Colossal Cookbook/ColossalCookbook.cdr/alco/microbar/mbtut5.tut

Text File | 1984-11-05 | 32KB | 934 lines

WINE
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Wine, one of the oldest beverages created for the pleasure of
man, is a natural product made from grapes.  Its probable
Mediterranean origin predates written history, with the earliest
known documents stating that wine has been made since 4000 B.C.
Wine, wine-making, and the cultivation of wine grapes gradually
spread throughout the civilized world via tradesmen, religious
sects, and conquering armies.  Today, almost every continent can
enjoy wine from its own resources.

For many people, wine is an integral part of life.  It enhances
the enjoyment of nearly every occasion and has the capability of
turning an ordinary moment into a golden memory.

But where to start?  The world of wine can be overwhelming.  The
variety of labels seems endless, the terminology is confusing,
and the customs related to serving it are varied and often mystifying.
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Wine needs to be appreciated.  Each wine has its own personality.
Nature guarantees it will never have quite the same character
each year, even considering the exact same vineyard, wine-maker,
and process.  This factor, combined with the ever-changing
character of wine as ir ages, results in a complex beverage that
can satisfy tastes and temperaments all over the world.

Wine Appreciation

There are two things required to become a wine connoisseur:
taste buds and a good memory.  The more wines you experience, the
better you'll be able to discriminate between what you do and
don't like.  Learning to assess quality in wine is fun and can
save you money.  A $12.00 bottle may not be twice as good as a
$6.00 bottle, but only your palate can make that decision.

Preferences in wine are subjectiveand everyone's taste differs.
Through the years certain guidelines have evolved to maximize the
enjoyment of wine.
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Wine Tasting

There are three criteria for judging wine:  color, aroma, and
taste.  You must first examine the wine in a clear glass for
color.  The deeper the color, the fuller the flavor.  The wine
should be clear and appealing.  Murkiness indicates something has
happened to change the taste and quality of the wine.

Next, swirl the glass to aerate the wine.  This helps release the
bouquet or aroma.  Two-thirds of your judgement of wine is based
on the aroma.  In a light white wine, a flowery, grapey perfume
may arise.  The big red wines usually have a "spicy" berry
character and need five to ten minutes in the glass to develop
their bouquet.

Now, taste it.  Take a little wine in the mouth and "whistle" the
wine in to release its full flavors.  Notice the components.  Is
it dry or sweet?  Is it fruity, oaky, acidic?  Is it too heavy,
too light, or well-balanced?  And most important - do you like it?
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From start to finish this procedure should take about twelve seconds.


How Wines are Made

Wine Production:  Grapes are picked from September to October
depending on variety, and put into a crusher-stemmer which
removes the stems and produces grape "must".  Must is pumped to a
press to separate juice from the skins.  (For red wine, skins are
left on during fermentation.)  The juice is pumped to a settling
tank, then into a fermentation vat where wine yeast is added.
When fermentation is complete (two to three weeks), the wine is
racked several times and placed in casks for aging, if desired.
After aging, wine is filtered and bottled.




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Wine Service

When serving wine, there are a few basics to remember:  White
wine is served before red, light wine before heavy, and dry
before sweet.  Red wines should be served at room temperature (65
degrees F) or slightly cool to the touch.  White wines, roses,
and light reds such as Beaujolais are best served with a slight
chill.  For maximum effervescense, Champagne and sparkling wine
are best served very cold (45 degrees F) but not so chilled that
the delicate flavors are lost.

For each wine type there is a proper kind of glass that provides
optimum enjoyment.  The best all-purpose glass for both red and
white wine is an eight-to-ten-ounce clear glass that has a large
bowl at the base and is slightly tapered inward on the top.  The
bowl allows plenty of room for swirling and the tapered top
directs the aroma.  For Champagne, a tall, clear flute-shaped
glass, preferably crystal, ensures that the wine will etain the
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long stream of bubbles the wine-maker went to such great effort
to offer you.  Shallow, bowl-shaped glasses give the wine a broad
surface area from which the bubbles dissipate rapidly and cause
the wine to go flat.

