10 THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT WINE
Wine is a complex subject influenced by culture, history, agriculture, geology and much more. There are even separate courses that only deal with the area of wine. This makes wine a complex topic for many people, with particular fear among the younger generation. Do you feel addressed?
No problem - we think wine doesn't necessarily have to be turned into a science. Ultimately it's about whether you like the wine or not.
Still, we think it's always good to know a few basics.
For this reason, we explain the following to you 10 things you should know about wine.
1. HOW IS WINE MADE?
WHITE WINE
First, the grapes are removed from their stems by machine or by hand and then crushed. This creates a thick mixture of pulp, peel, juice and seeds, the mash. This rests for a few hours and is then pressed - this creates the so-called must.
After the must has been sulphurized to prevent spoilage, it is transferred to fermentation tanks. Fermentation begins in these containers with the addition of special yeast cultures. Here the sugar is converted into alcohol. Once the fermentation process is complete, the wine is separated from the yeast. Some then mature for a few months in steel tanks or in new and old wooden barrels.
RED WINE
The manufacturing process of red wine The main difference is in the order of the individual work steps. For red wine, it is not the must that is fermented, but rather the mash. The grape skin also gives the wine its red color. Only after fermentation is the red wine pressed and then matured or stored.
2. WHERE DOES ROSÉ GET ITS PINK COLOR?
3. DOES GOOD WINE AUTOMATICALLY HAVE TO BE EXPENSIVE?
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In general, this question cannot be answered because there are many factors that influence the price of the wine.
For example, premium wines are often only produced in small quantities and require more work and time than many other wines. But harvest yield, reputation of the winery and type of harvest also affect the price.
But none of this answers the question of whether expensive means good, especially since good is a very subjective term. In our opinion, you should definitely invest more than €5 for a good wine and, above all, make sure that it fits the right situation.
4. WHY CAN ONLY SOME WINES AGE?
Whether a wine has aging potential depends primarily on its ingredients. Basically, it can be said that more red wines can be stored than white wines.
So what is it about some wines that allows them to be stored for several decades?
The answer is tannins, also known as tannins - the more of these the wine contains, the longer it will last.
But a high tannin content also means that the wine needs this time to develop. A wine that can be stored is sometimes almost inedible in its first few years. Only over the years does it become gentler and softer. This is due to the decrease in tannins, the structure of which changes so that larger molecular complexes sink to the bottom of the bottle in the form of sediment.
There are a few other influencing factors, such as sulfides, acidity and alcohol content, which also affect the storage potential. You can find more information about the shelf life of wine here.
5. STORE WINE?
Have you decided to save a wine for a long time for a special occasion? But how is it guaranteed that it will be really well preserved?
The simplest option is of course the wine fridge. But this is expensive and takes up a lot of space. So if you follow a few simple rules, you shouldn't have any problems storing wine even without a wine fridge.
Find the coolest place in your apartment or house. If possible, it should be dark and slightly humid there - between 60% and 80% humidity.
You should make sure that the wine is not exposed to too large fluctuations in temperature.
The temperature should be between 10 and 15 degrees. You can find more information about storing wine here.
6. THE SOUTH AFRICAN WINE LABEL
There are different standards around the world regarding the information on wine labels. We want to keep the whole thing somewhat general and therefore list the most important information.
The wine label provides information about the region of origin, vintage, alcohol content, grape variety, nominal volume, quality level and much more.
The “Wines of Origin” system has been used in South Africa since 1973. This seal contains information about the origin, grape variety and vintage of the wine. To indicate the origin, the wine is divided into Ward, District, Region, Geographical Unit, Estate and Single Vineyard.
IN ADDITION, ALL OUR WINES HAVE THE SUSTAINABILITY SEAL INTRODUCED IN 2010.
In addition, all of our wines have the sustainability seal introduced in 2010.
The following video provides information about the background, meaning and goals of this seal.
7. WHAT IS A CUVÉE?
Basically, a cuvée is a blend of different grape varieties, locations or vintages. But “waste” here doesn’t necessarily mean that Winemaker used the remains of his wine stocks and mixed them. Rather, the term blend refers to the composition of several grape varieties, which results in a wine that brings together the positive properties of different grape varieties.
8. IS RED WINE HEALTHY?
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You always hear that one or two glasses of red wine a day is supposed to be healthy. In fact, there are some studies that say red wine prevents arteriosclerosis (hardening of the arteries). This means there is a lower risk of cardiovascular diseases. Red wine is also said to reduce the risk of Alzheimer's and cancer and strengthen the immune system. It all sounds great – it makes you want to become a red wine drinker. But what is really behind the myth?
Although some studies show exactly this effect in animal experiments, none of these effects have actually been proven in clinical studies.
So unfortunately we have to leave this question open. We think that as long as wine is drunk in moderation, you shouldn't have any remorse - who knows, maybe you'll do something good for your health.
9. WHAT IS THE RIGHT GLASS?
Opinions and personal tastes differ when it comes to choosing the right wine glass. There are different wine glasses for almost every grape variety. There is no doubt that the different shapes have an influence on the presence of the wine, but we want to tone down this technical talk a bit.
We want to present you with a few suggestions and facts.
- The larger and bulbier the glass is, the more scent/aroma is extracted from the wine.
- Use a wine glass with a thin glass wall. This has a big impact on the sense of feeling, but also the way the glass looks. As is well known, the eye also tastes good.
- Also use a glass that is not too small for white wine and a slightly larger one for red wine.
If you follow these little tips, you can't really go wrong when choosing the right wine glass. Maybe a little tip:
If you want to compare two wines, it is very helpful to use the same glass, otherwise the comparability of the wines will suffer.
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10. WHICH WINE WITH WHICH FOOD?
As a criterion for the selection of right wine to go with the meal serves the structure of the wine.
Does the body of the wine match the body of the food and vice versa. For example, a light white wine goes well with fish dishes and a rich red wine goes well with beef. If you are still not sure which wine goes best with your dish, you can simply use our wine-food matching tool on our website.
Hallo ihr Lieben,
Vielen Dank für Euren tollen Beitrag!
Ich bin sehr weininteressiert und lerne gerne Neues :-)
Macht weiter so!
Liebe Grüße,
Tobias