Learning the Basics Behind Food Wine For Better Cooking
It does not have to be a chore to learn about food wine. Although, there is a lot of different information out there about wine, it should not overwhelm the beginner. There are some basic rules that can be followed to make your food and wine experience an easy one. So read on to become familiar with the methods used to choose food-wine combinations.
The idea that white wine is best with white meats and that red wine goes with red meats is an old idea, but still has validity in today. That is the most basic rule for wine. Another basic rule for food wine is to pair tastes that counteract each other. Each taste of food should be overridden by the wine’s flavor and vice versa. Food and wine together should act as a palate cleanser for each other. Being able to taste the flavor of the wine or food over the other means that your wine is not a good match for that food. It has become more difficult to match wines and foods in recent years because dishes have become more flavorful. In these cases, matching the body of the wine to the body of the food is the best option. Light-weight foods pair best with light-weight wines and so on.
The main determination for food wine combinations is the balance of sweetness, acidity and bitterness of both the food and wine. It is pretty easy to figure out what wine should go with what foods by considering the wine and food characteristics. If a sweet food is being served, pair it with a sweeter wine. For bitter foods, a more bitter wine is in order. The best way to determine the acidity of a food is to determine if it would go better with more acid added. For example, adding lemon to a fish means that a more acidic wine should be consumed. Some common white wines that are acidic are: Rieslings, most sparkling wines and white Bordeauxs. Acidic red wines include: Gamays, Pinot Noirs and Sangioveses. Sweet white wines include: White Zinfandels, other forms of Rieslings and Chenin Blancs. Sweet red wines can include: Port and Lambrusco. There are not many bitter white wines, but there are some bitter red wines. These can include, red Zinfandels, Merlots and Cabernet Sauvignons.
Now you know how to pair food wine with the appropriate foods. There are a lot of different wines and it is nearly impossible to know them all. However, if you want to learn more, then joining a wine club or doing extra research can be a great help. It will increase your wine knowledge by a great deal.
Catching California in Wine Production
We don’t often think of Michigan as a wine producing State do we, but look at the facts:
- Michigan has 13,500 acres of vineyards making Michigan the fourth largest grape-growing state.
- Almost all of this acreage is devoted to juice grapes such as Concord and Niagara.
- About 700 hectares are devoted to wine grapes, making Michigan the eighth in wine grape production.
- Vineyard area has increased 24% since 1997.
- Michigan’s 45 commercial wineries produce more than 200,000 cases of wine annually, making the state 13th in wine production. By far the majority of production is from Michigan-grown grapes.
- Wineries are popular tourist destinations, attracting more than 600,000 visitors annually. Some of these wineries also have retail stores where it’s possible to purchase anything from a wine cellar kit to a wine cooler refrigerator.
- Wine production and winery tourism annually contribute $75 million to the state’s economy.
- Three types of grapes are used for wine in Michigan:
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- Vinifera varieties — these are the classic European varieties such as Chardonnay, Riesling (the most widely planted white), Pinot Noir (the most widely planted red), Pinot Grigio/Gris and Cabernet Franc; 58% of Michigan’s wine grapes are vinifera. Since 1998, 71% of the new plantings in Michigan have been vinifera varieties.
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- Hybrid varieties (sometimes called French/American hybrids) — these are botanical crosses between vinifera varieties and grapes native to North America. Common names are Vidal, Chambourcin, Marechal Foch and Vignoles; 39% of Michigan’s wine grapes are hybrids.
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- Native varieties — actually close relatives of true native varieties. Common names are Concord and Niagara. Less than 3% of Michigan’s wine is made from these varieties.
- Most of Michigan’s quality wine grapes grow within 40 kms of Lake Michigan. Here, the “lake effect” protects the vines with snow in winter, retards bud break in spring helping avoid frost damage, and extends the growing season by up to four weeks.
- Michigan has four federally approved viticultural areas (AVAs). In the northwest part of the state, near Traverse City, lie the Leelanau Peninsula and the Old Mission Peninsula. This area has a growing season averaging 145 days and an average heat accumulation of 2,350 growing degree days; 51% of Michigan’s wine grapes grow here. In the southwest part of the state lie the Lake Michigan Shore and Fennville appellations, where 45% of Michigan’s wine grapes are grown. This area has a growing season averaging 160 days and an average heat accumulation of 2,750 heat units or sometimes called growing degree days. Each are Region 6 on the USDA plant hardiness zone map.
- Harvest begins for early hybrid varieties at the end of late August in the southwest and may extend into mid November for late-ripening vinifera varieties in the northwest.
- Michigan wines win numerous medals at prestigious competitions year after year. More than 16% of the wines entered in the Michigan Wine & Spirits Competition had already won Gold Medals in regional, national and international competitions. A list of winners is available upon request.
