If you ask someone what actually Great Wine is, then you should know that this question has both no answer and about a zillion answers at the same time. Why is that? The answer, in fact, depends on the person you ask, particularly the time of asking.

There is no one type of wine drinker first of all. With that fact as our basis for moving ahead, you can see where you might come up with a gazillion different answers. I know there is no number relating to a Gazillion, but let it be enough that there are plenty of different types.

The range extends from the down and out street wino to the extremely upscale wine clubs found in the eastern seaboard of America. And then of course there are our European cousins that consume much more wine than we Americans do routinely. So who you ask about great wine will definitely influence the answer you get back.

So is the question even worth asking? From my perspective it is in fact. But who you ask may come as a surprise. You should ask yourself. That’s right. What you think is a great wine is all that is really important when it comes to drinking the grape nectar. After all, it’s your taste buds you are concerned with and not someone else’s. You want to please yourself. You want to experience pleasure when consuming a glass of wine.

What will play into and affect that experience is the surroundings with which you find yourself when drinking some wine. Why is that important, well there are some wines that just do not fit some occasions. And if you don’t know at least some basics, your wine selection could end with a very discomforting result.

Wine basics 101: there are White, Red and Rose’ in the color realm. There are desert wines, wines that typically go well with certain types of foods and then there are wines that can be enjoyed just by themselves. Actually all wine fits this last category. It just depends on your mood and taste.

The days of wine snobbery are for the most part over. As the 21st century progresses, it has become more important for the individual to enjoy their selection than fitting a predetermined set of circumstances dictated by wine snobs. Those supposedly in the know.

While everything up till now is true, it’s pretty much an open game, there are a couple of things that you want to keep in mind. One is, you don’t want to select a desert wine such as Muscat to drink with dinner. That may seem like common sense and it is, but if you don’t know what Muscat is, then you could be at the front end of a very big surprise. Muscat is my favorite desert wine. As a child, I use to eat Muscat grapes fresh off the vine from wild grape vines that grew in our neighborhood. It was like free candy.

Up until recently, it was sort of taboo to drink white wine with red meat such as Beef, Veal, Venison or other game meats. Red was strictly the wine of choice. And to drink anything other was frowned upon by almost everyone. That is no longer true. It is completely acceptable to drink a white with a dinner steak. If that wine is to your liking, then do it.

So the old guidelines of food and wine pairings are not so much in vogue anymore. You will find that attitude at some upscale eateries that provide a wine Somalier. When faced with that situation, you just have to do what you feel comfortable doing. But other than that, great wine is the wine that makes you smile. Maybe even giggle a bit. Champagne bubbles popping about your nose is likely to cause that reaction more so than any other.

So….Great wine, what is it? It’s the wine that you love to drink, regardless of other’s opinions and ideas. So go ahead and have that Merlot with sauteed Prawns over Linguine or a nice Pinot Gregio with your Rib eye. You have no one to please but yourself.

Grapes used to make white wine produce an array of flavors and colors, with colors ranging from clear to a golden yellow as the wine ages. Since different climates affect the flavors of the grapes, different regions produce drastically different wines.

In extremely warm regions, the grapes become less acidic and the color of the wine tends to be more golden yellow. In temperate climates, there is more of a balance of acidity and also sweetness in the wine. Cool climates produce more acidic wines where the crop is prone to frost damage if not picked within the season. Chardonnay is perhaps the most well-known grape.

It is grown throughout wine producing regions of the world, but originated in Burgundy. The wine is typically light golden in color with melon and tropical flavors emerging in the wine. Riesling grapes produce a lighter bodied wine than Chardonnay and wine made from this grape usually is sweeter and has a flowery aroma. Sauvignon Blanc is a grape predominately found in France’s Loire Valley. It is a lighter wine that is often paired with a variety of food, including fish and poultry.

Pinot Blanc is a crisp wine that is sometimes made into sparkling wine in France. Champagne is the famous sparkling wine from the French region of Champagne. Only wines produced in this region can legally be called Champagne under a Protected Designation of Origin status.

Chardonnay grapes are most often used in making champagne, but blends with Pinot Noir are not uncommon. White wine grapes produce wine that is lower in tannins then red wine, since the wine is produced with minimal contact of the juice with the grape skins and seeds. The absence of the dry and intense flavor from high amounts of tannins make white wine easier for wine novices to begin tasting and enjoying wine.

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