Wine is the oldest and most widely used alcoholic beverage. Historically wine was used for many different events; from being part of a big feast to health care. Its effects on man have not only been for pleasure and allowing for free minded thinking, but also for health and protecting the body. Then the characteristics unique to the grapes allow us to recognize and appreciate the intrinsic qualities of a wine. Through tasting and, as the taste is compared, the difference is analyzed between one product and another and one can distinguish the merits or the defects of each.
Our goal in this section of this web site is to give a description of the characteristic of the variety of different grapes and try to describe the wine that we taste. Wine with intelligence, competence and humility must be tasted to be able to appreciate all of its tones of perfume, tactile and visual feelings, that distinguish it from all other foods.
The characteristic of grapes and the smell of the wine change from region to region around the world. The same grape planted and grown in two different soils and climate give two completely different wines. Why? The wine plants get the nutrients from the ground and the different grounds give different nutrients to the plant. Clay stone ground gives wine more alcohol such that the rocks give to the wine the mineral and acidity…. just as different flowers flourish under different growing conditions, so do grapes.
There is an integral relationship between soil and grape. Grape growers have long understood the magic that happens when grapes and soil come together in perfect conditions. There are classic compatibilities of soil type and grape variety.
Chardonnay and Pinot Noir vines thrive in limestone soil. The great vineyards of Champagne, Burgundy, the Loire River, and Bordeaux all have quality limestone soil.
Cabernet Sauvignon likes gravelly soil. Riesling likes slatey soil. This isn't to say the grapes cannot grow in other types of soil. Grapes will grow in a wide variety of soils. Grape vines thrive in well-drained soils with loamy to sandy surface layers over moderately permeable clay sub-soils.
Different soils affect grapevines in many ways. The amount of soil-available water directly affects grapevine water balance. How well does a particular soil retain heat? The water balance is considered to be the most important factor in the choice of soil for a grapevine.
As mentioned above, good drainage is important. The fertility of the soil, so important in other crops, is less important for grapes. The struggle of the vine to hold onto the soil, fight to grow and “vine”, and then produce fruit produces character in the grapes.
For Old World wineries, the land is central; it is sacred in the growing process. These Old World wineries are micro-worlds that celebrate the terroir (ter-wah). For this reason Old World wines are associated with where the grapes are grown and the wine is made, rather than the grape type.