WineMasters Class

Austria’s red wines could be considered one of Europe’s unknown viticultural gems. At first glance, their names might appear unfamiliar and largely unpronounceable. But grapes such as Blaufränkisch, Zweigelt, and Sankt Laurent, are definitely worthy of your attention. Our experiment is another session of do-it-yourself palate training.

Bordeaux is the most famous wine region in the world and wines are usually a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Bordeaux is split into the Left and Right Bank, today we’ll discuss the latter including the appellations of Saint-Émilion and Pomerol, which produce some of the most expensive wines on the planet. In our experiment, we’ll discuss different types of wine glasses.

Veneto has a rich history of winemaking traditions of which one is drying grapes. This method is called appassimento and is used to make Amarone. We’ll explain the process in our experiment. The vineyards around the city of Verona and Lake Garda are home to some of Italy’s top wine-producing regions like Valpolicella, Soave, and Lugana, which produce wines from local varieties.

Sauvignon Blanc dominates New Zealand's wine industry. Although Sauvignon Blanc is planted all over the country, Marlborough is almost synonymous with New Zealand wine. Another French grape that performs well in many places is Pinot Noir. Depending on their location both grapes can express diverse aromas, which you can learn to understand by perfecting your sniffing skills.

We start this episode on a unique island in the Atlantic Ocean, which gives its name to one of the world's great fortified wines; Madeira. The 4 styles of the quality spectrum get their names from the white wine grape used in them: Sercial, Verdelho, Bual, and Malmsey aka Malvasia, and in this order, they range from dry to sweet. On the mainland, we visit unique appellations near the capital city of Lisbon and then on to a huge rural wine region known as Alentejo, where white and red wine are blends of local and international grape varieties.

Altitude is key in Argentina. Except for the Patagonia region, most vineyards in Argentina are situated at 600 to 2000 meters above sea level and located close to the Andes mountains. Of course, we will highlight the most famous wine area Mendoza and the Malbec grape, which was brought from France around 1850 and has adapted greatly to the terroirs of this country. In our experiment, we sniff and swirl. We explain why some wines need to breathe.

The future of Spanish wine lies in its history. Ambitious winemakers are heading off to the hinterlands in search of old vines. We visit Toro where red wines are made from Tinta de Toro (a local version of Tempranillo) are making fame. Then to Bierzo where between the hills and lush river valleys red wine is made of the Mencia variety. We also visit Jumilla in the south of the country near Valencia, where red wines are made from old Monastrell vines. And last but not least our journey ends at Tenerife, where some of the oldest vines of Spain can be found.

The Alsace area is known for its aromatic, fruity intense, and spicy white wines, primarily from Riesling, Gewürztraminer, Pinot Gris, and Muscat which are the 4 noble grapes varieties. Alsace wines tend to be dry, but these days wines can be more diverse in styles including some residual sweetness but that is not often indicated on the label, so that can make challenging for us drinkers. We will help you understand the wines more in detail. We will also highlight the Alsace sweet wines; Vendange Tardive and Selection de Grains Nobles. The term vintage will be explained and what is needed to create great wines.

It is not only in Burgundy where the Pinot family thrives, in Germany the grape varieties are very popular and are called Burgunder here. You will learn about Spätburgunder, Weissburgunder, and Grauburgunder for Pinot Noir, Pinot Blanc, and Pinot Gris respectively. The experiment will demonstrate that there is much to tell by just looking at the wine.

Tuscany is one of the oldest wine regions in Europe and is mostly known for Chianti. This episode will explain to you all about the Sangiovese grape and different wines made from this variety. In the experiment we will focus on tannins, what are tannins and how can you detect them?

From the friendly and easy-drinking Côte du Rhône to the prestigious Châteauneuf-du-Pape, we will be rolling through the terroirs of the Southern Rhône Valley, discussing red and white wines made of a wide variety of grapes. The influence of oak aging will be discussed in our experiment and of course how you can detect these influences in the wine.

The Loire Valley is most famous for its castles along the longest river of France, but it is also a very diverse wine region. In this episode we focus on the western part of the Valley, discussing the wine regions of Touraine, Anjou-Saumur and Nantais. Sur Lie, a wine term that can be found on the label of Muscadet wines, will be explained in our experiment.