It is common to have more than one glass at a table setting.  The
type of wine and wineglass will depend on the meal prepared.


Wine and Food

It is important to consider how a dish is prepared in deciding
what wine would best complement it.  In general, wines produced
in a certain region tend to go well with dishes from the same
region.  For instance, Chianti is well-matched with full-flavored
Italian cuisine and French red Burgundies with hearty stews and roasts.


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Food & Wine Chart

   Sparkling Wine and Champagne - Aperitifs, wild game, caviar,
oysters, roasted almonds, fresh fruit.

   Dry white wine - Seafood, shellfish, domestic fowl, veal,
cream sauces, mild cheeses, light dishes.

   Rose wine - Baked ham, turkey, sausages, pork.

   Medium-bodied red wine - Lamb, pork, wild game, charred fish
or fowl, pate, mild blue cheeses.

   Full-bodied red wine - Roast beef, steak, charred red meats,
fuller dishes, mild to slightly sharp cheeses.

   Sweet (dessert) wine - Foie gras, fruits, pastry, and simple
desserts.
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   Dry Sherry/Dry Madiera - Aperitifs, soups.

   Port and Sweet Sherry - After dinner, cheeses.


Wine Storage

All wines should be stored in a cool, dry place and kept on their
sides so that the cork remains moist.  If the cork dries out, air
will enter the bottle and oxidize the wine.  Once opened, keep
the leftover wine corked tightly and place in the refrigerator.
Most wines will keep like this for only a few days.  After that
the wine absorbs oxygen and turns to vinegar. If your wine has
"turned", add some olive oil and Dijon-type mustard.  It's an
excellent dressing and you may decide to forgive wine's volatile
nature.  A second alternative for leftover wine is to decant into
smaller bottles.  The fuller the bottle, the less likely it will
spoil since the contact with air is kept to a minimum.
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If wine, particularly red wine, has been stored for a number of
years, a sediment may form on the side of the bottle.  This is a
natural side effect of aging and does not mean the wine has
spoiled.  However, when serving, first decant the wine, making
sure that the sediment is not disturbed.  The wine should be
smooth and velvety.












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A Glossary of Basic Wine Terms

Acidity - A term used to indicate tartness or sharpness to the
   taste due to the presence of fruit acids.

Aroma - That portion of the wine's odor derived from the grape
   variety and fermentation.

Balance - A tasting term denoting complete harmony among the main
   components of a wine.

Body - The weight or fullness of wine on the palate.

Bouquet - That portion of a wine's odor which develops after it
   is bottled.

Cooperage - Containers used for holding or aging wine before
   being bottled.  They may be made out of stainless steel, oak
   or other wood.
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Dry - A tasting term to denote the absence of sweetness in wine.

Enology - The study of wine-making.

Fermentation - The process of converting natural grape sugar into
   alcohol and carbon dioxide by the addition of yeast.

Generic Wine - Wine blended with several grape varieties in which
   the character of any one variety does not dominate.  These
   wines are labeled with a generalized term such as chablis,
   burgundy, or rhine.

Nose - The total odor of wine composed of aroma, bouquet, and
   other factors.

Residual Sugar - The natural grape sugar that is left in a wine
   which determines the sweetness level.

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Tannin - The components in a wine that have an astringent,
   puckery and sometimes bitter quality, and a mouth-drying
   aftertaste.

Varietal Wine - Wine made from one grape variety.

Vintage Wine - Wine made from grapes that are harvested in one
   given year.










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Wines of the United States

Although California, New York, Oregon, and Washington are the
chief wine-producing states in America, several other states such
as Virginia and Texas produce small quantities of wine.  This is
partly due to the skilled young American wine-makers who have
emerged from the University of California at Davis, the famed
United States School of Enology (wine-making).  Their new
scientific methods, coupled with the experience and tradition of
European wine-making, account for a thriving new wine industry in
America as well as many international awards for wines of excellence.


