Any place you can grow grapes, you can make wine! Did you know there are over 10,000 different varieties of wine grapes in the world? Like any subject, becoming wine knowledgeable takes time. The more you learn about wine, the more you can enjoy one of nature’s true treats. Come and learn with us and experience all of joy that a great glass of wine can provide.
Still wine made with black grapes. These can range from light to dark and bone-dry to sweet. The best temperature for red wine is 62-68 degrees.
A still wine produced from green and sometimes black grapes. Flavors span from rich and creamy to light and zesty. The best temperature for white wine is 49-55 degrees.
Still wine from black grapes produced by removing the skins before they deeply color the wine. Also formed by blending red and white wine together. Both dry and sweet styles of rosé are common.
A style of winemaking involving a secondary fermetation causing bubbles! Sparkling wine can be red, white, or rosé and can range from minerally to rich and sweet.
A style of winemaking involving fortifying wine with spirits. Typically a dessert wine, but many dry-style fortified wines exist, such as dry Sherry.
Wine can be complex and intimidating but it doesn’t have to be. Our Associates are experts in the field of wine and know their stuff! From the value brands to some the rarest and most expensive vintages, we want to share all of our knowledge with you to make your wine drinking experience the best it can be. We have Certified Specialists of Wine and Sommelier’s to help guide you on your way to becoming more knowledgeable. Make sure to check out our videos devoted to all things wine. From pairing wine with food, to choosing the perfect bottle for a special occasion, to what parts of the world make the best reds, whites and rosés our videos will give you a wine passport and let you hear from the people who make the wine you love. The best part with this education is you can drink your homework!
Taste: Black Cherry, Black Currant, Baking Spices, and Cedar (from oak)
Style: Full-Bodied Red Wine
Description: Cabernet Sauvignon is a full-bodied red grape first heavily planted in the Bordeaux region. Today, it’s the most popular wine variety in the world! Wines are full-bodied with bold tannins and a long persistent finish driven mostly by the higher levels of alcohol and tannin that often accompany these wines.
Food Pairing: lamb, beef, smoked meats, French, American, firm cheeses like aged cheddar and hard cheeses like Pecorino.
Taste: Blueberry, plum, tobacco, cured meat, black pepper, violet
Style: Full-Bodied Red Wine
Description: Syrah (aka Shiraz) is a full-bodied red wine that’s heavily planted in the Rhône Valley in France and Australia. The wines have intense fruit flavors and medium-weight tannins. Syrah is commonly blended with Grenache and Mourvèdre to create the red Rhône blend. The wine often has a meaty (beef broth, jerky) quality.
Food Pairing: lamb, beef, smoked meats; Mediterranean, French, and American firm cheeses like white cheddar, and hard cheeses like Spanish Manchego.
Taste: A broad, exotic array of fruits from stone (overripe nectarine), to red (raspberry, sour cherry), to blue (plum, blueberry), to black (blackberry, boysenberry), Asian 5 Spice Powder, Sweet Tobacco
Style: Medium-bodied to full-bodied Red Wine
Description: Zinfandel (aka Primitivo) is a medium-bodied red wine that originated in Croatia. Wines are fruit-forward and spicy with a medium length finish. Zinfandel is a red grape that may be better known in its pink variation, White Zinfandel.
Food Pairing: chicken, pork, cured meat, lamb, beef, barbecue, Italian, American, Chinese, Thai, Indian, full-flavored like cheddar and firm cheeses such as Manchego.
Taste: Very red fruited (cherry, cranberry) and red-floral (rose), often with appealing vegetal notes of beet, rhubarb, or mushroom
Style: Lighter-bodied Red Wine
Description: Pinot Noir is a dry, light-bodied red that was first widely planted in France. The wines typically have higher acidity and soft a soft, smooth, low-tannin finish.
Food Pairing: chicken, pork, veal, duck, cured meat, French, German, cream sauces, soft cheeses, nutty medium-firm cheeses like Gruyère.
Taste: Yellow citrus (Meyer lemon), yellow pomaceous fruits (like yellow pear and apple), tropical fruits (banana, pineapple), and often a touch of butterscotch, vanilla or toasted caramel notes from oak
Style: Medium to Full-Bodied White Wine.
Description: Chardonnay is a dry full-bodied white wine that was planted in large quantities for the first time in France. When oak-aged, Chardonnay will have spicy, bourbon-y notes. Unoaked wines are lighter and zesty with apple and citrus flavors. Chardonnay is the white grape of Burgundy.
Food Pairing: lobster, crab, shrimp, chicken, pork, mushroom, French, cream sauces, soft cheeses such as triple cream brie, medium-firm cheeses like Gruyère.
Taste: Aggressively-citrus-driven (grapefruit pith), with some exotic fruits (honeydew melon, passion fruit, kiwi) and always an herbaceous quality (grass, mint, green pepper)
Style: Light to Medium-Bodied White Wine
Description: Sauvignon Blanc is a dry white grape first widely planted in France. Wines are tart, typically with herbal, “green” fruit flavors.
Food Pairing: fish, chicken, pork, veal, Mexican, Vietnamese, French, herb-crusted goat cheese, nutty cheeses such as Gruyère.
Taste: Delicate citrus (lime water, orange zest) and pomaceous fruits (apple skin, pear sauce), white floral notes, and cheese rind (from lees usage)
Style: Light-Bodied White Wine
Description: Pinot Gris is a dry light-bodied white grape that is planted heavily in Italy, but also in France and Germany. Wines are light to middle-weight and easy drinking, often with some bitter flavor on the palate (bitter almond, quinine)
Food Pairing: Salad, delicate poached fish, light and mild cheeses.
Taste: Citrus (kefir lime, lemon juice) and stone-fruit (white peach, nectarine) always feature prominently, although there are also usually floral and sweet herbal elements as well.
Style: Floral and fruit-driven aromatic white that comes in variable sweetness. Some producers choose not to ferment all the grape sugar and therefore make the wine in an “off-dry” style.
Description: Always very high in acid, when made as a table wine Rieslings can be harmoniously sweet (sweet and sour) or dry (very acidic). The wine is polarizing because some people find dry styles too acidic and sweet styles too cloying, but sweetness is always a wine making decision and not inherent to the grape.
Food Pairing: chicken, pork, duck, turkey, cured meat, Indian, Thai, Vietnamese, Moroccan, German, washed-rind cheeses and fondue.
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