Major Grape Varietal Characteristics - Red Varietals by jGibney Standing in a great vineyard like Domaine de la Romanée-Conti you would never guess that this one of the premier Burgundies of the world. Consisting of only 4.44 acres you can quickly walk around the broken stone fenced area in less than 2 hours at a leisurely pace. Up the hill is garbage dump, at least the last time it was when I was there. Corn is growing just on the other side of the road that runs in front of the vineyard. Not what you would expect for one of the worlds most expensive wines produced. But, boy, if you can get your hands of a bottle of the dream wine, it is worth every penny and then some.
Here are five different red grape varietals that you are sure to meet. The flavors, aromas, body styles of these classic wines with benchmarks of each grape will assist you in understanding the characteristics of these red varietals.
Cabernet Sauvignon Varietal
Flavor - Black currant, blackberry, cherry, cranberry, cassis, spice, eucalyptus mint, cedar, leather, plum vanilla, oak.
Texture or Body - Medium to full-bodied, complex, highly structured, tannic and dry.
Benchmark Wine - B.V. Rutherford.
Gamay Varietal
Flavor - Fruity, grape, kool-aid, melted black cherry Jell-O.
Texture or Body - Light to medium, simple.
Benchmark Wine - J. Lohr.
Merlot Varietal
Flavor - Black currant, chocolate, baked cherries, leather.
Texture or Body - Medium to full-bodied, dry, chewy, dense, less structured and more supple than a Cabernet, but the two are easily confused except for the softness.
Benchmark Wines - Clos du Bois and Columbia Crest.
Pinot Noir Varietal
Flavor - Earthy, strawberry, plum, prune, baked cherry, mushroom, cedar, cigar, dry leaf, chocolate, black pepper, spicy, musty.
Texture or Body - Light to medium bodied, dry, silky, smooth. Brick red-brown in color.
Benchmark Wines - Rodney Strong and Napa Ridge.
Zinfandel Varietal
Flavor - "Jammy," spicy, black pepper, boysenberry. Can have some residual sugar and high alcohol.
Texture or Body - Light to medium bodied, dry, silky, smooth. Brick red-brown in color.
Benchmark Wine - Ravenswood Vintners Blend.
Use this information to assist you in your tastings and note taking. Also look at wine labels. You will see some of these very words listed to describe the wine you intend to purchase. Tip: write the words from the label on the bottle onto your tasting sheet then compare with what you think how the wine tastes.
