Majestic Uncover The Mythology Around Old World Wines

Nov. 2, 2009 - PRLog -- Amy Hetherington from Majestic said, “French and Spanish wines are both extremely popular for 2009 but many consumers are stumped by the various grape varieties in addition to what sets them apart.”

Dubbed as one of the common grape varieties in France, Sauvignon Blanc is one best known varieties in the Loire, especially in the wines of Sancerre. Produced in the environs of Sancerre in the eastern part of the Loire valley, southeast of Orléans, these wines are praised for their purity and elegance.

Miss Hetherington added, “Compared to New Zealand wines for example, these wines are much lighter and make a much more suitable food and wine match for dishes like fish, partly down to the climates where they are grown and cultivated.

Part of the green skinned grape variety, Chardonnay is famously in nearly all white burgundy wines, creating anything from Chablis, which is light peachy and minerally to Meursault, which is generally rich and nutty, with vanilla and toasty notes. Originating from the Burgundy wine region of eastern France, this grape variety is now present all over the world. Considered to be a neutral grape, its flavours are most commonly associated with influences such as terroir and oak.

Miss Hetherington added, “When it comes to Spanish wines, such as Rioja, quality is measured on how long a wine has been aged, which is an alien concept for some of the customers who visit our stores.”

Rioja is almost exclusively made from the grape variety tempranillo, and to be worthy of the universal label, the grapes used must come from the Rioja region in Spain.

Despite a crianza having at least a minimum of 18 months age, reserva having at least 3 years total age as a minimum and a Gran Reserva having 5 years total age as a minimum, this does not necessarily mean that a Gran Reserva is better, it is all down to personal preference based on how fresh and young you like your wine.

Miss Hetherington continued “The world of wine can be very confusing and difficult for many people to understand. Old world wine labels give away very few clues, we’re here to help demystify some of that, a little knowledge can go a long way.”

For more information on French or Spanish grape varieties and details of the free wine course please visit the Majestic website at www.majestic.co.uk

About Majestic Wine UK

Majestic Wine Warehouses is the UK's biggest and best retailer specialising in sales of wine by the mixed case, with 153 stores throughout the UK. Majestic offers an extensive range of superb wines in large quantities, giving real choice and value.

Majestic’s staff are passionate about wine and are always on hand to give advice on what to buy. Majestic are also the only wine retailer to operate a FREE delivery service for cases of 12 bottles throughout mainland UK. For gifts of less than 12 bottles Majestic operates a Gift Solutions service at http://www.majestic.co.uk/About/GiftSolutions

Majestic Wine are also different from mail order and internet wine merchants, who may try to tempt you with artificial savings on a mixed case of indifferent wines. Their promotions often last several months at a time and boast hundreds of multibuy offers, which represent genuine savings. They are famous for their 'one-off' special parcels, which are worth looking out for!