How to read wine labels

A. How to read wine labels Interpreting wine labels is not an easy thing, we need a lot of knowledge as a basis, and then when we see the wine labels, we can determine what the labels really want to tell us. There are a lot of things hidden behind these wine labels, we not only need to be able to distinguish the meaning of the wine label on the surface, but also through learning to understand the story behind these names. Foreign wine labels may seem mysterious, but they contain a lot of necessary information. Reading a wine label is like reading its "business card" before tasting the wine. Take the following wine label as an example, let's see what secrets it contains: 1) From the top to the bottom, the first thing we see is the country of origin of the wine, French wine has a system of regulations, wherever the export of red wine, will indicate the country of origin. 2) The name of the winery (the name of the wine). 2) The name of the winery (wine name), the French wine culture, basically, is also the culture of the winery, large and small wineries to support the illustrious reputation of French wine. "CHATEAU", that is, "winery" meaning, it is behind the word is the specific winery name, if the wine label on the "CHATEAU" word, it means that this wine If the word "CHATEAU" is on the label, it means that the wine should be of good quality because it is a genuine wine of the chateau. (3) Appellation often determines the style characteristics of a bottle of wine, and some famous small-producing regions often produce wines that are generally expensive and even hard to find. (4) Appellation SaintEmilionControlle, here you can see the level of the wine, AOC level, A and C from the first letter of the two words before and after the middle of the word are replaced by O, O that is, the origin of the wine. The smaller the place of origin, the better the wine, such as 0 if it is "Médoc" is better than O instead of "Bordeaux", if O is as small as a famous wine village is better. Thus, the smaller the region represented by O, the better the quality of the wine and the higher the price. In France, below the AOC level, there are also VDQ (good regional table wine), VDP (regional table wine), VDT (daily table wine). 5) The vintage of red wine is the year of harvesting and brewing of that wine, which is one of the most important references for choosing wine. If the price of the wine is around one hundred, it can be consumed three or four years after the year of production; if it is a famous chateau, it is better to follow the appropriate drinking year given by the chateau; if the wine has been produced for one or two decades and is not a famous chateau, it is better not to drink it. (6) The name of the bottler, "AU CHATEAU" is the original winery bottling; "A LA PROPRIETE" is the wine merchant bottling. (7) Alcohol content, the alcohol content of red wine is generally between 11-13 degrees. (8) Capacity, the general market red wine is 750ml, there are also 15L, 3L and larger bottles. The Origin of Red Wine Labeling In 1924, Mouton Rothschild (Chateau de Rothschild) was founded as a wine labeling company. Rothschild (Chateau MoutonRothschild), to commemorate the first bottling of finished wine, the owner of the winery, Philippe? Baron Philippe de Rothschild Baron Philippe de Rothschild, owner of the Chateau, asked the famous poster artist, Jean Carré, to create the first bottling of the wine. Baron Philippe de Rothschild, owner of the Chateau, asked Jean Carlu, a famous poster artist, to design a new label for that year's wines, creating a precedent for the artistic design of wine labels. From 1945, Chateau MoutonRothschild began to use a painting by the artist as a decoration on the top of the label every year. This became one of the hallmarks of Chateau Mouton and a representation of Mouton's shrewd marketing techniques. Many people wanted to buy all the Mouton labels just for the sake of collecting them, and this approach was later followed by a number of other wineries. Even now, the label design of a particular wine from a chateau or winery remains the same from year to year, except for the vintage number. The proud French even think that their wines are the best in the world, so there is no need to spend energy on wine labels. In the Bordeaux region of France, it was not until the beginning of the last century that winery owners began to design their own chateau labels. Prior to that, chateau wines were sold in barrels to wine merchants, who cultivated, bottled and sold them. Wine Label Trivia Since there are so many different types of wine label formats, not only between countries, but even within the same country, there are different labeling methods depending on the region, so it is impossible to introduce them all. For those who know nothing or want to know nothing, the easiest way is to know the five most common grape varieties. The red varieties are Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Shiraz, which is labeled Syrah on French labels. The white varieties are Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc. They can often be found on wine labels. If the wine is made from a single variety, it will be labeled with the name of one grape, and sometimes two or three grape varieties will be labeled at the same time, representing a blend of two or three grapes. The same grape variety will behave differently in different countries and on different soils, but