- Michigan wineries make many styles of wine, from dry to sweet including Ice Wine, sparkling, fortified, fruit wines and eau-de-vie (fruit brandy).
- Michigan wines are usually “cool climate” – clean, crisp, balanced wines that exhibit real varietal charact.
- Michigan Wines are very popular choices in the offerings of Wine Clubs
where you set up a monthly subscription to order wine online
Next time you’re savoring your favorite Chardonnay, check the label. It just may not have come from California!
Where You Should Go For A Wine Club
A wine club is a great way to learn about wine and to sample different wines that you might not otherwise try. Many people appreciate the gift of a wine club membership around the holidays, and it’s the gift that keeps on giving if the recipient is generous with the wine they receive.
So how do you choose a club? Are all clubs the same and are there important things you should look out for when choosing a membership. There are different things that can help you to choose the right one. Everything from cost to wine style will determine what club you choose.
The Cost Of Wine Club
While cost should not be the only thing that you think about when choosing a wine club it is important. If you are just starting to learn about wine it might be a good idea to start with an inexpensive membership. A wine tasting club that allows you to pay as little as $20 a month can still offer you some very decent wines to try.
More expensive wine clubs offers you to try varying ranges of wines and also they offer more bottles of wine each month. So settle on a price range that you are comfortable with and you are on your way to discovering great wines.
Choose Your Wine From Wine Club
There are different types of wine clubs that you can choose from and depending on your preferences you will probably go for a different club than your friends. You can join a wine club that only selects red or white wines. There are some clubs that will only showcase wines from California; others will choose wines from all over the world.
Selection of wines from small vineyards that are not available commercially and are hard to come by otherwise are offered by some clubs. The choice is up to you and many of these memberships are extremely affordable.
Little Details For Choosing The Right Wine From Wine Club
Paying attention to little details can also help you to choose the right wine club. If the members have had memberships for a long time then you know that a club has excellent customer service. Be sure to check if shipping costs are included in your monthly membership fee or if it is counted as an extra. You might also have other benefits to joining a particular club so look around and find the right type of wine club for you.
Designing A Wine Rack Or Cabinet
Treat your wine well, and it will treat you good also. The older your wine gets, the more mature its taste will become, and it gets more valuable as well. Purchasing a wine rack isn’t the cheapest option. Wine cellar construction can get expensive, so it’s good to keep costs down wherever possible. A cheap wine rack will not last long, build or purchase the rack with the idea of having it last the test of time. Your job will be much more rewarding if you build with quality in mind so it wil last for years.
The worst thing that could happen is not having enough space for your wine rack. To ensure quality and flavor, be sure the wine is stored in the correct environment. Wine likes coolness, darkness, and a little humidity when aging. Heat and light are wines worst enemies. There’s no faster way to ruin your wine than letting it get too hot. The best wine storage temperature is in the mid fiftys, keep it from changing too much. New style glass corks save you from worrying about the cork drying out. If you already have your diy wine cellar in your home, you’ve got the hardest part over with.
A Wine club allows you to collect more wines . As your collection grows, you will need more wine rack storage space. Even in a small area, a wine rack should be able to store lots of wine. They are sturdy and space saving. They also allow for easy identification and retrieval of wine bottles. A good wooden wine rack could be the best option for you. A wine club also lets you purchase even more wine at a discount rate. Find some of your own plans to save money when building a rack.
Construct the wine rack yourself to save a good deal of money. It’s a cinch to build your own hanging wine rack, the feeling of satisfaction you get from completing the project is quite pleasant. You can find plenty of free info on the internet, and you only need a few basic tools. You can seriously go cheap and with a little wood and PVC make a wine rack for under $10.
Likely the cheapest option is to build your rack with wood and bricks. Simply stack one or two bricks on each side of a plank, and add another plank on top and you’ve got a shelf, repeat and you’ve got two. As you can see, you are in control of how much money you want to spend. It’s easy to construct a inexpensive and high quality wine rack by yourself. Check out our website for many more wine storage suggestions.
5 Reasons To Join A Wine of The Month Club
If you love to drink the “nectar of the gods” then joining a wine of the month club can provide you with more than just a few benefits. Many people are choosing wine as their hobby because it is considered slightly more refined than “kegger parties” or “making homemade lye soap”.
Joining a wine of the month club offers the opportunity to meet other enthusiasts and taste a lot of wines you may otherwise never have the chance to try.
A lot of vineyards and bottlers are choosing to promote themselves by starting their own wine clubs. If you’re interested in joining a wine club yourself, then read on; I’ve listed the five biggest benefits to joining a wine club – there’s more to it than the opportunity to drink some wine you may not be able to come across at your local grocery store or liquor shop.