The East

The most important eastern wine-producing state is New York.  The
wines of New York are dissimilar to the wines of California and

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Europe because of the different grape species used for wine
production.  Instead of the traditional European grape varieties,
the grapes used are either nfative American varieties such as
Concord, Isabella, Catawba, and Deleware, or are the hybrids such
as Baco and Seyvel Blanc.  These grape varieties produce wines
distinctively different from those made from European grape
varieties but the wines at best are extremely good.


The West

Oregon and Washington are extremely important wine-producing
states; however, California out-produces them by far.  The
production of wine has a long history in California dating back
to the early Spanish missions, yet wine as a commercial product
is a relatively new venture.  In the early 1960's California had
only a handful of wineries.  Now over 575 wineries exist, and
more are opening each year.
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The principal grape varieties used in California are the same
classic varieties used in France and Germany.  Yet, instead of
identifying the wine by where the vineyard is located as is done
in Europe, the wine is identified by the grape variety.  The
reason for this is that any one grape variety can flourish in
several geographic districts and any one district can produce
good grapes of several different varieties.

A wine label from California is very easy to read.  United States
law requires that wine labels specify the producer or brand name,
wine type (grapes used or blend), the region of origin, the
bottler, the alcoholic content, and the year of harvest.  Behind
each one of these titles are specific requirements the wine must
meet before being released to the public.  This ensures quality control.

There are many grape growing regions in California from north of
San Francisco down to San Diego.  The major fine wine-producing

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areas are Napa, Sonoma, Mendocino, Monterey, and the Central
Coast.  Each region has characteristics different from the other
due to the dissimilar climate, soil, and topography.  Within these
regions are smaller areas with unique microclimates that produce
wines that have singular qualities unlike those of the
surrounding area.  Thus one grape variety can do well in many
regions and produce completely different results.

All regions in California produce  a wide selection of wine
types.  In each region there are particular varieties they are
noted for.







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REGION                          GRAPE VARIETIES

Napa                            Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc,
                                Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot

Mendocino/Sonoma                Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet
                                Sauvignon, Zinfandel, Sparkling Wine

Monterey                        Chardonnay, Johannisberg Riesling

Central Coast                   Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc,
                                Johannisberg Riesling, Pinot Noir

Most wineries permit tours of their facilities and tasting of
their recently released wines.  The people are friendly and the
countryside is beautiful.  It's an excellent excuse to visit
California.

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Wines of France

Without France the wine world would never be where it is today.
Fortunately for us, since 500 B.C. France has continued to
perfect grape growing and wine-making techniques.  It not only
produces most of the important wine types in the world but also
many of the greatest wines.

One of the reasons for the excellence of French wines is a set of
official guidelines for wine production.  Under a law called the
Appellation d'Origine Controllee, the production of each vineyard
is held to high standards of quality.  Only wines of particular
varietals, produced within carefully drawn boundaries, and under
certain processes may be labeled with the name of the vineyard.

For example, Champagne refers only to sparkling wines made within
the Champagne district of France.  Sparkling wines produced
outside of this district - even if using the same grape varieties
and wine-making procedure - are merely referred to as vin
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mousseux or sparkling wine.

There are several extremely important wine districts in France
that produce very different wines.  The most notable are
presented in the following section.


Bordeaux

Bordeaux is actually a city in southwest France surrounded by
vineyards.  It is mainly known for its red wines but their dry
and sweet white wines are among the finest made.  Within Bordeaux
are several sub-districts that use similar grape varieties yet
produce wines of different character.  The primary grape
varieties are Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Merlot.
Red wines that are medium-full bodied, fragrant, and complex come
from these regions:  St. Estephe, Pauillac, St. Julien, Medoc,
Margaux, and Graves.  Red wines that are full bodied, heavy, and
rich come from St. Emilion and Pomerol.
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Red Bordeaux Vintage Chart:

Great Years:  45, 49, 53, 59, 61, 70, 75, 82

Good Years:  55, 62, 64, 66, 71, 73, 76, 78, 79, 80, 81

Graves also produces austere dry whites from the grape varieties
Sauvignon Blanc and Semillion,  Other white wine areas are
Sauternes and Barsac.  Both use the same grape varieties as the
white Graves but the grapes are harvested overripe.  These sweet
wines are golden in color with the rich flavor of ripe pears and
apricots.

