Overview To Sampling Wine
The fundamentals of tasting red wine are reasonably straightforward to find out. As soon as the basics are understood, the nuances and details can be enhanced over a lifetime. Like any kind of various other skill, More »
Red Wine Types
Red wine has a lot of different types, among which, the most popular include Merlot, Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz. Moreover, More »
Category Archives: Pinot Noir
West Australian Wines And Wineries
With more 150 wineries, Western Australia is one of the most qualitative wine producing regions of the country. Though it does not account for more than 5 percent of the production, the wine produced in Western Australia is of the topmost quality. The wineries are located at different at different physical locations such as Coastal, Great Southern, Margaret River, Pemberton, Perth Hills and Swan Valley. Amongst these, the Swan Valley is the one of the largest sources of Western Australias wine production. A 30 minute drive from Perth, Swan Valley is a picturesque place with wildlife parks and scenic beauty. Swan valley has some of the best wineries in Western Australia and is best known for its fortified wineries. But due to the presence of tropical climate in Swan Valley, many wine producers have deserted the region over the years and as a result production is rapidly falling. Yet it remains one of the most authentic wine producing regions of Western Australia and people often plan trips to Swan Valley to enjoy a weekend!
Winemaking in southern regions of Western Australia started in the late 1960s. The climate there is more suitable for wine production. The area does not have more than seven percent of Australias vineyards and the percentage of grapes crushed is a mere three percent. Nonetheless the winemaking regions of South Western Australia enjoy immense popularity because of the quality of wine they are known to produce. The Margaret River region is a renowned wine growing region and was founded not more than thirty years ago. Today dozens of wineries are spread beside each other and is immensely popular amongst visitors. Margaret River region is a tourist hotbed with popular wine tasting cuisines, first class restaurants and stroll gardens. Margaret River along with being a wine tasting heaven for tourists, is also a famous surfing spot and has exotic beaches.
The wineries of the coastal region are not grouped as such and one needs to drive extensively in order to locate them properly. The Wineries are filled with scenic beauty and exotic locales and it is a pleasure for eyes to take a look at them. The Great Southern Region is Australias largest wine region with more than 200 kilometers in width and 100 kilometers in length. The vineyards situated are spread throughout the area and have significant differences in the way they are. Also the climate of this region plays a very important role in this region as this is one of the coolest regions of Australia and the vineyards here are dependent on the cool climate to produce some of the best wines. The region has produced some award winning wines and is very well known amongst vintage wine collectors and tasters.
This region of Australia is very well known for its wine production techniques and the quality of wine it upholds even if certain problems tend to hamper the production at times. This region is the reason why Australian wine has become a global name today.
Qualities Of A Good Wine Cellar
A wine cellar is a storage area for wine in barrels or bottles and is normally built underground. It is a necessity in a quality wine cellar to provide a favorable environment to ensure that the wines stored there remain in a fresh state even after many years cellaring. This means that the temperature and humidity of the cellar have to be regulated at levels that will allow the wines to age slowly and develop complexity.
If a cellar is built above the ground, it could better be described as a wine room and if it contains less than 500 bottles and is above ground, it may be identified as a wine closet. The main purpose of building a wine cellar is to protect the wine from environmental factors that will compromise the quality of the wine. Factors such as light, high temperature or low humidity will all affect the wine in an adverse way. Wine is a living thing that must be protected from fluctuating temperatures, heat and lights and also shakes. Thanks to precise safe-keeping, wine not just sustains its freshness but even betters the grade of its bouquet, sophistication and also essence.
Accordingly, a decent wine storage ought not to solely conserve the life of the actual beverage but additionally refine it. The perfect setting inside of a wine storage room will need to change from 13 to eighteen degrees C additionally it is required to be freed from all manner of shaking. In case the temperature conditions shift from season to season, it must change by something like ten degrees C. For years and years, the people from France have preserved their wine bottles in subterranean caverns at these kinds of climate which is a way people today calculate the condition of warmth needed for storing wine. To guarantee that the concluding result includes attributes of any perfectly aged wine, temperatures ought not to be raised above eighteen degrees centigrade mainly because the wine beverage could age too quickly. Vintages that age way too rapidly will most likely taste identical to vinegar rather than keep the polished and pleasing substance of the high-quality wine.