they will basically retain the characteristics of the variety. For example, Cabernet Sauvignon: heavier tannins, more likely to produce astringency, heavier body, significant black paddle black flavor, suitable for matching meat. merlot: single Dan smooth, fruit is more obvious, so it is lighter to drink, more popular with women's favor. shiraz (Shiraz) is the most obvious is with the pungent flavor, the most obvious is with a spicy flavor. Shiraz from Western Australia usually has a pronounced peppery flavor. The most common white wine is Chardonnay, which has distinctly pleasant flavors of honey, cantaloupe and ripe apples, and a smooth, full-bodied texture that most people will enjoy. Wine labels of different countries Even the most experienced wine connoisseur would not dare to say that he can read any wine label in the world. Wine labels vary from country to country, but here are some international standards that no country should be without: volume, alcohol content, country, and the organization responsible for the bottle. New World Wine Labels: The labels of New World wines are clearer and are in English, so they are easier to read. The most important thing to remember about New World wine labels is the name of the wine (or brand), the grape variety used and the name of the appellation, and the year is secondary, because the climate of the New World appellations is relatively stable, and most of the medium-priced wines do not have too much impact on the quality of the year. 1) French Wine Label: Extremely important in French wine labels is the name of the place of origin, because the name of the place of origin is almost the name of the wine. In addition, in the French classification system, if the wine belongs to the better AOC (Appellation d'Origine Contr?lée) level wine, the name of the wine's place of origin will also be highlighted on the label. It has always been the traditional king of the wine kingdom, the French wine label is the first chair, carrying the brand of the old world for hundreds of years, and sticking to the traditional aristocratic temperament, with the momentum of letting the world change, and I have become a unification of my own. The French wine labeling system has always been very standardized, even the Bordeaux and Burgundy wine labels are different. The key word is "class", and the core is "origin control naming" - APPELLATIONCONTROLEE. (2) Italian Wine Labeling: The quality management and classification system of Italian wines only started in the 1960s. Only after its implementation did the quality of Italian wines begin to improve. However, since the classification system is not perfect, it does not necessarily guarantee the quality of the products, and often only indicates the provenance of the wine and the legal conditions of the region. Romantic Rigorous Italian Wine Labels Explained If Italy is filled with an air of romance and beauty, they have likewise worked out a legal labeling system for wine labels - D.O.C., inherited from France, but less stereotypical. That's why drinking Italian wines is usually the first choice for informal gatherings. It is both quality assured and a little more casual, as in the mouth, an elegant waltz. Italian wine labels have begun to shift from traditional to artistic, just in the old vineyard labels, still formal style, but the picture has been a lot of concise, for the new wine fans, but also not to nowhere into the eyes. (3) Spanish wine labels: In addition to the labeling of the Spanish wine classification system, licensed wines will be labeled with the ageing time, and the famous sherry will be labeled with the type to which it belongs (Fino, Amontillado, Oloroso, Creamn 4 kinds). The fusion of exuberance and standardization of Spanish wine labels explain the translation of the name of the very pleasant Torres has become synonymous with Spanish wine, when the owner of the suit, you can not see the Spanish bullfighters of the gallant martial arts, gentle and elegant gentlemen. (4) Australian wine label Forget the Queen of England under the leadership of the restrained gentleman, the Australian unrestrained has been a board to break the law, the famous Penfolds Wine Park in the logo still has a traditional style, so, in the new world seems to be for the dew pattern of this kind of refreshing wine labels are more respected. Can you still see the rugged aboriginal flavor? No, the subtlety and the petit bourgeoisie are all over the label. With nearly 9,000 wineries, Australia does not have a cumbersome legal quality control system, but only stipulates the geographical location of the wine's origin. South Australia, Victoria and New South Wales are all famous producing regions. Australian wines are becoming more and more exquisite, whether it is Shiraz or Jobelin, has been internationally famous, there are advantages of soil and climate, more rare is the good nature of the Australian people to strive for excellence, the wine label is also simple and clear. If you can read French and German wine labels, then Australian wine labels are a no-brainer! For New World wines, the vintage is not an important concern, the grape variety and the name of the winery are the keywords. Australian wines can be called the most accessible varieties, filtered out of the New World wine "green", showing lively rounded, and the price is much easier than the old world wineries, new and old wine fans **** with the love of the. Please take it with you