Types of Wine (India )

Types of Grapes :

Types Of Grape Varieties you should know about or that may be seen in India shortly :

Barbera (Bar-BARE-ah) - Grape used to make hearty red wines in the Piemonte of Northwestern Italy, also California.

Cabernet Franc (Cab-air-nay FrahN) - French red wine grape, often used in a Bordeaux blend, also in the Loire valley and California.

Cabernet Sauvignon (Cab-air-nay So-veen-yawN) - One of the noblest red wine grapes, used in Bordeaux, also as either a 100 percent varietal or in red blends in the U.S., Australia, Chile, Argentina, South Africa and wherever wine grapes grow. The most famous red wine grape. In India, Grovers offer this grape as a single varietal.

Chardonnay (Shar-doh-nay) - One of the world's most well known white wine grapes. Originated in Burgundy, but widely planted in the U.S., Australia and all over the world. Available in India.

Chenin Blanc (Shay-naN BlaN) - Noble French grape, most common in the Loire, making very fine white wines both dry and slightly sweet. Fantastic wines from this grape come from South Africa, where it's known as Steen. Sula makes these in India.

Cinsaut (SaN-so) - dark red French grape, sometimes spelled "Cinsault."

Fumé Blanc (Foo-may BlahN) - U.S. synonym for Sauvignon Blanc, invented by Robert Mondavi during the 1970s as a marketing ploy and widely imitated.

Furmint (FOOR-mint) - Hungarian white-wine grape, used to make the renowned dessert wine Tokay.

Gamay (Gam-may) - Red-wine grape of Beaujolais, a light, fresh and fruity red wine from the region of the same name in Southern Burgundy, France.

Gewürztraminer (Geh-VERTZ-trah-mee-nur) - White wine grape best known in Alsace, Germany, the U.S. West Coast and New York.

Grenache (Gray-NAHSH) - Red-wine grape commonplace in Languedoc and the Rhone, also California and as Garnacha, in Spain. Typically makes hearty, peppery wines. (Gahr-NAH-cha) in Spanish. Also used for Tavel- a Rose.

Gruner Veltliner (GREW-ner Felt-LEE-ner) - Excellent Austrian grape, producing light but crisp and racy dry white wines.
Malbec (Mahl-bek) - Red-wine grape used as a nominal element of the Bordeaux blend, where it's intense color and extract add to the wine's body. However this grape has come into its own in Argentina and nearly all the top Argentinian wines showcase this varietal.

Malvasia (Mahl-va-SEE-ah) - Italian white-wine grape, often blended with other grapes (including the traditional Chianti), occasionally seen as a 100 percent varietal.

Marsanne (Mahr-sahn) - Excellent white-wine grape of the Rhone, increasingly planted in California.

Merlot (Mare-low) - Very good red-wine grape, a key player in the Bordeaux blend, more recently grown as a varietal in its own right, especially in the US, Australia, Chile, Washington State and Argentine. Wine-geeks will always talk about its "softness". We didn't know what they meant till we tasted it.

Mourvèdre (Moor-VED'rr) - Red grape commonplace in Southern France, Languedoc and the Rhone, also Spain (where it is known as Mataro) and, increasingly, California.

Müller-Thurgau (MEW-lehr Toor-gow) - Relatively modern grape, perhaps a Riesling-Sylvaner cross.

Muscadet (Moos-cah-day) - A light, dry Loire white wine made from a grape of the same name (alternatively named Melon ("May-lawN"), sometimes showing a light musky or cantaloupe quality.

Muscat (Moos-caht) - Aromatic, ancient grape with a characteristic grapefruity and musky (as the name implies) aroma.

Nebbiolo (Nay-BYOH-low) - Noble grape of Northwestern Italy's Piedmonte region, source of such powerful and age worthy red wines as Barolo, Barbaresco and Gattinara.

Petit Verdot (Peh-tee Vehr-doe) - Red wine grape, fine quality but a minor player in the Bordeaux blend.

Petite Sirah (Peh-teet See-rah) - California red grape, probably the same as the Durif of the Rhone.

Pinot Blanc (Pee-noe BlahN) - White wine grape, making a dry, full white wine that some liken to Chardonnay, but typically medium in body and sometimes showing melon scents.

Pinot Gris (Pee-noe Gree) and Pinot Grigio (Gree-joe) - French and Italian names, respectively, for the same grape, typically making a dry and very crisp and acidic white wine.

Pinot Meunier (Pee-noe Mehr-n'yay) - Relatively uncommon as a varietal, but frequently used in the Champagne blend.

Pinot Noir (Pee-noe Nwar) - Classic red grape, widely accepted as one of the world's best. Think Burgundy when you think of this grape. In the last few years, Oregon has emerged as one the best regions for this grape.

Pinotage (Pee-noe-tahj) - A cross between Pinot Noir and Cinsaut of the Rhone, grown commercially only in South Africa, where it makes a fruity, dark red wine with an odd earthy character often described as "paintbox."

Riesling (REESE-ling) - The classic German grape of the Rhine and Mosel, certainly ranks with Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Noir among the noblest wine grapes.

Roussanne (Roo-sahn) - White Rhone grape, often grown with and blended with Marsanne, but somewhat supplanting the latter for economic reasons -- it is considered more productive and easier to grow.

Sangiovese (Sahn-joe-VAY-zeh) - The predominant red-wine grape of Tuscany in Central Italy, primary player in the Chianti blend.

Sauvignon Blanc (So-veen-yawn BlahN) - Noble white grape, native to the Loire and Bordeaux (where it is usually blended with Semillon); also widely planted in the Western U.S., South America, Australia and New Zealand and elsewhere.

Sémillon (Say-mee-yoN) - White wine grape, native to Bordeaux and used there primarily in a blend with Sauvignon Blanc.

Shiraz (Shee-rahz) - Australian synonym for Syrah, now also turning up on occasion in South Africa.

Sylvaner (Sill-VAH-ner) - German grape (sometimes spelled Silvaner there), considered secondary to Riesling in quality but planted widely as a blending grape.

Syrah (See-rah) - The classic Rhone red grape allegedly brought back from Shiraz in Persia by the 14th-Century crusader Gaspard de Sterimberg

Tempranillo (Temp-rah-NEEL-yo) - Excellent Spanish red-wine grape

Valpolicella (Vahl-poe-lee-CHELL-ah) - Lightweight but refreshing red wine from the Veneto of Northeastern Italy.

Viognier (Vee-ohn-yay) - This white grape is gaining considerable attention as a varietal in California and, now, Southern France.But its greatest expresssion is in the wines from the small appellation of Condrieu in the Rhone Valley, with the rare Chateau Grillet being the apex.

Zinfandel (Zin-fahn-DELL) -Trendy American grape varietal.