Anyone who has walked into a wine shop for the first time has felt it: brain overload. There are literally hundreds (or more, depending on the size of inventory) of different wines. The mind simply cannot begin to absorb all of the data. There are red wines, white wines, pink wines, French wines, Merlots, Ports, sparkling wines, cheap wines, expensive wines, big bottles, small bottles, boxes of wine, even perhaps a wine in a soda-type can.
No wonder so many would-be wine drinkers say, “Screw it. I’m sticking with beer.”
To help you sort through this tidal wave of information, we will examine six particular wines in detail. These wines are frequently called the “Big Six.” No, they don’t form a college athletic conference, but they are the six most popular wine grapes in terms of acreage and wine production. (There are some grapes that are more widely planted, but they may not be as common in the marketplace.)
Once people have a handle on the Big Six, it’s relatively easy to spread your wings and try other wines. With the Big Six, you’ll have a reference point, as in, “This wine is kind of in between a Riesling and a Sauvignon Blanc.” Other wine consumers will understand what you mean–and without the use of adjectives that could come only from a thesaurus.
The other great thing about the Big Six is that they are easy to remember and place in context with each other. If you can memorize the order of the varieties, you will have a scale of light wine to heavy wine. In other words:
Riesling—Light White
Sauvignon Blanc—Medium White
Chardonnay—Heavy White
Pinot Noir—Lighter Red
Merlot—Medium Red
Cabernet Sauvignon—-Heavy Red
The terms “light” and “heavy” refer generally to the characteristics of the wine: how they feel and taste. To put it differently, a light wine can have plenty of flavors, but a heavy wine has many more flavors and is more intense than a light wine.
Don’t worry, it will make sense after you’ve studied the wines in order. By study, of course, I don’t mean reading these articles or any of the gazillion other written wine guides. By study, I mean opening up a bottle, pouring a couple of ounces in a glass, and tasting the things. You can’t learn about wines by reading any more than you can become physically fit by reading a fitness magazine. If a little active homework seems like too much effort, forget about studying wine and pick up an algebra textbook instead.
From here, we’ll launch into Riesling. If you haven’t already bought a couple of Rieslings, then do so before you read the main Riesling article.
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