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Wine is made out to be this’complex, well incredibly complex beverage, on that other intense level.
Well, it isn’t according to Chef Takura. he actually makes it sound simple. He simplified it for us and we start off with a basic guide to white wine.
He says:
Now I must admit, it doesn’t matter if you see these particular flavours every time you taste wine, but you can use this as a flavour cheat sheet for when you are trying wines at home or with friends
Chenin Blanc: A very popular variety for wine makers, as it is an extremely versatile grape variety that can be used to make dry, sparkling and dessert wines. It is widely grown in South Africa and is sometimes labelled in its Afrikaans title of Steen. Its pairings with food is as varied as the flavours but the off dry wines pair well with spicy Asian fare and the sweet wines make for outstanding dessert wines.
Chardonnay: Great noble variety known for its versatility as well as its ageing ability and ease of growing in the Vineyard. Burgundy in France is the home of this variety but great examples of Chardonnay are being made in Australia, New Zealand the USA and South America. You should get stone fruit and flinty aromas in the unwooded manifestations of Chardonnay and vanilla and butter in the plush wooded styles.
Riesling: Is possibly the most misunderstood white wine variety mainly because of the crimes committed by many popular brands of the 70’s and 80’s. Its main stomping ground is the Rhine and Mosel river valleys in Germany as well as in Alsace which has been French or German or both in the last 100 years. Riesling is known for its freshness and acidity and loves cool climates, really great fish wine
Semillon: pronounced (Sem- mee-yon) Bordeaux is known is known for her noble red wines, and super pricey noble rot offerings but Semillon and Sauvignon Blanc are sometimes taken for granted. The New world has taken to these varieties with alacrity. Semillon does really well in Australia’s Hunter valley as well as in the Cape. Expect lots of lemony and green apple freshness in less ripe incarnations to tropical fruit like papaya in the riper warmer ones.
Viognier: pronounced (vee-yon-yeah!)A personal favourite variety, as it is easy to pick out, big bright apricot flavour leap from the glass in this red wine drinker’s white wine. This variety comes from Condrieu in France and a really popular blending agent with Shiraz.
Sauvignon Blanc: Possibly the most popular variety, really known for its racy acidity and fresh cut grass and gooseberry flavours. Sauvignon Blanc is the perfect summer drinking wine.
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In the next few days we will share a guide to red wine.
Remember to drink responsibly.
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Takura Makadzange is a Sommelier and chef, he lives and works in Harare and Bvumba wine and food education is his calling. He posts regular recipes on his website and facebook pages Cheftakura.com. You can email him on chefatakura[@]3-mob.com
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