A familiarity with the characteristics of the major wine producing countries and regions can be useful when advising customers on their choice of drink.
All wines bear their country of origin on the label, some more proudly than others. Different countries, and often different regions within a country, tend to specialise in particular types of wine, depending on the variety of grape best suited to the climate and soil.
However, there is often some confusion in consumers' minds between the region in which the wine is produced and the grape variety which is used to make it. In fact, the two are separate.
Grape varieties, some of the best known of which are chardonnay, merlot, pinot noir, cabernet sauvignon and sauvignon blanc, can be grown in many different countries, and will produce broadly the same type of wine wherever they are grown.
As an example, pinot noir, pinot meunier and chardonnay are the three grapes which are authorised to be used to make champagne. Only sparkling wine produced using these grapes in the Champagne region of France can be legally called champagne. However, many producers make sparkling wine using the same grape varieties elsewhere.
Some consumers are loyal to a particular country or region, others to a particular variety. The majority, however, will mix and match according to the occasion and what is available, and may well look to you for advice. It helps to be reasonably familiar with each major wine producing region.
The Old World:
France
France has traditionally been regarded as the finest wine producing country, and guards its reputation fiercely. For centuries, Britain has imported more French wine than from any other region, although over the past decade the New World, notably Australia, has threatened that position.
The French wine industry is carefully controlled and regulated in order to preserve the different identities established in its various regions over many centuries of production. Each region specialises in different types and flavours of wine. As a rule of thumb, the following guidelines will lead you to the best wines from each region:
- Alsace - dry, and some sweet, German-style whites
- Beaujolais - fresh and fruity wines
- Burgundy - dry whites and rich reds
- Bordeaux - sweet wines and deeply flavoured reds
- Champagne - the classic sparkling wine
- Loire - dry whites and rich reds
- Rhone - earthy reds and whites, some with a slight fizz
Italy
Wine is the staple drink of Italians, and the country is the world's biggest producer of wine. About a quarter of this output is exported, much of it to the USA where many people are of Italian descent. The UK is also an important market for Italian wine, and the fact that it is usually reasonably priced makes it very popular, if occasionally overlooked by wine connoisseurs. Valpolicella and soave are among the best known Italian varieties.
Spain
While Spain has been producing wine for at least as long as France, its wines are very different. Spain exports many excellent red and sparkling wines, as well as sherry. The Rioja region produces red wines made from the local tempranillo grapes. These are full flavoured and often aged longer than most wines. Catalonia is where most Spanish wines are produced. As well as "standards" such as merlot and cabernet, Catalonia also produces cavas, sparkling white wines which are increasingly popular as an alternative to champagne.
Jerez is the capital of one of the most best-known Spanish wine regions. In fact, sherry comes from the English pronunciation of Jerez, and it was the British market that popularised sherry as a drink.
Germany
Compared to southern European countries, German wine production is relatively small. Germany is often associated, probably unfairly, with sweeter white wines such as liebfraumilch, made from the riesling grape. In fact, while these have traditionally been its most successful imports to the UK, Germany also produces good dry whites and reds. The label is a useful guide if you look for the following descriptions:
- Trocken — dry
- Halbtroken — medium dry
The best of the rest
The New World:
Australia
Australia has been producing and exporting wine for more than a century, although it has really come into its own over the past decade. Depending on whose research you believe, Australia has, or is about to, overtake France in value terms as the leading exporter of wine to the UK.
The biggest regional producer is South Australia. The red soil of the Coonawara region contains a mix of minerals which produces full flavoured wines, and the best-known Australian brands come from this region. In New South Wales, the Hunter Valley grows about sixty different varieties of grapes, while Victoria, which was the first region of Australia to produce wine, specialises in high quality versions of classic wine varieties.
The USA
The growth of interest in wine among US consumers over the past decade has helped turn what was a craft industry into a major international producer. The west coast of the United States is now one of the world's major wine producers.
California is the biggest and best-known wine producing region of the USA. The wine makers of the Napa Valley have updated, and some might argue improved on, traditional wine making methods exported from France. Combined with an ideal climate which practically guarantees good harvests, the result is traditional wine varieties which are sold under some of the world's best known wine brands.
In the Pacific Northwest, the cooler climate more closely resembles that of Europe, and the region produces some very fine wines made in European styles and varieties. Washington State produces some highly regarded white wines as well as increasing quantities of merlots and cabernets.
South Africa
South Africa has been producing wine since the 17th century. In the days when it was as British colony it represented a secure supply of wine at those times when the British were involved in wars with producers such as France and Spain. Although the Apartheid regime led to a widespread boycott of South African wines, over the past decade it has once again become a major exporter.
White grape varieties such as chardonnay are grown with success, while popular reds in the export market include shiraz and pinotage, which is made from a crossbred grape developed in South Africa.
Chile
Chile is the most successful South American exporter of wines. Its major wine region is the Maipo Valley, which has long produced good reds and has expanded its repertoire in recent years to include whites. Cabernet from the Maipo Valley is particularly well regarded. Many wines are traditionally aged in wooden barrels to produce a full flavour.
New Zealand
New Zealand is now a major international exporter, and its wine production has greatly increased over the past decade. Its varying climate has resulted in 10 distinct wine regions. Among the best known New Zealand wines in the UK a