Hi I’m Antony (Tony) Anderson from Wine Matchmaker and today I want to talk about grape varieties used to make white wine. If you would like to listen to the podcast as well please click here.
Choosing wine often comes down to the grape variety and people will often choose a favourite grape. For example they know they like Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand but few people give any thought to why that is the case. Grape varieties have certain common characteristics although it does vary slightly on where they are grown, for example Chardonnay from cooler regions tends to have more citrus fruits while Chardonnay grown in warm climates can have tropical fruits although it still has the underlying Chardonnay characteristics. Understanding these difference help you choose wine, get more out of it and also help with food and wine pairing.
Grapes are generally divided into White and Red Varieties determined by the colour of their skins. For more information listen to my podcast on wine making. So in this podcast I would like to explore some common white grape varieties, how to pronounce them, common characteristics and some examples of each. For more information please see the individual grape podcasts that goes into more detail.
So let’s get started.
I like to talk about wines in terms of body or how heavy they fell in the mouth and then go from lighter to heavier wines. This is especially important for wine and food pairing as wines that are lighter in body generally go better with lighter foods e.g. Sauvignon Blanc goes very nicely with seafood.
There are common white grapes that you will be familiar with but I would also like to include some that Australia is well known for but also a couple that are just great varieties worth exploring. The list is by no means complete but a good start.
Let’s start with Marsanne (pronounced maa·san) a little known variety in Australia but it is well known in the South of France. The best known example is from a winery called Chateau Tahbilk near Nagambie in Central Victoria. As a young wine Marsanne is light bodied with aromas and flavours of pear and melon with some blossom. Like many of the lighter white wine varieties it is quite high in acid that makes it a good wine to pair with light meat dishes…think seafood and pork. Marsanne from Chateau Tahbilk has incredible aging potential and can last for decades. As it ages the wine slowly becomes deeper in colour developing honey flavours and a richer palate. Quite readily available and I recommend trying a few bottles.
The next grape variety is Semillon (pronounced sei·mee·on). Another little known variety but Semillon from the Hunter valley in New South Wales is well regarded globally and because it isn’t well known it can be quite a bargain. As a young wine it has aromas and flavours of fresh citrus and green apple with some good acid. It has a bit more body than Marsanne and can have an almost waxy or lanolin character to the wine…weird to explain but quite pleasant. Once again it pairs well with light meat dishes such as seafood and pork but I also like it with soft cheese. Good examples are available under the Tyrrell’s and Mount Pleasant brands.
I get more questions about the next grape variety than just about any other one…Pinot Gris or Pinot Grigio. They are actually the same grape variety but the difference is how the grapes are handled and the winemaking techniques. Grapes to make Pinot Grigio (pronounced pee noh gree joe) are normally picked a bit earlier so they have more citrus flavours, melon and are higher in acid…this is the fresher style normally made in Italy and goes well with pasta dishes. Grapes to make Pinot Gris (pronounced pee noh gree) are normally picked a bit later so they are riper with more sugar, ripe pear flavours and a bit lower in acid…this is the richer style normally made in France and goes well with their richer dishes. A good example of Pinot Gris is Delatitie and most Pinot Grigio from the King Valley in Victoria is very good….it was settled by Italians after all.
Why not get together with some friends or clients to experiment with white wine varieties in my wine confidence workshops. Message me for more details.
The next grape causes more debate than any other: Sauvignon Blanc (pronounced saw vee nyon blahnk). Originally grown in the Loire Valley in central France it is now dominated by Sauvignon Blanc grown in New Zealand but in particular the region of Marlborough. In Australia we sometimes refer to the very high volumes of this wine as the “savalanche”…get it…an avalanche of Sauvignon Blanc. Anyway…the New Zealand style is quite forward with passionfruit, gooseberry and a herbal note that some kindly refer to as asparagus or unkindly as “cats piss”. It is an easy drinking style that often has a bit of residual sugar that isn’t normally noticeable due to the high acid. It pairs very well with seafood and cheese. Some examples of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc I enjoy include Stoneleigh and Matua Valley although there are some boutique producers that are excellent e.g. Seresin.
My favourite white grape variety is Riesling (pronounced reez·luhng). Now I know some of you are already turning your nose up thinking about the sweet Riesling of the 1970’s and 1980’s such as Blue Nun but like Chardonnay, Riesling has changed with the dry varieties i.e. without residual sugar, now dominating the market. One of the reasons I like this variety is that it is one style when it is young but good examples can age for decades becoming a completely different wine. Young Riesling is normally very citrus i.e. lemon and lime, sometimes with grapefruit and minerality (think wet stones) and lots of acid making it a very crisp clean wine. But with age the wine changes into a deep colour, with kerosene on the nose (you either love it or hate it) and a honeyed palate with softer acid. They are very good food wines with young Riesling pairing well with seafood and old Riesling going very well with smoked fish and cheese. Traditionally grown in Germany there are excellent examples in the Clare Valley in South Australia. My favourite producers include Pikes and Leo Buring.
The final white grape I will cover in this podcast is Chardonnay (pronounced shaa·duh·nei), another white grape that polarises opinion. You may be one of the ABC or Anything But Chardonnay club remembering the syrupy oaky buttery Chardonnays that, to quote a dog food ad, were so thick you could cut them with a knife. But like Riesling Chardonnay has changed over the last decade to become a leaner more food friendly style. Chardonnay reflects the area it is grown in but most modern Chardonnays have citrus and stone or tropical fruits depending on where they are grown. They will usually have some oak but it is more to add structure and mouth feel rather than dominant oak flavours. Some Chardonnay will also go through a process called malolactic fermentation which can create some of those buttery characters but these days it mainly produces mouth feel rather than overt buttery flavour. I am currently drinking Hill Smith Adelaide Hills Chardonnay which is lean and crisp making it an excellent food wine. Also look for Coldstream Hills Chardonnay but if you want to explore further afield there are some good value Chardonnays from the Chablis region in France.
There are also plenty of white wine blends with common ones being Semillon/Sauvignon Blanc and Marsanne is often blended with Roussanne or Viognier. The intention should be that the blend is more than the sum of its parts but some wineries make blends because they have excess wine or are trying cover up inferior grapes. I am a bit of purist preferring single grape variety wines although I do love a good Marsanne/Roussanne blend. More on that in another podcast.
Well that wraps up the white grape varieties for today but if you would like more information about the white grape varieties listed above check out the individual podcasts.
For more information pop over to our website Winematchmaker.com.au or go to the Facebook Page where I offer free wine advice. Also look out for our wine course on getting Wine Confident.
I’m Antony Anderson, the Wine Matchmaker, thanks for reading and in the meantime enjoy some good wine.