Style

Style refers to the distinctive characteristics of a wine. The world offers a wide range of wines. There are numerous grape varietals, endless growing regions, and a long list of processing decisions winemakers can make that all influence the finished wine. Wine is divided into a few distinct categories: Table wines, sparkling wine, fortified wine, and various styles of dessert wines.

Table Wine—The most common style of wine is dry red or dry white wine, referred to as table wine, produced by standard harvest and fermentation practices. Occasionally a small amount of sugar is left in the wine and an off-dry or slightly sweet wine is produced. Off-dry styles are more commonly done for white wines. Rosé and blush wines are also considered table wine styles.

Sparkling Wine—Sparkling wine is the American name for Champagne style wines. Sparkling wine is a heavily carbonated wine from a second fermentation that takes place in the bottle. The gas produced during the fermentation dissolves into the wine producing the carbonation. This style is produced from grapes that are not fully ripe to accentuate the flavors of fermentation and lees ageing more than the fruit. Styles can range from very dry to very sweet. Different regions in the world produce a sparkling wine style and have given them proprietary names. Spanish Cava, German Sekt, and Italian Spumante are some examples.

Fortified Wine—Wines that have a portion of distilled brandy spirits added to them are called fortified wines. The Port and Madeira wines of Portugal, the Sherries from Spain, and Marsala wines from Sicily are the common styles of fortified wine. The spirit can be added at any point during processing, and when the spirit is added is dictated by the style. Most fortified wines contain some amount of residual sugar and are fairly sweet.

Dessert Wines—Several regions are known for producing sweet style wines served as dessert beverages. Dessert wines are all styles that have allowed extended maturation of the grapes in the vineyard, producing very high sugar contents when harvested. Some grapes also become infected with a mold known as Botrytis cinerea that produces a very distinct honey flavor to the wine. The wines do not completely ferment and large amounts of residual sugar remain. Dessert wines demand additional input from the winemaker and can be more difficult to produce as they often require special equipment or must meet certain conditions that make them difficult to process by standard means. Some classic dessert wines are the botrytized wines of Sauternes, Icewines, and Hungarian Tokaj.

Along with different wine types, understanding some of the basic properties of wine can help winemakers of all levels produce high quality wine that is a pleasure to drink. The following are the basic properties of wine style that all winemakers should understand:

• Color: Wine is divided into two basic colors—red and white. The juice from wine grapes is white, even for red wine producing varietals. The color of red wine is extracted by fermenting the juice with the red colored skins.
• Aroma: Grapes produce a wide range of aromatic compounds, and different varietals are known for specific characters.
• Flavor: All wines will posses some level of the basic flavors.
• Texture: All wines will provide some sort of touch sensation when consumed.