Random, and possibly helpful, tidbits...

As stated before, I don't pretend to know much about wine; so any small piece of information, that I can actually retain, that will help me successfully choose a bottle is great!

I've randomly discovered a few vintage pointers (who even knows where- so they may be wrong) that have helped lead to some great wines.

*2005 was a great year for California Cabernet Sauvignons
*2007 was a great year for Napa Cabernet Sauvignons
*2003 was NOT a good year for any European wines (tremendous heat wave- my husband was in Greece for part of summer 2003 and remembers, very vividly, the sweltering heat)

Again, I truly don't even remember where I heard/read this information, so it may not be totally correct; however, by using these guides, we've had great success picking some really delicious wine! And yes, I know I'm being biased towards Cabs... I'll work on that!

My biggest problem with wine is my memory... I can remember every detail about preschool 24 years ago, but can't remember, for the life of me, what I had for lunch yesterday (literally)! This is a huge dilema when you're trying (really hard) to learn about wine. I never remember what anyone tells me, I never remember the name of that amazing bottle I had, etc. My saving grace is that I have begun to learn the tastes and characteristics that I enjoy in wine and can try to explain these to someone who has a better short-term memory than I do!

One of those (really important) things that I can't usually remember is the progression of wines. I know that Cabernet Sauvignon is, traditionally, the heaviest wine, but I have a hard time remembering where other grapes fit into the spectrum. So... here's a list (and this is just a general list... there are, obviously, many other grape varietals not listed):

Heaviest to Lighest RED:
1. Cabernet Sauvignon
2. Syrah
3. Red Zinfandel
4. Merlot
5. Pinot Noir

Heaviest to Lightest WHITE:
1. Buttery Chardonnay (this actually goes between Merlot and Pinot Noir on a complete list)
2. Fruity Chardonnay
3. Riesling***
4. Sauvignon Blanc
5. Chenin Blanc
6. White Zinfandel
7. Pinot Grigio

***I feel it necessary to make a note about Rieslings... They get a bad reputation. My experience with Riesling, prior to last year, was this sweet, syrupy liquid... not usually the case. Yes, there are some really bad, sweet, wretched (in my opinion) Rieslings, but there are also some REALLY delicious dry Rieslings that will change anyone's mind about the grape! Dry Rieslings are actually one of the most accessible (probably not the best word choice) wines because they can be paired with almost anything.