#48: Wine Myths - Part 3
April 1, 2025
Myth: Winemakers add fruit flavors to wine
Nope. Legally, if we added fruit flavoring to wine, it would require us to list on the label that it was a “flavored wine product” and not “wine”. The bottle could not be labeled as a traditional variety (like Pinot Noir) nor have a geographical designation (like Sonoma Coast). It is possible to make a wine from any variety of fruits (apples, cherries, blackberries, etc) but it must be labeled “flavored wine product” and the label must clearly list those added flavors. Winemakers are only allowed to make very specific adds to stabilize the wine, add yeast to assist in the fermentation process, add products to help the yeast better ferment sugar to alcohol, add acid to balance the wine’s pH, add tannins to help make the wines age-worthy and/or fining compounds to help with clarification. (Sugar may be added in some states, but not in California.) Any fruit characteristics that you might detect in wine is simply dependent on the grape variety, where the grapes are grown and how the wine was fermented and stored. Wine grapes are chameleons that magically adopt the characteristics of other fruits.
Myth: Blended wines are inferior
Most of the world’s wines are made from blended grapes. French Red Bordeaux can contain five different varieties and there may be up to 13 different varieties in Southern Rhone’s Châteauneuf-du-Pape. (Due to rising temperatures, the French are now experimenting with four additional varieties in their classic Bordeaux.) Even though we’ve created a great market for single-variety wines here in Califonria, we are leaning toward making more blends and some of the results are breathtaking! (The big advantage in the US is that we have no strict “rules” and we can grow and blend whatever varieties we want.) Our 2022 Syrah/Cabernet Sauvignon Estate blend we call “Squire’s Toast” (98 points & “Best Red Blend” - 2024 SIFF wine competition) is a good example. Judge a wine by tasting it. If you like it, it’s good! (“How to define a good wine” will be a topic in a future article.)
Myth: “I don’t like (insert variety name)”
Again, don’t judge a book by its cover. If you think you don’t like Chardonnay, I’d suggest you don’t like the style of that particular Chardonnay. Try another Chardonnay…and another until you find one you do like! Isolate what you do and don’t like about a wine variety. (Too oaky? Too buttery?) WifeSuzy and I don’t like oak in our Chardonnay to be predominant, so we ferment the wine in stainless steel and not in barrels. We also don’t prefer a “buttery” Chardonnay so we don’t initiate “ML” (Wine Geek talk) and as a result our Chard ends up as a crisp white wine, much like a French Chablis. If someone declares that he “doesn’t like” a particular wine variety, it usually means he hasn’t had the wine made in the style he does like! (C’mon over and try our Chardonnay!)
Myth: Rosé is a “summer wine”
Rosé is a wine for all seasons! (We opened a bottle of our “Blush ‘O The Boar” just last night to pair with our winter green veggie stir-fry.) Because of the vibrant acid structure and low alcohol, Rosé tends to pair with almost any food…from appetizers and salads to oysters, fish and grilled meats! Try it! Yum!
Myth: Always drink white wine with fish and red wine with meat
Naaaah…. The goal of food and wine pairing is to have the food make the wine taste better or have the wine make the food taste better. If your fish goes well with a red wine, it does. When I grill salmon with lots of cracked pepper, our favorite wine is our Estate Syrah and it’s a match made in Heaven! When you travel throughout Europe, you’ve also noticed that if the food and wine are from the same area, they seem to pair well together. Italian food does go well with an Italian wine. (Want a great food and wine pairing experience? Get a reservation at the Mayo Reserve Room in Kenwood! Chef John is a marvel at pairing his unusual bites with wines and then explaining why! Whenever we have out-of-town guests, we always take them there…. That was NOT a paid advertisement!)
Myth: There are no calories in wine
Unfortunately, that’s not true. There are calories in alcohol but the number of calories may vary. If your wine is “dry” (no residual sugar) you can calculate the number of calories in your glass: first convert the number of ounces of wine in your glass to grams. Since 1oz = 28.35, the 5 ounces of wine in your glass would equal 141.75 grams. Then multiply that 141.75 grams by the listed alcohol in the bottle. Thus, a 13% alcohol wine would be 141.75 x 0.13 or 18.4275 total grams in your 5 ounce pour. Since there are 7 calories per gram, multiply 7 x 18.4275. Your 5 ounce pour of wine has about 129 calories from alcohol. Try the formula! Five oz of a 14% alcohol Zinfandel would give you 139 calories from the alcohol. (A good endorsement for lower alcohol wines.). Most table wines may be “dry” but some wines intentionally are not. Some sparkling wines, Rieslings, Sauternes and Muscats may contain residual sugar and Port definitely has sugar. If you do know how much sugar there is (some labels may tell you) you’d also need add those calories.
Myth: There are “experts” who know everything about wine
I’ve been making wine for 38 harvests and have been drinking, tasting, talking and writing about wine for a lot longer than that. During that time I’ve bumped into my share of POB’s (Pseudo-Oenophilic Bores) who proudly proclaim they are “wine experts”. (We call them “Wine Snobs” with apologies to our excellent Glen Ellen winery of the same name). Aristotle said (and I was there when he said it) “Beware of he who thinks he knows everything about anything.” (Why is it always a “he”?) Next time you’re with that insufferable Wine Snob, ask him to list all the grape varieties that are made into wine today. If he gets to 15 he’s doing pretty well. (Try it…15 is a lot!). Then you might ask him about the other 9,985 varieties…. Because there are over 10,000 different varieties of grapes throughout the world that can be made into wine (many of those varieties are not even written in our alphabet). Italy grows over 350 different grape varieties and Portugal boasts more than 250 that are indigenous to Portugal…. (Ever ordered a bottle of Touriga National?). You cannot know it all and the more you travel the world and experience wines, the more you become aware of how much you don’t know.
Learning about wine is a delightful learning experience with “no end” in sight. Even though it is impossible to know everything about wine you can sip your way to more and more knowledge! Enjoy your journey!
“Anyone who stops learning is old. Anyone who keeps learning stays young.
Henry Ford
-Squire Fridell