If we look at wine as fermented grape juice, it seems illogical that prices can range from as little as $2 up to $1000 or more. What differences make some wines so expensive while others remain cheap? Can we detect those differences easily when we taste wine? Expensive wines are produced from grapes with more …
Carl Walton
I remember when I first attended a young-wine show, and every winery had its young wines in carafes and decanters to open up their aromas. The thought crossed my mind about what would happen to those wines at the end of each day of the show. Did the wineries store their wines overnight in their …
When I first began exploring the world of wine, I was intrigued by the metal foil and plastic coverings over the corks of wine bottles. They didn’t seem to have a purpose, so I set about learning more, and this is what I found. The metal foil coverings over the corks of wine bottles are …
I spent summer vacations on the family wine farm when I was young. I remember a day when my older cousin and I walked in the vineyards, picking and eating grapes. I may have eaten too many grapes and got a stomach ache. My cousin laughed and said that it was the alcohol in the …
When I was first introduced to the world of wine, I thought using a decanter was reserved for expensive ancient wine. Once I learned a little more about wine, I realized how much decanting improved the taste of my wine. But how long should I decant my wine without the risk of ruining it? I …
During my travels, I have dined in many small restaurants and cafes where a lunchtime set menu often includes a carafe of house wine. This made me wonder how many glasses there were in a carafe of wine and whether all carafes of wine are the same wherever I go. I decided to go and …
I saw my first wine cooler when I was 17 and visited the family wine farm for my summer vacation. At first, I thought it was just a fancy fridge with a glass door until my older cousin explained what it was and why it was necessary. A wine cooler is designed to keep red …
I have often experienced restaurants serving wine in a carafe while wine experts talk about the benefits of using a decanter for wine. So, I set about learning the differences to understand better how to get the maximum enjoyment from my wine. A decanter is just used for wine and has a wide base to …
I had once believed that you needed a fancy wine decanter to be able to decant wine. However, spending vacation time on wine farms and talking to winemakers, I learned that there are alternatives to using fancy decanters for decanting wine, including decanting wine in a bottle. It is possible to decant wine in a …
If you like wine, then this question has undoubtedly occurred to you. What types of wines need to be decanted, and which do not? Generally, younger red wines and some white wines do not need to be decanted, while older red wines and certain white wines can benefit from decanting. However, there are no hard …