Red Wine

What is Red Wine?

Red wine is simply wine produced from red (or black) grapes. Most everyone knows that. What you might not know is that almost all grapes have colorless juice. The way that the red wine gets its color is by letting the skins soak in the juice until the red color bleeds out.

Not only does soaking the skins give red wine its color, it also imparts a substance known as tannin. Tannin is what gives red wines a complexity that is beyond that of most white wines.

Tannin has a mouth drying quality that causes the wine to feel firm in your mouth. When a red wine is young, this firmness can be quite intense.

Over time, the qualities of the tannin will mellow and blend harmoniously with the other characteristics of the wine. This is one of the main reasons that red wines usually age better than whites.

Major Red Wine (Grape) Varieties

Cabernet Sauvignon - Thick skinned grape with lots of tannin. They have a blackcurrant flavor and smell similar to pencil shavings.

Merlot - Usually higher in alcohol and will taste of black cherries and sometimes mint.

Nebbiolo - High in tannin and acid and need aging to mellow. They are mainly grown in the Piedmont region of Italy.

Pinot Noir - The most finicky of grapes producing the widest range of quality. The best are hauntingly silky, with aromas of truffles and decaying leaves.

Syrah/Shiraz - Rich and spicy wine with lots of tannin and the sweetness of blackberries.

Tempranillo - Spain's big red, with moderate alcohol and tastes of strawberries and plums.

Zinfandel - Ranging from light and fruity to big and spicy depending on the quality. The best examples are from California. 

Other Red Wine (Grape) Varieties

Barbera - Low tannin with high acidity. Creates a fruity and refreshing wine.

Carmenere - Produces a rich and spicy wine and is popular in Chile.

Gamay - Gained favor in the Beaujolais district of France. They actually taste of grapes and are low in tannin.

Grenache/Garnacha - High in alcohol and is usually sweet and peppery.

Malbec - A smooth and plummy variety from Argentina.

Sangiovese - Main grape in Chianti. This wine has medium acidity and tannin.

Touriga Nacional - An aromatic grape commonly used for making Port.

European Red Wines

The Europeans label their wines by the region in which the grapes are grown, not the grape variety like in the U.S. Many times they are blends of multiple grape varieties. Here is a chart of some of Europe's red wines.