1. Keeping it under wraps……It comes delivered in a plain brown wrapper so your neighbors don’t get suspicious (Very helpful if you have very uptight covenants for your suburb).
• Wine clubs deliver wines via UPS in plain brown boxes. Your nosy neighbor won’t be able to see what’s being delivered to you – a good thing, since it’s none of their business!
2. Impress your friends. You’ll be able to amass a wine collection including some harder to find bottles at a low price. You can point to that garage Petite Syrah in your collection and tell friends that it sells at auction for hundreds of dollars (after all, they don’t have to know that you didn’t pay anywhere near that much for that bottle).
3. Make Money. You can host your own wine tastings from bottles in your collection. You could even choose to charge a fee for attending your tasting.
4. Saves Time and Effort. Being in a wine club can keep your wine collection well stocked, all without having to run out to buy wine. You’ll never have to run out at the last minute to find a bottle for dinner again!
5. Pranks! One of the benefits of wine clubs is that you’ll be able to fool your friends.
• You can have a taste-off. While you know exactly what’s in that bottle right down to the vineyard and the vintage, your friends won’t. Even if your friends have very discerning palates and can name the grape, you’ll still beat them every time – until they catch on, that is.
• Fill the empty bottles of really good wine with cheap stuff that you bought on sale and serve them to any of the pretentious snobs that you might know…. You know the ones that we are talking about, I’m sure. Make sure that others get the best wine you have and only your select guests should have glasses filled with your special “house wine”.
Then you can watch the wine snobs raving about how wonderful the $3 wine from the grocery store is, right along with everyone else (who are drinking something good). If you can keep a straight face until the bottles are empty, you’ll have a riot once you reveal the prank.
10 Wine Gift Ideas
Are you trying to find some top gift ideas for wine lovers on your gift list? Keep reading, because I’ve put together a list of gifts which are sure to delight the oenophile in your life. Now of course, a personal vineyard is the ultimate gift for your favorite wine lovers; but if this is out of your budget, then these ideas may help you find a great gift for that special someone.
10 Great Gift Ideas For Wine Lovers
1. The best gift is still the personal vineyard. Now, this isn’t realistic for most of us – but you can buy a share in many vineyards! This is a very cool gift which any wine lover will be absolutely thrilled with. While it may not make the recipient into a wine tycoon, this is a very thoughtful gift.
2. Wine glasses. This is a gift which every wine lover will not only appreciate, but actually use; and they’ll think of you whenever they do. Look for large wineglasses which are made with quality craftsmanship – these will be attractive and your wine loving friends will adore them.
3. A cute and inexpensive gift is the royal purple “Instant Youth” bottle bag. You can fit the drawstring bag around an empty or full wine bottle and present it to one of your friends. The writing on the bag declares “Instant Youth just add wine”. This will get a chuckle from the recipient and if you toss in a selection from a particularly great year, it will be twice as appreciated.
4. Personalized labels. You can order a bottle of Petite Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon or Pinot Grigio with a personalized label; this can feature the design or photo of your choice.
5. A wine box or wine basket is another one of the top gift ideas for wine lovers. You can find these carrying cases in leather, wicker or even wood. They come in sizes which can accommodate one, two or more bottles and the better models include accessories like glasses, stoppers and corkscrews. These wine gifts are certain to be used and loved at summer picnics and outdoor concerts.
6. Any wine lover will be delighted by the Wineopoly board game. The tokens for this variation on Monopoly include a carafe, a wine glass, grapes, cheese and other wine-related icons. You can learn about wine as you play this game and have fun with your wine-loving friends.
7. Wine glass charms are practical, useful and oh, so elegant. There are many wine lovers who collect these and will love this thoughtful gift. A few companies will even let you custom order a set, which will give your present even more bling points.
8. A wine club membership is a fantastic gift idea for anyone, whether they are already serious about their wine or just learning. This is a great way to introduce them to your favorite winery. Wine club memberships are available with many options and can be customized to suit the tastes of the recipient.
9. Cookbooks with wine-related recipes are terrific gift ideas for wine lovers. Food and wine go together like.. well, food and wine! You can put together a great gift basket including a cookbook, some cheeses, a bottle of good wine and other accessories – this is a very thoughtful gift for the wine lover on your list.
10. A novelty T-shirt with an original or inspired saying can be worn by any proud wine lover who is worth a bunch of grapes.
• Get a Tan with your Tannins…pick your own grapes
• The Wine is Divine but it crushed the poor grapes
• Nectar of the gods…Produced by our soles
• Us Old Vines Have The Best Wines
• Wine is fruit….and they recommend 4 servings of fruit daily