When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a
day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and the 2 glasses of wine.

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the wine represented.
The professor smiled. “I’m glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no
matter how full your life may seem, there’s always room for a couple of
glasses of wine with a friend.”

What’s the definition of “fine wine?”
Generally, this term is reserved for exceptional wines from the world’s best vineyards, the highest quality grapes and the most acclaimed winemakers. Over a period of years, they’ve achieved ‘blue chip’ status — Grand Cru clarets and Burgundies are classic examples. Due to demand, such wines can command anything from around $50 to $200 or more a bottle.

Are they worth it?
It’s a bit like asking a car enthusiast if a Ferrari is worth the money (if you see it just as a means of getting from A to B the answer is probably no). If wine is just a drink like any other, then perhaps no. But if wine is a genuine interest and if your enjoyment of it encourages you to experience greater, more complex, richer and satisfying bottles, then this is an area you ought to be exploring.

If I spend twice as much will it be twice as good?
Yes … no … well, sometimes. A $10 bottle of wine may well be twice as good as a $5 bottle … and a $16 bottle twice as good as a $8 one. Over and above this level though the value for money becomes more subjective. To a degree, you’re paying a premium for perfection because it’s so rare and so hard to achieve. You need therefore to buy with caution to avoid expensive mistakes. You can find the occasional gem for $15 or less, but wines above $50/bottle usually guarantee a wine made without compromise. It may not be your cup of tea, but it will be made with perfection in mind.
Source (https://www.wsjwine.com/about_wine_fineWines.aspx)

Crystals
Crystals in wine are not usually a problem. But there is a fundamental conflict here. Wine, naturally has bits in it. Bits of grape. They are removed during the process of winemaking. But every bit removed results in some flavor being removed also. Customers generally like clear wine with no bits. You can see this puts us in a bit of a dilemma. In order to make each bottle as tasty as possible we have to risk the occasional bits. But taste the wine and you’ll appreciate that the occasional ‘bits’ are worth it!

“There’s sugar on my cork”
Is a frequent comment … no, not sugar but crystals of tartar called “Weinstein” in Germany where the fine acidity accentuates its formation. They look — but do not taste — like sugar. Consumers should not be concerned. They are a sign of good quality and wines that have perfect ripeness as well as fine fruit acidity. Tartaric acid occurs naturally in all wines. It can be removed but the process also removes a lot of wine flavor so we and most conscientious winemakers avoid using it. Crystals of tartar sometimes precipitate out and settle on the glass or the cork or at the bottom, but they are harmless and tasteless. Pour carefully and rejoice in good natural wine.

Sediment
Sediment in wine is never a failing. It is a sign of the courageous winemaker who refuses to de-nature his wine just because some supermarkets don’t want the cost and effort of explaining sediment to their customers. Real wine is a joy. Consider … like it or not, wine is around 12% alcohol, 80% water and a tiny amount of stuff called “dry extract” which adds all the flavor. It triggers all the romance, causes all the books to be written, the court cases to be fought, the fortunes to be lost. Remove all the water and alcohol and what do you have … well it looks like sediment. So, we are supposed to take this sediment out are we? We love old bottles of Hermitage or Châteauneuf where the whole inside of the bottle has become coated with tartar crystals … that’s real wine!
(Source: https://www.wsjwine.com/about_wine_bits.aspx)

Step One – Look

Clarity is an indication of the character and condition of the wine.
Colour (intensity and hue) should be assessed – generally a darker colour and a difference in colour from the centre of the glass to the edge can indicate oxidation, which may be a deliberate part of the winemaking, an error, or a part of the natural process of maturation in bottle.
The ‘tears’ left on the inside side of the glass after swirling can be indicative of the amount of glycerol and alcohol present in the wine.

Step Two – Smell

Inhale and try and identify as many flavour compounds as possible.
Aromas refer to smells derived from grapes and include fruit descriptors (eg: lemon) and herbs and spices.
Bouquet refers to smells derived from the winemaking process such as characters formed by yeasts, specific fermentation techniques or type and size of maturation vessel.

Step Three – Taste

The texture of a wine can provide clues as to how the wine is made.
Progression of flavour from when the wine enters your mouth to after you swallow, is an indicator of the quality of the wine, a long aftertaste is generally a positive indication of quality.
After looking, smelling and tasting, make an overall assessment of the wine – a lasting impression of harmony and balance is considered desirable and easiest to enjoy.

22/01/09
Pinot noir, shiraz and cabernet sauvignon have been the key players in the red wine game for some time. Yet more than ever, the alternate players that are hitting the field are proving to be appealing substitutes that can make their mark and position themselves on the frontline.
In the last blog entry, I discussed a few of the reasons for the emergence of these wine styles. When it comes to red wine, the impact of climate, perhaps, plays the most significant role as the drought and lack of water take its toll. Global warming?

Many of the red wine alternative varieties tend to handle heat and drought well. Take tempranillo as a great example. Its spiritual home is Spain — pretty warm there right? Tempranillo has managed to adapt to the Australian climate relatively well and is now producing some exciting results.

The Alternative Variety Wine Show is a great indicator of the types of new grapes being sent into the marketplace. For example, the number of tempranillo entries has virtually doubled in the past couple of years. Have you been drinking any?

There are a host of different red wines now available, so seek them out. They offer some great drinking.

Grenache
I know grenache has been around for donkeys, but I encourage you to take another look, and especially the range from McLaren Vale. We are now seeing better-made, ripe, easily accessible wines for the everyday, and sometimes serious drinking occasions, as well. Drink more grenache!
Pick of the bunch would be the Marienberg Reserve Grenache.

Tempranillo
In the medium- to full-bodied spectrum with loads of good ripe fruit and a great lick of tannin. This is big, red-meat-barbecue territory and an easy step from shiraz.

Barbera
Italian varietals, both red and white, are playing an important role in Australia. Planting of this variety is on the increase thanks to super-approachable red and dark fruit characters backed by refreshing acidity, making it a versatile food wine (or good on its own). Medium-bodied.

Sangiovese
This Tuscan work horse has had limited success, thus far. With new clones now readily available, however, you’ll begin to see great improvements of this savoury, downright drinkable grape. Cherry fruited, firm but fair tannins, it may be confronting at first but give it time. Sangiovese is sometimes good with a little dollop of another variety to make it more approachable.

Primitivo
Primitivo, zinfandel, call it what you like. This name though, refers to the more immediate drinking style of Puglia (the heel of Italy’s boot). Ripe fruited, pushing alcohol levels; this wine certainly isn’t light-bodied but will still appeal.

YOUR SAY: What are your favourite reds? Click on the comments tab and leave a reply

News and Views about Wine! Send us your news and other juicy items! We are also interested in reviews. Contact us at info@wineforlife.com.au to be part of the review cycle!

Welcome to the new Wine For Life. We’ve been working on this a long time now so I hope you like it. It might take a bit of time to get used to but compared to the relative simplicity of our old site but we strongly believe that once you are familiar with this new site it will become a very useful and enjoyable tool for making your wine decisions.

Since we now have all the features of a Web 2.0 site, like this blog and a forum, I urge everyone to participate and review some of the wines you buy from us or tell us what you think (good or bad) on the forum. The best service means delivering what you want and to do this we need to know how we’re going.

We expect a few bugs and operability issues with a site of this size so if you have any issue with it please use the appropriate section of the forum to let us know so we can fix it.