White Bordeaux Vintage Chart:

Great Years:  45, 47, 49, 50, 55, 59, 62, 67, 71

Good Years:  53, 57, 61, 62, 66, 70, 75, 76, 79

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Burgundy

Located in eastern France, Burgundy is divided into five main
districts each very different from the others.  The wines are
made either by the vineyard owner or by negociants who buy wines
from the various growers, blend them together and sell the final
product from their particular firm.  In purchasing a bottle of
Burgundy, it is just as important to know the reputation of the
producer or negociant as it is to know the reputation of the
vineyard.  The five main districts of Burgundy are:

Chablis - Producing excellent austere white wines from the grape
   varietal Chardonnay.  These fresh, flinty dry wines are best
   matched with delicate seafoods and shellfish.

Maconnais - Producing popular, light dry wines primarily from
   Chardonnay grapes.  The most well-known wines are
   Macon-Villages, Pouilly-Fuisse, and St.-Veran.
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Chalonnais - Producing light dry reds and dry whites.

Beaujolais - Producing light fruity red wines from the Gamay
   grape variety.  One of the most widely drunk red wines in the
   world and attractively priced.

Cote d'Or - Within this region are two subregions - the Cote de
   Nuits (north) and the Cote de Beaune (south).  The Cote de
   Nuits is responsible for the greatest red Burgundies, such as
   Chambertin, Vosne-Romanee, Vougeot, Musigny, and Nuits
   St.-Georges.  These wines are made from Pinot Noir grapes and
   in character are generally medium-full bodied, fragrant, and
   wonderfully complex.

   The other subregion, Cote de Beaune, is responsible for the
   greatest white Burgundies such as Meursault, Chassagne-Montrachet,
   Puligny Montrachet, and most importantly, Le Montrachet.  The wines
   are made from the Chardonnay grape varietal and in character
   are generally medium-full bodied, rich, and buttery.
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Burgundy Vintage Chart

Great Years:  61, 62, 64, 66, 69, 71, 76, 78, 81

Good Years:  67, 70, 72, 73, 79, 80


Champagne

Thanks to the discoveries of the seventeenth-century monk, Dom
Perignon, sparkling wines are enjoyed the world over.  Champagne
is made by a costly time-consuming process called methode
champenoise.  Essentially, this is the process by which still
wine is made sparkling by allowing it to ferment a second time in
the bottle thus producing the characteristic bubbles in
Champagne.  There are other ways to make a wine sparkling but
this produces the finest results and is the only process allowed
in Champagne.
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The still base wine or cuvee must be near flawless.  For the
base, Chardonnay or Pinot Noir grape varieties are used
singularly or in a blend.  If the label says "Blanc de Noir", the
wine is made entirely from Pinot Noir.  If the term "Blanc de
Blanc" is used, the wine is 100% CHardonnay.  Most wines are a
blend of both varieties.

Even though Champagne is produced only in good years, The finest
wines are both vintage-dated and non-vintage-dated.  The initial
wine blend is more important than the year.  Champagne, at best,
is a versitile elegant beverage with toasty, lemony flavors.
Each wine is labeled according to its sweetness level.






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TERM                            CHARACTERISTIC

Natural                         Bone dry

Brut                            Dry

Extra Sec                       Fairly dry
(Extra Dry)

Sec                             Slightly sweet

Demi-Sec                        Fairly sweet

Doux                            Sweet




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Rhone

The vineyards of Rhone are located in southern France on steep,
sun-drenched granite cliffs.  This area produces wines that are
deep in color, very hearty, and big.  Most of the finer Rhone
wines are pressed from one kind of grape, sometimes two or three -
with the exception of Chateau-neuf-du-Pape, in which thirteen
grapes are allowed.  The pricipal red grape varieties are Syrah
and Grenache.  The principal white variety is Voignier.
Important areas of Rhone include Cote Rotie, Hermitage, Chateauneuf-
du-Pape, and St. Joseph.  Currently the best buys are the inexpen-
sive red and white Cote du Rhones.


