These 5 Wine Grapes Are Used To Make Excellent Red Wine

Red wines are rich wines that come from a variety of red grapes that grow all over the world. Depending upon the terrain of the earth that yields the grapes, the flavors of the grapes will produce wines that might vary wildly in flavor, but are all very tasty just the same. The wine grape varieties that produce the wines that we love are grown in the U.S., Australia, France, Italy, Spain, Chile, and in other smaller regions. Here is a look at five of the wine grape varieties that produce some of the best red wines on the market, past and present.

The Durif Grape: This grape was developed by a French doctor, Dr. Durif in 1800s. He bred this grape along with another to produce a unique wine grape. The Syrah and Pelourisn grapes were bred together to produce the Durif grape. When these two wine grape varieties were blended together, they formed a wine that is known as the Petit Sirah, especially in the U. S. It grows well in warmer climates, such as California. This grape was also used to produce Burgundy wines from 1950 to the 1970s.

Merlot: The Merlot grape is mixed with Cabernet Sauvignon, and it makes a soft finished wine that tastes of berries. It's a rich and dry wine. Merlot goes really well with rich meats, and although it's great all year long, it goes especially well with heavy winter meals. These grapes are a bit more fragile than other wine grape varieties, and they can develop problems with mold easier than some other wine grape varieties.

The Pinot Noir Grape: This is a challenging grape for wine production. It needs just the right conditions to thrive including the right about of sunshine in the day and a cooler temperature at night. However, when successfully grown it produces an excellent wine that has a cherry and strawberry flavor. It can be consumed with along with many different types of food.

The Sangiovese Grape: You can find this grape growing in the northernmost parts of Italy. The Chianti wine is produced from this grape. The wine is very smooth and is a popular addition to many different varieties of meals but it goes the best with rich Tuscan cuisine such as pasta. These wine grapes are often blended with Cabernet Sauvignon to build upon its flavor.

The Grignolino Grape: This grape is native to the Italian region of Piedmont. Unlike most wines, the wine produced from this grape does not taste better with age. It's best consumed fresh. These wines are best enjoyed with beef, and with light to medium flavored snacking meats and cheeses. You'll rarely find this wine grape growing anywhere else in the world . This is a wine grape variety that is extremely rare to find outside of its home region.

Of course we can talk about many more different red wine grape varieties, but these are some of the most popular. Something to keep in mind is that while the label on the wine bottle generally mentions only the primary grape used in the wine production, often other grapes are blended together to enhance or modify the flavor and to produce unique tasting wines.

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