The average wine drinker probably doesn’t spend much time thinking about where wine is from or how it’s made, most of us are satisfied with it being a nice addition to a meal, or a pick me up after a stressful day. But if you’re a budding aficionado who wants to learn about wine or you’re just a little curious, you might be wondering, actually, what even is wine? And where does it come from?
It’s always best to start at the beginning, and we’re here to help you on your journey in wine-discovery and take it right back to the basics for you.
What Is Wine?
Grapes are the key ingredient, but we bet you knew that already. Wine is typically an alcoholic drink (although there are now some pretty decent non-alcoholic wines available) made from the fermented juice of grapes.
Technically you can use any fruit to make wine, but unless it says otherwise on the label, the wine you’ll pick up from a shop like ours will be made from grapes.
How Is Wine Made?
Techniques vary for different types of wine (which we’ll get into a little bit later) but the usual process for making wine involves picking and crushing the grapes, fermenting them into wine, aging and then finally, bottling.
Fermentation (which is the process of a substance breaking down into another substance) is the most important part of the process as this is what makes wine alcoholic. This happens in grape juice when it is mixed with yeast – the sugar in the grapes turns into alcohol and carbon dioxide.
Red Wine
The colour of the wine is all down to the skin colour of the grape. Red wine can only be made with red-skinned grapes. After crushing the grapes and collecting their juice, the skins need to be kept in contact with the juice to give it a red colour.
The colour also depends on how thick the grape skins are and how long the juice is kept in contact with them. If the skins are thicker and kept in contact longer, the wine will be a deeper red.
Here are some of our favourite red wines.
Albret La Loma Garnacha Odd Lot Sustainable Pinot Noir Domaine Grand Prieur Vacqueyras
White Wine
White wine is usually made with pale-skinned grapes, and the skins are removed before fermentation to give it the clear-ish colour we know and love. However, it is possible to make white wine from red-skinned grapes if you avoid contact with the skins – this is a champagne style called Blanc de Noirs (But more on that later)..
Here are some of our favourite white wines.
Reh Kendermann Kalkstein Riesling Terres Secretes Macon Verze Quinta da Calcada Alvarinho
Rosé
Rosé is made with red/black-skinned grapes and gets its pink colour by leaving the juice in contact with the skins for a limited amount of time – usually a few hours. The longer the skin and juice soak for, the deeper the colour. It can also be made from a mixture of already fermented white wine with a little bit of red, although this practice is actually illegal in France and not widely practised..
Here are some of our favourite rosés.
La Bargemone Organic Provence Rosé Lago Vinho Verde Rosé Reh Kendermann Pinot Noir Rosé
Sparkling
To make sparkling wine, carbon dioxide must dissolve into the wine to make bubbles. This is done by fermenting the wine a second time after adding the yeast and sugar. After aging, the dead yeast particles (known as ‘lees’) need to be removed.
There are two main styles of secondary fermentation: the traditional method and the charmat method (or tank method). The traditional method is where the secondary fermentation happens in the bottle, and is the method used for sparkling wines such as Champagne and Cava. The Charmat method is where the secondary fermentation takes place in a large tank and is the method used for producing Prosecco.
Here are some of our favourite sparkling wines.
Oliver Pere & Fils Brut Champagne Calcada Cuvee Prestige Frappato Organic Sparkling Rosé
So, there you have it, now you know the very basics. It’s true that the world of wine can seem daunting, even intimidating, at times, which is why we’ve started this blog series to help you on your journey to becoming a wine expert.
Next time in our ‘Learn About Wine’ series we’ll be looking at notable grapes used in winemaking, and the most popular wine regions, so make sure to check back in with us soon.
Remember…
The Grape Kitchen is an independent wine merchant, dedicated to sourcing the best wine for the best prices. We understand that service and communication is key. That’s why we offer free same working day delivery to all South Yorkshire addresses on orders £20 and above. Just use the checkout code SYorks21 (same working day delivery if order is placed before 2pm).
We have to charge a delivery fee to folks further afield. However, we’ve subsidised these costs and it will only cost you £7.95 for a courier delivery. Better yet, if you spend £90 or more then we’ll cover the full courier cost!