Loire Valley

Although there is almost no wine sold under the label Loire,
there are a number of well-known vineyard areas along the river
including Vouvray, Sancerre, Pouilly, and Muscadet.
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Vouvray - Perhaps the best-known district.  Made from Chenin
   Blanc grapes, the wines are light and delicately fruity with a
   hint of sweetness.  A substantial amount of sparkling and some
   semi-sparkling wines are also made.

Sancerre and Pouilly-sur-Loire - Both primarily produce dry white
   wines from the grape varietal Sauvignon Blanc.  The wines have
   a strong varietal character and at best are excellent.

Muscadet - Produces delightful light dry white wines with a crisp
   finish.  The wines are made from the grape variety Melon of
   Burgundy.


Alsace - French Rhine Wines

Located in northeast France, Alsace borders Germany and, in fact,
produces white wines with Germanic characteristics.  The finest
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wines are fairly dry and made from the varieties White Riesling
and Gewurztraminer.  Gewurztraminer is the most unique tasting
white wine in France.  It has a flowery aroma and an exotic spicy
flavor.

Alsace is also known for its eaux-de-vie.  These are fruit
brandies made from cherries (kirsch), wild strawberries (fraise),
raspberries (framboise), plim (mirabelle), as well as other fruits.


Wines of Germany

Germany's vineyards lie as far north as grapes can ripen.  The
vineyards are located on steep hillsides with the best vines
facing south for maximum exposure to the sun.  Due to difficult
location and weather, the wines are expensive but worth the price.


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Most of the wines of Germany are white and range from sweet to
sweeter to sweetest.  However, it's hard to know what you are
getting if you can't decipher a German wine with complete
confidence.  Of the world's wine labels, the German gives the
most precise and complete information about the wine within.

The label tells you which of the three types you are buying:

A)  Tafelwein (Table Wine)
   Wine for everyday consumption.  This wine is infrequently
   imported.

B)  Qualitatswein (Quality Wine)
   A higher quality than Tafelwein.




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C)  Qualitatswein mit Pradikat (Quality Wine with Special
    Attributes)
   The highest quality category.  Wines must be made from White
   Riesling grapes.  The Pradikats or special attributes refer to
   five levels of ripeness and sweetness.

1)  Kabinett - (1-5% residual sugar)  Slightly sweet dinner fare.

2)  Spatlese - (6-12% residual sugar)  Late picked.  Fairly sweet.

3)  Auslese - (12-18% residual sugar)  Selected late picked.
    Very sweet.

4)  Beerenauslese - (20-30% residual sugar)  Very sweet.
    Berry-selected, late picked.

5)  Trockenbeerenauslese - (30% or more residual sugar)  Extremely
    sweet.  Dried berry-selected, late picked.

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A)  Eiswein - wine from grapes picked and crushed frozen.  Very
    sweet.


At the very top of the label is the name of the growing region.
Just under that is the year of harvest.

In bold type across the wine label are the town and vineyards
that produced the wine.  An "er" suffix is placed on a village
name so a wine from the towm Bernkastel becomes Bernkastler on
the bottle.

Just under the town name you'll see the grape variety.  The most
important varieties are Johannesberg (White) Riesling, Sylvaner
and Muller-Thurgau.  The label then tells if the wines is dry
(trocken) or semi-dry (Halbtrocken).


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The last two lines, which look like fine print on a contract,
tell the ripeness of the grapes at harvest, the official
passed-quality-control number, and whether or not the wine was
estate-bottled or produced by a cooperative of growers.

There are eleven wine districts in Germany.  They are:  Nahe,
Franconia (Franken), Baden and Wurttemburg, Ahr, Rheinhessen,
Palatinate (Pfalz), Rheingau, Middle Rhine, Mosel (with Saar and
Ruwer), and Bergstrasse.  The two most important districts are
the Mosel-Saar-Ruwer producing stylish elegant wines with "steely
aristocracy" and the Rheingau producing fuller, more lush wines
than the Mosel with ripe, apricot fruit.

