08/21/06 Varietals vs Blends

Welcome to Vine to Wine this is your host Linda Moran and today we are answering a question from the email. A listener wrote to ask "You often make reference to varietal wine - it is something special?" The term varietal wine refers to a wine made from one variety or kind of grape; a blend is the mixture of two or more grapes. What I am referring to is the fact that it is a wine made with only one kind of grape as opposed to a wine created by blending together two or more kinds of grapes. Today, let's take up the topic of varietals versus blends. The past few decades have seen incredible changes in not only the growth of winemaking, but in the styles and technology of winemaking. As I said varietal wines are made from a specific kind of grape and blends are a combination of grapes. Old world wines were almost exclusively blends of the grapes grown in their regions, where New World wines were often varietal specific. But, this is no longer always the case. Most winemakers I have known really prefer to have the option of blending. It often makes for more interesting wines. However, in the United States it is the law that when a wine is labeled with a specific varietal name - then at least 70% of the grapes used to make that wine must be the grape named on the label. When it comes to varietals or blends, neither one is inherently better. Quality is still a factor of good grapes and winemaking skill. Talk to your local wine merchant and ask for some recommendations for blended wines versus varietal wines. And thanks for joining me on today's Vine to Wine.