Types of Wine

Sparkling Wines
• Sparkling wine is made from table wine that has undergone a second fermentation.
• The wine maker adds a measured amount of sugar and fresh yeast to the dry wine.
• This can happen in a closed tank, or directly in the bottle, which is the way the most famous sparkling wine, French champagne, is produced.
• The yeast ferments the added sugar, but this time the carbon dioxide gas remains in the sealed bottle, creating carbonation.
• When the sparkling wine is poured into a glass, the gas bubbles to the surface.
• Under the Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée system, only sparkling wines produced in the Champagne region of northeastern France can officially use the name champagne.
• Sparkling wines produced in all other regions of the world, even those produced using the traditional champagne method, are simply referred to as sparkling wines.
• About 13 million cases of sparkling wine are produced in the United States each year.
• Some sparkling wines with their countries of origin are as follows:
o Champagne - Champagne (France)
o Sekt - Sekt (Germany)
o Asti-Spumante - Asti, Cynco, Alessandria (Italy)
o Vino-Verde - Minho (Portugal)
o Dao - Dao (Portugal)


Sparkling Wine Brand Names
• Champagne brands
Moet et Chandon
Tattinger
Krug
Mumm Cuvee Napa
Dom Perignon
Laurent Perrier
• Sekt brands
Blue Nun
Barth
Neakel
• Asti-Spumante brands
Martini Rosso
Luigi Bosca
Cinzano
• Vino-Verde brands
Alveleda
Quinta de Crasto
Meila Encosta
• Dao brands
Dao RD
St. Martinho


Fortified Wines
• Fortified wines contain additional alcohol and are usually consumed in small amounts as aperitifs before meals or dessert wines after a meal.
• Popular examples are port and sherry.
• In port wine making, which originated in Portugal, the grapes are crushed and the fermentation started but then stopped by the addition of more alcohol, which kills the yeast. The resulting wine is sweet and has an alcohol content that is 5 to 10 percent higher than table wine.
• Originally from Spain, sherry is made by adding alcohol to a young dry wine in an oak barrel intentionally filled only halfway. Special yeasts called flor yeast grow on the surface of the wine and create the distinct nutty flavor characteristic of sherry.
• About 8 million cases of fortified wines are produced in the United States each year.
• Some fortified wines with their country of origin are as given below:
o Port - Portugal
o Madeira - Portugal
o Sherry - Spain
o Marsala - Italy

Fortified Wine Brand Names
• Port brands
Quinta Do Crasto
Quarles Harris
The Triple Crown
Hutchinson
Delaforce
• Madeira brands
Borges
Leacock
Carvalho Riberia & Ferreira
Cosart Garden
D’Oliveiras
• Marsala brands
Woodhouse
Fiorio
Witticker
• Sherry brands
Ochavico
Royal Esmerelda
Bristol Cream
Harvey’s
Sandemon



Aromatized Wines
• Aromatised wines have alcohol in the form of brandy added after the fermentation is over, leading to consumption of the entire sugar by yeast resulting in very dry wines.
• Vermouths like Martini Rosso and extra dry fall in this category.
• Typical examples are Vermouths and Commandaria.
• Vermouths are of four main types from Dry - Sweet Rose to red Vermouth
• However, in modern times many aromatized wines fall under the category of aperitifs.