''This article is about the beverage. There is another article on the software.''
Wine is an alcoholic beverage typically made from fermented fruit, usually grapes. The word come from Latin vinum, meaning vine.
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2 Regional wine names 3 Varietal wines 4 Vintage and style 5 Collectable wine 6 Country wine 7 History 8 Medical implications 9 Wine Quotations 10 See also |
Wine grape species
Wine is usually made from Vitis vinifera grapes from Europe. It can also be made from from Vitis labrusca, and hybrids of the two. Vitis labrusca, Vitis aestivalis, Vitis rupestris, Vitis rotundifolia and Vitis riparia are native North American grapes usually used for eating or grape juice but sometimes for wine, like Concord wine. Hybrids of vinifera with other species were originally developed to combine American hardiness and resistance to phylloxera with European flavor. Although only rarely used in traditional wine regions, hybrids are planted in substantial numbers in cool-climate viticultural areas.
Regional wine names
There are many types, kinds, and classifications of wine. Historically, wines have been known by names reflecting their origin, and sometimes style: Bordeaux, Rioja, and Chianti are all effectively trade names, reflecting the most popular wines produce by the named region. These "appellations" (as they are known in French) frequently dictate not only where the grapes in a wine were grown, but also which grapes went into the wine and how they were vinified. The appellation system is strongest in the European Union, but a related system, the American Viticulture Area, restricts the use of certain regional labels in America, such as Napa Valley and Willamette Valley.
These historical designations can be confusing. For example, in the European Union, wine labeled Champagne must be made from grapes grown and fermented in the Champagne region of France. The United States (except Oregon) and Canada complicate this system by allowing the use of some European appellations as generic wine names:
In the U.S. these terms are known as semi-generics.
Some blended wines are marketing terms, and use of the name is governed by trademark or copyright law rather than a specific wine law.
Some Vitis vinifera varietal wine examples:
Wines may also be classified by vinification methods: sparkling, still, fortified, rosé, etc.
The colour of wine is determined by the presence or absence of the grape skin during fermentation, since most wine grapes have clear juice. Grapes with colored juice are known as teinturiers. Red wine is made from red (or black) grapes, but its red colour is bestowed by the skin being left in during fermentation. White wine can be made from any colour of grape, but the skin is not left in during fermentation. A white wine made from a very dark grape may appear pink or "blush" (Blush Wine). Rosé is a compromise between red and white - the skin of red grapes is left in for a short time during fermentation.
Fortified wines are often sweeter, always more alcoholic wines that have had their fermentation process stopped by the addition of a spirit such as Brandy:
Wines may also classified by their primary impression on the drinker's palate. Wines may be described as dry, off-dry, fruity, or sweet, for example. Specific flavors such as cherry, vanilla (usually from vinification in new oak barrels), new-mown grass, brine, raisin and dozens of others may also be sensed, at least by an experienced taster, due to the highly complex mix of organic molecules such as esters that a fully vinted wine contains.
Many exclusive wines come from France, but California, Germany, and Australia also have some world-class wines in both quality and price. Secondary markets for these wines have consequently developed, as well as specialised facilities for post-purchase storage for people to "invest" in wine. The most common wines purchased for investment are Bordeaux and Port. Many wine writers have decried the trend, as it has pushed up prices to the point that few people will consider drinking such valuable commodities, and consequently they are kept in bottles undrunk where they eventually deteriorate into a substance very much like red wine vinegar in taste (and desirability).
Brandy is a distilled wine.
Wine was (like beer) known to be produced by the Babylonians about 5000BC and is one of the first known Biological engineering tasks,
where the biological process of fermentation is used in
a process.
It now seems clear that a glass of wine daily does reduce mortality for those over the age of 35 or so. Sadly, this effect tails off, and significantly larger amounts show a negative impact on mortality. Compounds known as resveratrols are found in larger amounts in red wine, and there is some evidence that these are especially beneficial. Wine marketers have responded to the demand for healthy wines by producing wines (both red and white) with elevated levels of resveratrol.
Other studies have concluded both that wine is the best form of alcohol to consume, and alternately that the only important ingredient is ethanol.
Collectable wine
At the highest end, rare, super-premium wines are amongst the most expensive of all foodstuffs, and outstanding vintages from the best vineyards may sell for thousands of dollars per bottle. Red wines, at least partly because of their greater shelf life, are typically the most expensive. Such wines are often at their best years or sometimes decades after bottling.Country wine
Country wines or fruit wines are made from anything that can be fermented, from flowers like dandelion (with added sugar), to berries, appless, stone fruits, vegetables, and even root crops like potatoes. Wine not made from grapes is generally qualified by the name of its major ingredient, for example, apple wine, palm wine or elderberry wine. Mead is sometimes called honey wine. History
Medical implications
The health effects of wine (and alcohol in general) are the subject of considerable ongoing debate and study. In the U.S., a boom in red wine consumption was touched off in the 1990s by 60 Minutes and other news reports on the French paradox. Wine Quotations
See also