Active or passive refer to the air conditioning located in the wine cellar. A wine cellar possessing an efficient cooling down device necessitates insulating material as well as a steam buffer fitted. A particular wine cooling model will be positioned in the wall structure making sure that the temperatures and dampness will be managed at the suitable ranges. Quite a few above ground cellars need a cooling unit to help maintain a consistent temperature. Geographic regions that happen to be normally cool will often be appropriate for a passively cooled wine cellar. Almost all subterranean cellars are passively chilled and often a well-constructed and well-insulated underground room storage might be passively cooled down. A passive wine cellar will involve no electricity to be successful. They are for that reason less expensive to construct and operate although at some point unreliable in severe weather.
Cheap Wine Glasses that Are Not
The title looks confusing, though it was not meant to get that way at all. Think about it- cheap wine glasses which aren’t cheap whatsoever- what does that man anyway? You are going to be enlightened when you care to read on. A lot of people, when they drink wine, overlook the importance of the wine glass and buy the cheapest ones they can buy. They want the wine and for the most part, the glasses are mere vessels to hold they wine.
The higher end wine glasses are typically really pricy and a lot of people will not want to spend that much cash on wine glasses. If you want to buy cheap wine glasses then you should also know that you may get low quality ones if you pay too cheap a price for them. Those wine glasses may be too cheap for comfort. What you should get are cheap wine glasses that are still high quality. Such a wine glass does exist should you care to look carefully enough. If you do buy wine glasses which can be priced cheaply and yet are of excellent quality, it would be best to buy these cheap wine glasses from a trusted company.
They may lack the feel and looks of dearer wine glasses . But you should not worry since your cheap wine glasses from a trusted company will always look better than the other cheap wine glasses made by unknowns. The trusted brand cheap wine glasses will not break and leave you with a bloody mess to clean up unless of course they are dropped from a great height; in this instance, even expensive wine glasses do and will break. A loud cheer for cheap wine glasses that are trustworthy indeed. Go ahead and buy cheap wine glasses you need to use for evenst and restaurants.
How do Wine Aerators Work?
A wine aerator is a device that sits above a decanter or glass, allowing the maximum amount of air to flow through the liquid as it’s poured. In the past five years, many models of aerator have been introduced to the market, giving wine lovers a number of options for enjoying their younger wines by the glass, or by the bottle, hours earlier than they could with decanting alone.
Why aerate wine?
Most full-bodied reds require time to “breathe” in order for the flavors to mellow and blend for an ideal drinkable state. In fact, most wines under 15 years will benefit from aeration – this is why we often think the last glass out of a bottle tastes better than the first. Simply uncorking a bottle and allowing it to stand will not sufficiently aerate the wine – it needs more of the surface area of the wine exposed to get enough contact with air.
Do all wines need aeration?
Not all. The oldest and palest vintages should be enjoyed after only minutes out of the bottle – as they’ve reached their peak flavor in storage.
But, as most of us are not storing our wine bottles for years, or buying vintage cases at auction, our preferred brands will likely benefit from the use of an aerator or 30-90 minutes in a wide bottom decanter.
What kind of wine aerator should you buy?
That depends. Many models are for reds or whites only. Others have single uses, either by the glass or bottle. An ideal choice for wine lovers new to aeration is a multi-function aerator that can switch from bottle to glass.
Glass or Polycarbonate?
Several popular glass models are available on the market, but the lesser-known polycarbonate options are more practical in terms of longevity and functionality. The Wine Weaver is a fun, polycarbonate choice – it comes in a number of jewel tones and is engineered to allow maximum airflow by releasing the wine in small streams along the sides of the glass or decanter.
Prolong the Life of your Bottle
A word of caution: too much air can be a bad thing for your wine. Pair your wine aerator with a vacuum pump if you like enjoy the same bottle over several days. There’s nothing worse than having to throw out a half bottle of great wine that has been spoiled by resealing too much air in the bottle.
A great gift
Wine aerators are high on the must-have gift list for wine lovers for this Christmas. Give them as hostess gifts and you’ll be a big hit at this season’s holiday parties, where more than one great bottle of wine is sure to be served.