If you're just starting to experience the wonderful world of wine, you may be somewhat confused by the vast variety of wines – reds, whites, blends, bubblies – and the multitude of choices within each of those broad categories. We'll choose just one of those for this brief introduction – white wines. We'll give you a short tour of the most popular varietals (types of grapes), tell you what you might expect from each and what distinguishes them from each other.
Chardonnay
Chardonnay is definitely the most popular white wine in America – in fact, it's reportedly the only white wine many wine lovers buy. Chardonnay is often the first white wine a beginning wine fan will try, largely because it is so “accessible”. Chardonnay is typically on the dry side, meaning not very sweet, and it typically has flavors of vanilla, apples, tropical fruit, and butter, and a varying amount of oak, depending on the winery where it was produced. “White Burgundy”, from France, is nearly always 100% Chardonnay. Many other wine regions around the world produce Chardonnay, among them Australia and Chile. There are many good choices of American Chardonnay available for under $20. Popularand consistently reliable producers include Beaulieu Vineyards, Columbia Crest, and Chateau St. Michelle, and others.
Sauvignon Blanc
Sauvignon Blanc, also known as Fume Blanc, is another very well-known white wine. Sauvignon Blanc is quite often described as “freshly mown”, meaning that it reminds the drinker of freshly mown grass. It is a medium-bodied white wine with fruity aromas like peach, grapefruit, and melon, and is dry and refreshing with medium acidity. Sauvignon Blanc is a wonderful summer wine, especially good with seafood and it's a perfect match for appetizers and picnics. A very nice choice, for under 15 dollars, is produced by Babich (New Zealand).
Pinot Grigio
Pinot Grigio, also called Pinot Gris (the actual grape's name), is Italy's most popular white wine, and is popular throughout the world, although the Italian Pinot Grigios can be somewhatbland. Pinot Grigios are easy to drink, due to their crisp, light taste. Oregon's Pinot Gris tend to have more character, offering medium body, with more pronounced fruit and more acidity. Higher quality bottles have fruity flavors of apple, pear, honeydew and a bit of spice. Two very nice Pinot Gris from Oregon, available for between $12-$18, are Chateau St. Michelle and King Estate, among others.
Riesling
Riesling wines are usually considered the most popular German wine, and they are produced in two vastly different styles – dry and sweet. Rieslings are categorized by the ripeness of the grapes when harvested. Kabinett is made fromnormally ripe grapes, and is a light to medium-bodied, mostly dry wine. You'll sometimessee the word “trocken” on a bottle of Riesling, which is German for "dry". "Spatlese" is produced from riper grapes, and results in a bit richer, somewhatsweeter, wine. “Auslese”, which means late harvest, is made from even more ripe grapes, and is typically quitesweet. Rieslings are typically fruity, with apple, peach, and honeysuckle flavors and floral undertones. Rieslings are relatively inexpensive - you can find excellent selections for under $10. One reliably goodchoice is Strub Niertsteiner Riesling Kabinett, as isChateau Ste. Michelle Riesling.
Gewurztraminer
Gewurztraminer is another popularwhite wine from Germany, while also being produced in France, the U.S., Australia, and New Zealand. Gewurztraminer is also availablein both dry and sweet styles. Gewurztraminers have a bold, full-bodied taste, much more so than most other white wines. Typical aromas found inGewurztraminer are rosewater and lychee nuts, and its flavors include pear, apricot, cinnamon, and honey. A nice, inexpensive Gewurztraminer is available fromTrimbach (France, under $15).
A final note
The best way to figure out your own preferencesin white wine is to just pick out a samplingof bottles, and just try them. For each varietal, you'll want to choose a bottle that's typical of the style you're investigating. Websites like Wine.com can help immenselywith finding solid, yet inexpensive choices. Once you find a varietal and producer you find particularly enjoyable, you might want to buy a case to have handy for entertaining, or to just enjoy at home. Most white wines won't improve with aging, so you shouldn't keep them around for years. However, you dowant to be careful to store your wine safely, so they keepthe wonderful flavors and aromas you appreciate. You might think about investingin an inexpensive wine cooler, to keep all your wines at their best.
White wines are best served chilled, so you may want to refrigerate them beforehand, then take them outabout 15-20 minutes before serving. Better yet, you might want topurchase an electric wine chiller, which will chill (or warm) a single wine bottleto the best temperature automatically – just set the pre-programmedwine varietal, insert the bottle, and the chiller will automatically cool your wine to the optimal temperature, and maintain that temperaturethroughout your wine tasting.
Tags: beginner guide to white wine, white wine, white wine varietals