If you are interested in the world of wine and oenology, you have to familiarize yourself with certain grape varieties. They help you better understand the identity of each bottle and recognize the typical taste of each appellation. Here are 15 varieties you must know if you like wine and champagne.
1. Pinot Noir
Pinot Noir is certainly the queen of grape varieties! You will find luxury wines made of Pinot Noir on Millesima. It is particularly popular in the Burgundy region in France, but it can grow almost everywhere.
2. Champagne
Also called Zante Currant or Black Corinth, this grape variety is not the one that winemakers use for champagne. It is very sweet and many chefs are fond of it. Champagne grapes grow especially in France, in Italy and in California.
3. Riesling
Riesling is known as being the most versatile grape grown. It allows to make wines from bone-dry to dessert wine-sweet. Its natural acidity balances the sweetness of the grape. Its floral undertones are just wonderful.
4. Moon Drops
Moon Drops is an elongated purple-skinned grape. It is the fruit of the work of Dr. David Cain, a plant breeder and scientist who develops new grape varieties. It took him 15 years to create this finger-type shape of grape.
5. Concord
Concord is an old American grape variety de in a small farmstead outside of Concord, Massachusetts in 1849. It is sweet and strong at the same time.
6. Lemberger
Also known as Blaufränkisch, this type allows to produce dark and tannic wines with subtle spice notes. It comes from Germany, in the Württemberg wine, but it now grows in other countries like Canada, Austria and the USA.
7. Sweet Jubilee
Sweet Jubilee grapes are large, black and oval. Many wine lovers like their sweetness and their strong character.
8. Valiant
Valiant grapes like cold weather in general and taste a lot like Concord. The skin is very easy to remove when you want to discover its very sweet flesh.
9. Crimson Seedless
Crimson Seedless saw the light of the day in 1989. The grapes are sweet and firm with an amazing tartness.
10. Kyoho
Kyoho grapes are extra-large. They are as big as plums, certainly the biggest grapes you can find in the whole world.
11. Cotton Candy
Cotton Candy is a smooth and sweet green grape. Though it doesn’t look like cotton candy, it tastes a lot like it.
12. Gewürztraminer
Gewürztraminer is a pink grape variety that can be used to make fine white wines. As you may have guessed, it is a German grape variety with a soft and clean mouth.
13. Moon Balls
Moon Balls are white-seeded grapes created by Dole in South Africa. They are round, large and green hybrid grapes that look like bouncy balls.
14. Sultana
Sultana grapes are also called Thompson Seedless. These are small white grapes particularly appreciated by connoisseurs.
15. Fry Muscadine
With the size of a cherry tomato, Fry Muscadine bronzes in the sun. The fruits turn a nice gold color, perfect for white bottles. You will find the basics to know about great wines by clicking that link.