Most labels give a country of origin and the name of a specific vineyard, a community of wine growers, a region or a grape variety, unless the bottle contains a blend of wines from different years. The label will also carry a vintage year, the alcohol content, a warning about sulfites, along with the name of the producer and importer.

A label gives clues to a wine’s identity, but only the wine itself can reveal its character. It does so in several ways. First its color, which can always be appreciated for its intrinsic beauty, may disclose the wine’s age and even how it was made. Then the aroma, best enjoyed by swirling the glass held by the stem and gently rotating. The aromatic elements are released and held in the bowl of the glass.

The taster will smell the bouquet before taking a sip of wine to analyze its taste. Have a wine glass one-third full, check for color, swirl the wine, sniff the wine, sip the wine, suck in the wine, and chew the wine.
As was mentioned in the opening, the shape of a bottle is often the first indication of the character of a wine. Certain more unusual shapes may signal particular wines.

Most wine bottles are cylindrical, permitting them to be stacked horizontally for storage. This position keeps the cork moist and expanded so that excess air does not enter the bottle.

Green or brown glass protects wine from light while it ages. Clear glass is reserved for white wines.

A Burgundy bottle may be identified by its sloping shoulders. Such bottles are also used in the Rhone and Loire Valley.

A similar shape is customary for champagne and other sparkling wines, but these bottles are of thicker glass to prevent them from exploding from the pressure of gas inside.

A Bordeaux bottle is narrow and high-shouldered, a shape that has been adopted around the world for use with other wines made from Cabernet Sauvignon grapes. Chianti Classico is usually found in a Bordeaux style bottle.

A port bottle is also high-shouldered, but the neck bulges slightly.

Most of Germany’s wines are bottled in slender flutes, brown are for Rhineland; green flutes are from the Mosel-Saar-Ruwer region.

The capacity of a standard bottle is 750 milliliters. Most wines can be found in half bottles and in magnums of 1.5 liters.

Red Bordeaux is also obtainable in a three-bottle size known as a Marie-Jeanne, and in double magnums (four bottles) and imperiales (eight bottles).

For special occasions, champagne may be transferred under pressure to a Jeroboam (four bottles), Rehoboam (six bottles), Methuselah (eight-bottles), Salmanazar (twelve bottles), Balthazar (sixteen bottles) or Nebuchadnezzar (twenty bottles).

Burgundy may be sold in four-bottle Jeroboams, in Rehoboams and in Methuselahs.

Port exists in magnums, and in rare instances in the four-bottle Jeroboams.

The size of a bottle determines the size of the wine surface in contact with air and thus the rate at which the wine matures. A half bottle matures faster than a bottle, a bottle faster than a magnum.

When a fine wine is laid down in a cellar to age, it slowly matures, evolving in taste and changing color. The vast majority of wines have little potential for improving with age and are best drunk relatively young. As they age, fine white wine darkens to a golden hue. Complex red wines lose their tinge of blue, first becoming a warmer red, then eventually a lighter color. Red wine, 10 years or older, should be decanted into a carafe to eliminate any residue or sediment. All wine should be allowed to breathe before serving.

A bottle chilled to the right temperature, a clean extracted cork, a clean glass and correct procedure followed adds to the pleasure of wine tasting.

All dry and sweet white wines, rose and sparkling wines are enhanced by chilling to 43° to 46°F. By contrast, red wines need only a little cooling – cellar room temperature (60° to 65°F). Overchilling can slow the development of a red wine’s bouquet; however, if the same wine is served too warm, its alcohol content may become too dominant.

Wine serving/opening procedure:

1. Present bottle to customer, showing label to make sure it is the wine the customer ordered.
2. With a sharp knife or the blade of a corkscrew, cut around the foil or plastic capsule, just below the bead, remove the top of the capsule so it does not touch the wine, as it is poured. Wipe clean.
3. Inserting the screw, draw the cork and present the cork to the customer. Wiping the neck with a napkin, pour a taste for the customer who ordered the wine for approval.
4. Serve the ladies or guest of honor first, always from the right. Never fill the glass more than one-third full.
For champagne, you need an ice bucket and napkin. Remove wire and foil, remove the cork by holding the cork pointing away from customers, turn the bottle slowly, not the cork. Remove cork and serve slowly into fluted champagne glass – half-full is acceptable; never fill the glasses.

The Marriage of Cheese and Wine

Stilton with Port is a traditional combination.
Chevre with Sancerre – pairing a crisp wine with a piquant cheese.
Muenster with Gewuerztraminer is a marriage made in Alsace.
Roquefort with Sauternes is traditionally served in the Bordeaux region of France.
Strong cheeses are served with robust wines, such as Barolo or Châteauneuf-du-Pape or California Zinfandel.
Mild cheeses go with delicate wines, such as a mature Graves from the Bordeaux region.
The particular affinities between cheese, bread and wine are said to reside in the fact that all are fermented foods.
The Wine Merchant’s Motto: “Buy on Bread, Sell on Cheese”. The implication is that when a buyer is tasting a wine, a nibble of bread will not interfere with the detection of the wine’s qualities.
By contrast, if the buyer eats cheese while tasting a wine, its faults will be disguised and the wine will be rated better than it is.

Cooking with Wine

Food and wine form as natural a partnership in the kitchen as they do at the table and wine has a role to play in every branch of cooking.
Even before ingredients are cooked, wine may be set to work as a flavoring agent in a marinade, or deglazing a roasting pan, as a poaching medium for fish, or to macerate fruits. Never use a bad wine for cooking. If the wine is not good enough to drink, do not use it for cooking.

Wine Producing Countries

The United States is one of the greatest wine producing nations of the world. California boasts over 800 vineyards. In general, the wines come from Napa, Sonoma, and Mendecino counties. Other wine regions of America include the Finger Lakes, Long Island and the Hudson Valley in New York and the Yakima Valley in Washington state.
Argentina is a large wine producing country in South America.
Southern regions of Australia have climatic conditions similar to California.
The central region of Chile is ideal for the production of wine.
Bordeaux, Burgundy, Rhone, Alsace, Provence, Champagne and Loire, France are major producers. The Bordeaux region alone produces 650 million bottles annually.
The Rhine and Mosel River areas of Germany are the most prolific, producing mostly white wine.
Hungary is famous for the best-known red wine, Egri Bikaver (Bulls-Blood) and also for Tokayer dessert wine.
Italy is the largest producer and consumer of wines in the world – Piedmont, Tuscany and Veneto.
Portugal has four wine-producing regions that mostly produce port.
Spain follows Italy and France in production of wines and sherries.
Wine production began in South Africa in 1654, with 5,000 growers brought in from Holland.
Switzerland does not produce enough for export. Lake Geneva, Neuchatel, Rhone Valley and Ticino are the most popular wine producing regions.
In New Zealand, the north and south islands have limited production.

In large skillet over medium flame, melt butter. Add mushrooms; cook until tender, stirring frequently. Add lemon juice and seasonings; stir into chicken casserole; cook 5 minutes.

Remove chicken and mushrooms to heated platter; keep warm. Remove and discard bay leaves.

In small bowl, beat egg yolks and cream; temper with some of hot liquid from chicken. Thicken sauce with egg and cream mixture; remove from heat. Check for seasoning. Stir in chives; pour sauce over chicken. Serve with fresh homemade noodles.