Wine origins: Old world versus New world styles

Hi I’m Antony (Tony) Anderson from Wine Matchmaker and today I want to talk about the Old World versus the New World.

If you would like to listen to the podcast as well please click here.

Now just a warning before I get started. Most of my podcasts to date have been aimed at beginners or those with little wine knowledge…this one is a bit more advanced…let me explain.

Most people start off drinking Australia and New Zealand wine but as their wine knowledge and confidence grows they want to explore further but especially European wines. One of the common questions I get is which foreign wines do I recommend and it is a difficult question because Europe approaches wine very differently to Australia. In fact in the industry we generally divide the wine world into two areas: The Old World and the New World. The Old World is essentially Europe but in particular France, Spain, Italy and Germany. The New World is the countries settled by the Old World but in particular Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, South America and North America.

Why is this distinction important? The main reason comes down to identifying the grape varieties in the wine which is important for choosing it. In the New World e.g. Australia, we refer to wines by their grape variety…we buy a bottle of Chardonnay or Pinot Noir. In the Old World the wines are traditionally referred to by the region they come from e.g. Burgundy. Thus you would purchase a white Burgundy that would most likely be made from Chardonnay or a Red Burgundy that would usually be made from Pinot Noir. This is not an issue if you mainly drink New World wine but makes choosing Old World wine more difficult.

But doesn’t it just make sense to call wine by it’s grape variety and keep it simple. Well yes and no. The situation is complicated by the fact that many areas in Europe, but especially France, sell many wines that are a blend of grape varieties. A good example of this is Bordeaux on the West Coast of France where the red wines are a blend of red grapes based around Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot.

Another reason for it is that grape growers have been growing grapes in the area for hundreds of years and have figured out which are the best grapes to grow in what area according to the soils, climate, etc…sometimes called the terroir…but more on that in another podcast. Thus they have settled on the best grapes for the region. In fact in some regions the grape growers are restricted on which grape varieties they can plant which further defines the type of wine. It can become very complex choosing wine!

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In some areas the type and style of wine is protected by law under the Protection of the Place of Origin. For example in France it is called AOP and in Italy DOC which you may have seen on the bottle but the idea is to protect the culture and heritage of wine from that region. A good example is Champagne in France which covers a specific area in North East France. Only grapes grown in a specific area can be used to make a sparkling wine that can be called Champagne. Nobody outside this region, including other French areas, can make a Sparkling wine and call it Champagne. Some argue that it protects the long history and traditions in the area while others argue it is a restriction of trade. Regardless it makes Champagne unique and easily to identify in the marketplace.

So why is it so different in the New World…well there are a number of reasons. When people first started planting grapes in Australia in the 1800’s there was no history or rules that had to be followed. You could pretty much plant any grape variety anywhere you wanted too. There was also no guidance on what grape varieties grew best in a particular area. In the early days most wine that was made was sweet fortified wine made from grapes suited to that style of wine but over time people planted grapes and made dry table wine that we know today. In the warmer areas such as the Barossa it was found that Shiraz liked the warm dry conditions and thus much of it was planted. In fact today the Barossa Valley in South Australia has some of the oldest Shiraz Vines in the world. In some areas people planted lots of different grape varieties but over the last couple of decades they have started to understand the best varieties for their particular vineyards and the general quality of wine has improved.

Today when anyone plants vineyards in Australia there is usually alot of research into the best varieties for the area and even the best clones of that variety. Although consumer trends dictate what grapes are required, producers these days will focus on supplying those trends with grapes that are suited to the local environment and some regions are becoming well know for certain grape varieties e.g. Mornington Peninsula for Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.

Like Bordeaux some New World regions are known for blended wines e.g. GSM or Grenache Shiraz Mataro in the McLaren Vale, but these are more likely to note the individual grape varieties on the label. Having said that a number of wineries will put a name on their premium wines often named after a family name or member, for example Sanguine Estate in the Heathcote region names their flagship wine the D’Orsa after (Pietro D’Orsa) their great grandfather. It is worth noting that any grape variety that makes up less than 15% of a blend doesn’t legally have to be listed on the label but most wineries will still note it.

So if you are looking for Old World wines it is worth doing some research to understand the grapes varieties and blends used in each region to find one that appeal to you. As a rough guide the following regions are known for these grape varieties:

• Bordeaux France: Blends based on Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot;
• Burgundy France: Pinot or Chardonnay;
• Rhone France: Blends based on Shiraz and Grenache;
• Rioja Spain: Blends of Tempranillo and Garnacha;
• Chianti Italy: Based on Sangiovese;
• Barolo Italy: Based on Nebbiolo.

I will be doing podcasts on these grape varieties if you want to explore them further.

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.