German Vintage Chart:

Great Years:  53, 59, 71, 75, 76, 83

Good Years:  64, 66, 69, 70, 73, 79
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Wines of Italy

In the past, Italian wines have suffered not only from the
haphazard methods of wine-making and growing but also from an
easygoing attitude concerning nomenclature.  The root of the
trouble was the government's failure to safeguard place names of
the fine wine regions.  The French government, afraid of having
its market flooded with cheap Italian wines, urged the Italian
government to set up control laws somewhat along the same lines
of their Appellation d'Origine Controlle.

In July 1963 regulations for controlling place names, or
Denomination of Origin (D.O.C.), were made law.  The best
quality, government guaranteed standards, are labeled
Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita which means the
location of the vineyards are "controlled and guarnateed" to be
of consistently high quality.  Today, Italy is the largest
producer and exporter of fine wine in the world.

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There are some 18 distinct wine-growing regions in Italy located
throughout the country.  The most well known are:  Piedmont -producing
Barolo, Barbaresco, Gattinara, Barbera, Asti Spumante, and
others; Tuscany - producing Chianti and Brunello di Montalcino;
Veneto - producing Soave, Bardolino, Valpolicella; Latium -
producing Frascati.


Popular Italian Wines -

Amarone - Red wines made from grapes that are dried, like
   raisins, to concentrate sugar and increase alcoholic content
   (up to 15%).  Heavy flavor.

Asti Spumante - Muscat grapes go into this sparkling white wine
   that's grapey and sweet.  Very popular in Italy and growing in
   popularity in the United States.

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Barbaresco - A rough tannic red wine from Nebbiolo grapes.  One
   of the best produced; better and smoother when aged.

Barbera d'Alba - Fruity red wine with a high tannic overtones.

Barbera d'Asti - "More refined" relative of the wine above;
   should be aged 4-8 years.

Bardolino - Light red table wine.

Barolo - The "king" of Italian wines.  A strong wine having a
   perfume that's the "muscleman" od Piedmont reds.  However, the
   wine is velvety smooth when aged.

Chianti - Medium-light bodied, sometimes flinty red wines.  Very
   aromatic.  Serve with grilled meats and fowl.  Made from
   Sangiovese grapes (about 70%) and the rest a blend of up to
   five other varieties.
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Chianti Classico - Aged and elegant Chianti.

Frascati - Fruity, dry young white wines.

Gattinara - Like a Barolo but more refined.  Hearty and full-flavored.

Grappa - Fiery grape brandy made from the last of the pressed
   grape pulp.  Smells and tastes like wood alcohol.

Grignolino - Rose or light red wine with ample bouquet and a
   little "kick".

Lambrusco - Light, lively red.  Serve chilled.

Marsala - Dark, sugar-fortified dessert wine from Sicily.  Used
   often to create Veal Marsala and a custard-like dessert called
   zabaglione.

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Orvieto - Fruity dry light wines.

Pinot Grigio - A little fruitier than most Italian whites.  Dry.

Soave - Popular light dry white wine made in the town of Soave
   near Verona.  Drink young.

Spanna - Another name for the Nebbiolo grape and a red wine
   produced from it in Piedmont.  Rich, full flavor.

Valpolicella - Light red wine, good slightly chilled.  Soft.
   Ruby-colored.  The Italian equivalent of Beaujolais.

Verdicchio - Light, crisp, dry white wine.  Pale green.




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Wines of Spain

Spain has more vineyards than any other country in Europe but
lower yields than Italy and France.  This is partly due to
eclectic ideas of what constitutes a vineyard and partly reflects
the haphazard nature of much of Spain's wine industry.
Currently, there is an expansion of grape growing and the gradual
utilization of modern wine-making methods.

The wine regions of Spain tend to be casually defined.  The main
quality regions are Jerez, Rioja, and Catalonia.

