromas: peach, apricot
French wines: Coteaux du Languedoc, Chateauneuf du Pape, Bandol, etc
Muscadelle
Muscadelle is a white grape-variety from the Bordeaux region. It is associated to Sauvignon and Semillon in the Graves wines and in the universally famous Sauternes.Muscadelle matures very fast and its grapes are quickly invaded by noble rot which gives it a very pronounced taste.Muscadelle is not classified among the Muscat family.
Aroma: acacia
French wines: Sauternes, Graves, Monbazillac, etc
Pinot Gris
Pinot Gris is an Alsatian grape-variety. It is also called "Tokay d'Alsace". Pinot Gris is used for the intense white wines of this region.Pinot Gris grape is a very exacting variety with small bluish grains. Its character varies depending on good or bad season. It might be light and fruity or robust.The Tokay d'Alsace has nothing to do with Hungarian Tokay.
Aromas: dried fruits, wood, spice
French wines: Tokay Pino Gris information
Sauvignon
Sauvignon Blanc is one of the best French grape-variety. It is the reason why it has been selected in several regions.Sauvignon grape is used for Pouilly-Fumé and Quincy and it is the exclusive variety used to in Sancerre. Sauvignon is mostly a Loire variety. In the Bordeaux region it is used as well as other white varieties to elaborate Graves and Sauternes. It is also used in South West or Provence wines.Sauvignon Blanc gives wines an herbal character with aromas of mineral and melon.In the Loire Valley, Sauvignon wines have acquired such a renown that there are the "vins de Sauvignon" (Sauvignon wines) and the others.
Aromas: melon, mineral
French wines: Pouilly Fumé, Sancerre, Entre Deux Mers, Sauternes, Graves, etc
Semillon Blanc
Semillon Blanc grows mainly in the Bordeaux region and in the South West. Vinegrowers associate it to Sauvignon and Muscadelle in the elaboration of Sauternes and Graves.The Semillon produces a lively and dry white wine. Excellent sweet white wines are also made from Semillon Blanc as its grains are very sweet and low in acid.Like that of Muscadelle its grapes are quickly invaded by noble rot.As for most of the Bordeaux grape-variety, Semillon is nowadays cultivated in California.
Aromas: honey, lemon, linden
French wines: Graves, Sauternes, Monbazillac, etc
Ugni Blanc
Ugni Blanc is a widely spread white grape-variety. It exists in many "terroirs" in the south of France.Under the name of "Saint-Emilion" it is the predominant in Cognac. Ugni Blanc grows also in Languedoc, Provence and Corsica where vinegrowers use it for its freshness.In fact Ugni Blanc is the base of several dry white wines. Ugni Blanc can be found in most of Italian white wines.
Aroma: banana
French wines: Coteaux du Languedoc, Cotes de Provence, Cotes du Rhone, etc
Viognier
A few years ago, Viognier was a rarity. In 1965, only 8 hectares were found almost exclusively in Condrieu in the northern Rhône. Nowadays, this stylish exotically aromatic variety has been noticed, and is spreading across the south of France in Languedoc-Roussillon and Provence, as well as in California.Viognier produces an intense, dry white wine, lots of fruit and a flavour mingling apricot, apple, peach and violet with a hint of honey.
Viognier is best drunk young. It is beautiful with spicy Asiatic dishes or with medium to strong cheeses. It is also an unusual choice for simply prepared lobster, roast chicken and sole or trout.
Aromas: apricot, violet, apple
French wines: Condrieu, Cote Rotie, Coteaux du Languedoc, etc

A " terroir " is a group of vineyards (or even vines) from the same region, belonging to a specific appellation, and sharing the same type of soil, weather conditions, grapes and wine making savoir-faire, which contribute to give its specific personality to the wine.