Spring is *finally* here which means I am retiring my big red wine energy and hopping on over to my spring favs (I see you, pet-nat), and-- loading up on alllll the allergy meds 😂🌸
happy w(h)ining,
M
ps-- I hit my fundraising goal, so now all basic platform costs are covered-- so the remainder of the year, if you enjoy this newsletter and want to send some love, click here and it'll go towards my time put into each and every newsletter
our weekly w(h)ine mood:
looking forward to warmer temps
🍷 your weekly wine🍷
This week's wine: blending wine
A question I get asked from time to time is about wine blends, and to be fair, it is a topic that I wondered myself before I started my wine education journey. The question usually goes like this: Are wine blends better or worse than single varietal wines?
Today, let's dig into this because next issue I want to introduce you to one of my favorite blending grapes!
Why blend
Winemakers often blend-- sometimes, they blend different types (varietals) of grapes together. Sometimes, they might just blend together different barrels of wine or grapes from different vineyard sites.
Why? Well, because they want to make a wine that they believe will be *better* with blending. It doesn't necessarily mean that it wasn't a good wine to start with, but perhaps in blending they may add some structure or body to the wine, a touch of sweetness, or in some cases to make it smoother. One varietal may have been in an oak barrel, and so they want to blend in some wine that was in a neutral barrel so mellow out the oakiness in the final wine. Blending is definitely an art, and each blend is unique because year to year the wine will change and the winemaker will need to make tweaks along the way to adjust.
So, in summary-- blends aren't inherently better or worse than single varietal wines, and quite honestly I adore them!
Famous blends
There are so many wine regions, particularly in France, with famous blends (click on the links for our issue on these guys if you missed it!):
*Reds from Bordeaux: Cabernet Sauvignon / Merlot / Cabernet Franc / Malbec / Petit Verdot
*Reds from Southern Rhone: Grenache / Syrah / Mourvedre (technically, more are allowed but GSM is the famous blend from this region!)
*Super Tuscans from Italy: Sangiovese / Cabernet Sauvignon / Merlot / Cabernet Franc (+ other options!)
Once again, here we are at the end of our time together. I hope this newsletter helped make this week a 🌟little🌟 better for you all.
Here are some other things I think you might like:
Add to your weeknight rotation 🍳: this one-pan peperoncini chicken, but sub the potatoes for sweet potatoes and a nice glass of a crisp white wine and et voila, *chef's kiss*
Wine trends I can get behind in 2022 🍷: One wine deal, once a day via text message-- winetext.com-- wine deals, this easy, seriously-- sign up now for one spectacular deal daily featuring a wine that has potential savings of up to 70% off the SRP. To get on the text list, visit Winetext.com! *sponsored*
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