Rioja, located in northern Spain, is known for its red table
wines.  These are made in the style of French Bordeaux and aged
in oak at least two years.  The result is a smooth, dry red with
flavor, aromatic bouquet and a warm aftertaste of oak.  Spanish
wines more than other world wines rely on oak aging which results
in mellower, warmer flavors.
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In northeast Spain, Catalonia produces a wide variety of
inexpensive wines but is best known in the United States for its
sparkling wine.  The sparkling wines of Penedes are very good
producing well-made dry sparklers with definite flavors.

Spain is best known for its sherry and Jerez de la Frontera is
the center of sherry country.  The chalky soil there adds special
characteristics and fineness to the wine.

Sherry is a fortified wine to which grape brandy has been added
to increase the alcoholic content.  The Palomino grape is
primarily used with the grape variety Pedro Ximenez kept for the
sweetest wines.

Sherry is not known by vineyard or vintage. The vintage is lost
in the "Solera" system.  This system helps keep the same quality
and character of the sherry over the years and constantly
refreshes the fino types.  This progressive system employs a
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series od casks graduated by age ranging from fine old sherry to
fresh youthful sherry.  When ready to bottle, a portion of the
oldest sherry leaves the cask or "butt".  An equal quantity is
drawn from the next oldest sherry butt and replaces the wine in
the oldest butt.  Then, to replace the wine lost in the second-
oldest sherry butt, an equal quantity is drawn from the next
older butt - and so on.  The sherry is essentially "ageless".


Types of Sherry

Fino - A pale light gold wine in which "flor", a wine-yeast,
   develops on top during production, adding character.  The wine
   is very dry, has a fresh appley nose and delicate flavors.  To
   be drunk young.



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Manzanilla - This is both a fino wine and a wine in its own right.
   Produced near the sea, the salt air affects the flavor giving
   a special tang.  A fresh light tart wine.

Amontillado - A softer, darker-colored sherry than fino.  The
   best Amontillados are old finos with nutty powerful flavor and
   usually slightly sweet.

Oloroso - This sherry is fuller in body than the Amontillado.  The
   wine is strong, nutty, and pungent.  It is the basis for the
   best sweet sherries, often known as milk or cream.







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Wines of Portugal

There are regions in Portugal that make table wines, such as Dao,
which produces wines similar to the Riojas of Spain.  But
Portugal's main claim to fame is Port and Madeira.

Madeira

Madeira, and island located off the coast of Morocco, is
considered to be a part of Portugal.  Wine has been a major
product there for over 400 years.  Fame came once Madeira was
made suitable for export by being fortified by brandy, and the
long sea voyages through tropical heat speeded up the long
maturing process, resulting in the caramel tang by which all
Madeiras can now be recognized.

Today, the wines are "baked" to achieve this tang, and the
shippers of Madeira use the Spanish solera system to blend their
wine into consistent brands.
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There are four distinct types of Madeira named after the grapes
from which they are produced, ranging in levels of sweetness.
From dry to sweet they are:  Sercial, Verdelho, Bual (Boal), and
Malmsey.  Rainwater is a blend and may be dry or medium sweet.


Port

Port's name was derived from the city from where it was shipped
at the mouth of the Douro, Oporto.  A blend of many grape
varieties, the wine is made from running off partially fermented
red wine into a barrel a quarter full of brandy while the wine
still has half of its grape sugar.  The brandy stops the
fermentation so that the wine is strong and sweet.

When completed the wine is a deep opaque purple, rich in fruit,
tannic acid, and long lived.  There are several types of port.

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Vintage Port - This is among the world's best wines.  Not
   produced every year, the wine is made entirely from one
   exceptional year and bottled early for laying away and aging.

Vintage Port Vintage Chart:

Best Years:  45, 47, 48, 50, 55, 58, 60, 63, 66, 67, 70, 75, 77, 80

Crusted Port - Good wine handled as is a Vintage Port but not
   necessarily of one vintage.

Tawny Port - Port aged many years in oak producing a tawny color.
   Very fine quality and smooth.

Ruby Port - Young port aged in wood a relatively short period of
   time.  Deep in color, fruity but rough.


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Late-Bottled Vintage Port - Wine of a good year kept much longer
   in wood than Vintage Port.  A lighter wine.

White Port - Port made from white grapes.



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