Most people I speak to are completely baffled by wine but wish they could understand it better. There is no shame in this because wine is a fairly impenetrable subject. The volume of information to absorb is immense so to gain a comprehensive knowledge of wine requires constant learning and can literally take a lifetime. Wine is a particularly confusing product to understand for several reasons. It’s made from a wide variety of grapes, it’s made in many different ways, every country and region classifies their wine differently, and even the same wine changes from one vintage to the next.
Taking time to read the labels may not help because there are few requirements to label wines consistently beyond the alcohol content. Some wine labels promote the grape, others the name of the Chateau or winemaker, and some highlight the region it comes from. When we wander into a supermarket wine aisle and are confronted with up to 300 different wines, it’s hardly surprising that most people go straight for the one they drank last time. We would do the same if confronted with 300 brands of mustard.
Retailers are well aware of this and consequently promote a few wines to help customers choose. The problem is that big retailers focus on wines that offer consistency from year to year, low prices, and recognisable brands that customers can spot on the shelves. So they tend to buy from high volume commercial wineries that meet these criteria. Unfortunately these wines are rarely the best examples of their type and certainly not what the locals drink.
Supermarket promotions and unhelpful wine labeling are unlikely to change overnight, or even in the next few years. To gain confidence in buying wine, we really need to gain some knowledge and not rely on the winemakers or supermarkets to steer us in the right direction. With some basic knowledge we can all start to make our own decisions about what are good, bad and average wines – instead of just buying wines we have drunk before or simply using price as our guide.
So how do we make it easier?
Wine has a confusing array of variables such as grape variety, region, production method and vintage. The answer is to think about each aspect of the wine separately and then layer your knowledge as you gain more understanding. For example the best place to start is the grape variety. Try one grape variety at a time, avoiding blended wines if possible (this information is usually on the back label). Most wine regions are reasonably consistent with their predominant grape variety. For example nearly all white wine from Burgundy in France is chardonnay, and in the Loire its sauvignon-blanc. Learning these links between regions and grape varieties will help you identify wines that should taste similar.
The next step is to start understanding the variations in style between regions and countries. For example a New Zealand sauvignon-blanc will be very zesty with tropical fruit flavours of pineapple and grapefruit, while a French version will be similar but more subtle – with more citrus flavours of lemon and lime. Once you have begun to understand grape varieties and how they are represented in different regions you are well on the way to understanding the basics of wine. You can do this for several different red and white grapes and this will give you a good basic knowledge of what to expect when you buy a wine you have never drunk before.
Once you know what you like you can start moving up the price range to see how the quality improves. Most wine regions have a classification system that indicates the quality of the wine. Unfortunately these differ from country to country and even from region to region so you will have to do some reading. Again, if you stick to one country or region at a time it makes the task much more manageable. Most classification systems indicate that the wine comes from a specific area, and that it’s made from certain permitted grape varieties.
Beware of assuming that price always equals quality, or that a wine with a higher classification will always taste better. For example if you like red Burgundy (pinot noir grape), you’re probably better off finding a good vintage rather than paying for a higher classification. Above all it’s important to have fun learning about wine and not get bogged down with the detail. In the end it’s a product that is made to be enjoyed – so it’s worth remembering that.
