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Having been a wine enthusiast and consumer for nigh on 20 years, I would like to think of my wine knowledge as being good, but even now I continue to look for ways to expand my wine intelligence.

The challenge when it comes to wine appreciation is how to cope with all of the new wines and vintages that appear every season from thousands of wineries around the globe. The obvious answer to this problem is of course that you can’t keep up with every wine as there are just too many wines being produced.

However once you have begun to climb the ladder of wine knowledge you can through a process of elimination get to taste a percentage of premium wines and thus selectively enhance your palates wine knowledge.

First of all, eliminate the high number of wines on the market that would be classified as quaffing wines or of average quality – this eliminates 85-90% of wines available for sale. That still leaves a very large number of wines that would be deemed high-quality premium wines, which leads us to ask what the next step is in making the number of wines to taste a more manageable number?

Perhaps having Robert Parker as your personal wine expert might be a good idea? I recently discovered a premium wine club that only has wines that have achieved 90 points or greater when examined by Masters of Wines. This means they are all Gold medal wines. The wines are judges by the likes of Robert Parker, Stephen Tanzar, and Wine Enthusiast magazine – I mean these guys all have huge reputations in the wine world. What better way to assure yourself regarding the premium nature of the wines you are tasting?

Have you thought about growing your wine knowledge and palate by experiencing international wines this year?. New world wines such as South African Pintage, New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot noir, and Australian Shiraz have made a resounding impact on the palates of wine experts with their qualities. Add in old world wines such as Tempranillo and Montepulciano and you have the building blocks for rapidly increasing your wine knowledge.

An introduction to premium international wines can be achieved by joining this international wine club. Once again, the selection process is carried out by leading wine masters and you can decide when and how often you wish to receive shipments.

If you only have a limited amount of time for experiencing wine over the next 12 months then there is an ultimate premium wine club that only has the very best premium wine on offer and in small quantities for their limited wine club membership. This premium wine club has only the best wines – yes that also equates to being more expensive – but when selected  for you by Masters of Wine, there is no guesswork regarding the wine quality. You will receive the very best wines exclusively so you are achieving fantastic value for your money with the wine you buy and consume.

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There are a number of points towards refining your taste for wine and enhancing your judgment as to what makes a good wine. One is that wine is made from fermented grape juice. But you should know a few other things, such as the grape varieties wines are made from and the process of wine making itself.

There are many varieties of wines. The most commonly known ones are red, white, rose and champagne. Wines are usually classified according to the grape varieties they are made from. One grape variety, the Barbera, is often used for red wine. This variety is grown mainly in Piedmont, Italy, but is quite adaptable to other regions, and is also grown on a limited scale in the United States. Barbera grapes have a high natural acidity and produce wines with a full-bodied fruity taste.

Wine Varieties

There are many varieties of wine. Wine enthusiasts know about one variety that is widely grown in many parts of the world: Cabernet Sauvignon. This grape variety, grown primarily in Medoc, France, has found its way to California, Australia and other wine-making countries. Wine enthusiasts would consider Cabernet Sauvignon wines to be among the best red wines in the world. They have a distinct aromatic flavor, and have hints of the taste of berries, olives, coffee, mint and herbs all blended together. Among the white varieties, the Chardonnay is easily the most popular, producing some of the world’s finest white wines. The varieties and types are overwhelming at times, but you don’t take long to become familiar with all the wine values.

If a wine enthusiast is interested in going into wine production, even if only for personal consumption, then a basic understanding of the wine-making process is important. Wine making is an age-old technology and is really simple. One does not need very sophisticated equipment in order to make wines.

First you have to know what type of grapes to use, where they are grown, the right age for picking, and things like acidity and sugar levels. If you are after a particular aromatic flavor, there are grapes that will produce that kind of flavor and you should be able to tell which ones. After the picking of the grapes, comes the pressing to extract the juices, and then the fermentation process.

The fermentation process is quite delicate. It involves adding yeast to the juice in order to stimulate the fermentation process. Basically, fermentation is the conversion of the sugar in the juice into alcohol. The success of the process, that is, your grape juice turning into good wine, has a lot to do with the kind of yeast you use, and the absence of any contaminants getting into the mixture during the entire process.

There is so much more to knowing the difference between a Chardonnay and a Cabernet Sauvignon, but the knowledge to the types of wine available is just the beginning for a wine enthusiast.

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