Choosing Wine

Wine is an alcoholic drink made from fermented grapes. The chemical composition of
wine is about 87.7% water, 11% alcohol, 1% acid, and 0.2% tannins.

A. Wine production :
1. The harvesting of wine grapes (Vintage) is one of the most crucial steps in the
process of wine-making. The time of harvest is determined primarily by the
ripeness of the grape as measured by sugar, acid and tannin levels with
winemakers basing their decision to pick based on the style of wine they wish to
produce. The weather can also shape the timetable of harvesting with the threat of
heat, rain, hail, and frost which can damage the grapes and bring about various
vine diseases. In addition to determining the time of the harvest, winemakers and
vineyard owners must also determine whether to use hand pickers or mechanical
harvesters. The harvest season typically falls between August & October in the
Northern Hemisphere and February & April in the Southern Hemisphere. With
various climate conditions, grape varieties, and wine styles the harvesting of
grapes could happen in every month of the calendar year somewhere in the world.
In the New World it is often referred to as the crush
2. Extract juice from grapes for wine
3. Fermentation,The process of fermentation in winemaking turns grape juice into an
alcoholic beverage. During fermentation, yeasts transform sugars present in the
juice into ethanol and carbon dioxide (as a by-product). In winemaking, the
temperature and speed of fermentation are important considerations as well as the
levels of oxygen present in the must at the start of the fermentation. The risk of
stuck fermentation and the development of several wine faults can also occur
during this stage, which can last anywhere from 5 to 14 days for primary
fermentation and potentially another 5 to 10 days for a secondary fermentation.
Fermentation may be done in stainless steel tanks, which is common with many
white wines like Riesling, in an open wooden vat, inside a wine barrel and inside
the wine bottle itself as in the production of many sparkling wines
4. Pressure, Pressing in winemaking is the process where the juice is extracted from
the grapes with the aid of a wine press, by hand, or even by the weight of the
grape berries and clusters. Historically, intact grape clusters were trodden by feet
but in most wineries today the grapes are sent through a crusher/destemmer,
which removes the individual grape berries from the stems and breaks the skins,
releasing some juice, prior to being pressed. There are exceptions, such as the
case of sparkling wine production in regions such as Champagne where grapes are
traditionally whole-cluster pressed with stems included to produce a lighter must
that is low in phenolics.
5. Filtration, Filtration is a winemaking process that occurs during clarification
(right before bottling). It involves passing the wine through a filtration medium to
separate any particles from the liquid in order to remove the opaqueness of the
wine and create a clear final product. While there are many ways to filter a wine,
the desired result is the same to produce a stable, clear wine that will arrive to the
consumer perfect. Nearly all whites and most reds have been filtered at least once.
6. The aging of wine is potentially able to improve the quality of wine. This
distinguishes wine from most other consumable goods. While wine is perishable
and capable of deteriorating, complex chemical reactions involving a wine's
sugars, acids and phenolic compounds (such as tannins) can alter the aroma,
color, mouthfeel and taste of the wine in a way that may be more pleasing to the
taster. The ability of a wine to age is influenced by many factors including grape
variety, vintage, viticultural practices, wine region and winemaking style. The
condition that the wine is kept in after bottling can also influence how well a wine
ages and may require significant time and financial investment. The quality of an
aged wine varies significantly bottle-by-bottle, depending on the conditions under
which it was stored, and the condition of the bottle and cork, and thus it is said
that rather than good old vintages, there are good old bottles. There is a significant
mystique around the aging of wine, as its chemistry was not understood for a long
time, and old wines are often sold for extraordinary prices. However, the vast
majority of wine is not aged, and even wine that is aged is rarely aged for long; it
 is estimated that 90% of wine is meant to be consumed within a year of
production, and 99% of wine within 5 years.
7. Bottling, Bottling is the last phase of the wine making process and these are for us
wine-makers very busy days.Actually, this is the last phase of wine making but it
also represents the beginning of a new one with the evolution and development of
the bottled wine.
8. Consumption

B. World Wine Production, 2018

C. Choose Wine
Choosing a good wine is completely subjective. How each person defines a good wine is
unique to them and their taste buds. Whether you prefer delicate, bold, sweet, tart or even
spicy flavors, it is possible to find a wine you adore.

D. Varian of Wine
1. Natural Wine
Wine is farmed organically (biodynamically, using permaculture or the like) and
made (or rather transformed) without adding or removing anything in the cellar.
2. White Wine
 Contains little or no red pigmentation.
 Always made from white grapes, but can be made from black grapes as
well.
 Winemakers can make white wine from black grapes because the juice in
most black grapes is actually clear. White wines can be sweet or dry, or
somewhere in between.
3. Red Wine
 Made from black grapes and have a red or blue tint.
 Have colorless juice, so to make red wine the grape skins, which contain
nearly all of the grapes’ pigmentation, have to remain intact with the juice
during all or part of the fermentation process
4. Rose Wine
 Pink in color, and can be referred to as rosé, pink or blush wines.
 Made from black grapes, but don’t fully turn red because the grape skins
are removed from the juice mere hours after contact.
5. Sparkling Wine
 Made from nearly any variety of grape, are wines that contain carbon
dioxide bubbles
 Carbon dioxide occurs naturally during fermentation, and winemakers
around the world have developed special techniques to trap carbon dioxide
in the wine.
 6. Fortified Wine
 Fortified wines are wines that have alcohol added to them. These wines,
which include Port, sherry, Madeira, and Marsala, have extra alcohol
added in the form of flavorless grape brandy.
7. Aromatized Wine
 Aromatized wines are wines flavored with fruit, spices, and florals in
addition to added alcohol

E. How To Store Wine

 Store it horizontally
 Keep a steady, cool temperature
 Store in ideal humadity
 Limit light exposure
 Keep it still

F. Wine Suggestion
 I’d suggest....
 Why don’t you try...?
 What about...?
 What about trying...?
 May I suggest...?
 Have you tried...?

Example 1 :
 If you are eating fish, madam/ sir, I’d sugges a Chablis.
 If you are eating fish, madam/ sir, why don’t you try a Chablis?
 If you are eating fish, madam/ sir, what about a Chablis?
 If you are eating fish, madam/ sir, what about trying a Chablis?