Wine knowledge
Wine has been produced in various ways for millennia. Developments in soil cultivation, grape growing, and wine production have evolved enormously, resulting in a wide variety of wines. This makes it almost impossible for wine enthusiasts to find their way through all the options. To provide some guidance, several overviews are presented below.
Wine type
First, wines can be distinguished by colour and production method.
| Wine type | Made from | Main technique | Colour mainly comes from | Flavour profile in brief |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red wine | Blue/dark grapes | Fermentation with skins | Skin contact during fermentation | More colour, tannin, and structure; red/dark fruit, spiciness |
| White wine | Usually white grapes, sometimes blue grapes without skin contact | Juice is quickly separated from the skins | Grape juice, little to no skin contact | Fresher, lighter, more citrus, apple, flowers, or minerality |
| Rosé | Usually blue grapes | Short skin contact or direct pressing | Brief extraction from blue grape skins | Between white and red: fresh, fruity, usually low in tannin |
| Sparkling wine | White and/or blue grapes | Wine gains carbonation through a second fermentation or addition | Depends on the base wine | Effervescent; fresh, lively, sometimes yeasty/bready with the traditional method |
| Orange wine | White grapes | White wine made like red wine: fermentation with skins | Long skin contact with white grape skins | More structure and grip than white; spicy, tea-like, sometimes lightly tannic |
| Fortified wine | Wine made from grapes, to which extra alcohol is added | Adding wine alcohol or grape distillate during or after fermentation | Depends on the base wine and maturation | Often fuller, stronger, and higher in alcohol; can be dry or sweet, with examples such as Port, Sherry, and Madeira |
In short
- Red = blue grapes + long skin contact.
- White = usually white grapes + little/no skin contact.
- Rosé = blue grapes + short skin contact.
- Sparkling = wine with bubbles; the colour can be white, rosé, or even red.
- Orange = white grapes + skin contact, so essentially “white made like red”.
- Fortified = wine to which extra alcohol has been added; this results in a higher alcohol percentage and often more body, sweetness, or maturation complexity.
Important to know: colour does not automatically tell you everything about flavour. A light red wine can be fresher than a powerful orange wine, and a sparkling wine can be white, rosé, or red.
Fortified wine versus distillate
Distillates are also made from grapes or grape must. This is therefore not the same as fortified wine. The differences between the two production methods are briefly outlined below.
| Aspect | Fortified wine | Grape distillate |
|---|---|---|
| Base | Wine | Wine or grape must |
| Technique | Alcohol added | Alcohol concentrated through distillation |
| Alcohol percentage | 15–22% | 35–60% |
| Examples | Port, sherry, Madeira | Cognac, brandy, grappa |
| Flavour | Wine-like | Spirit-like |
Flavour/sweetness of the wine
The amount of residual sugar determines the sweetness of a wine:
- Dry
- Off-dry
- Medium-sweet
- Sweet
Dry wine contains little residual sugar; sweet wine contains more. Off-dry and medium-sweet wines differ mainly in residual sugar and therefore in how sweet they taste.
Off-dry wine: has a light sweetness, but often still tastes fresh and fairly dry. The acidity keeps the sweetness in balance. Think of some Rieslings, Chenin Blancs, or sparkling wines with terms such as demi-sec.
Medium-sweet wine: contains noticeably more residual sugar and tastes clearly sweeter, rounder, and softer. The wine often feels fuller in the mouth.
In short: off-dry = lightly sweet with a fresh impression; medium-sweet = clearly sweeter and softer.
For still wine, approximately the following classification is often used:
- Off-dry: usually up to around 12 g/l residual sugar, or slightly higher if acidity is high enough.
- Medium-sweet: roughly 12–45 g/l residual sugar.
- Sweet: usually above 45 g/l residual sugar.
Note: for sparkling wine, terms are sometimes used differently. There, demi-sec actually means fairly sweet compared with brut or extra dry.
Alcohol-free wine or grape juice
In short, with alcohol-free wines (0%), the grapes are first fermented and the alcohol is then removed.
| Aspect | Grape juice | 0% wine |
|---|---|---|
| Fermentation | None | Yes, complete |
| Alcohol | 0% | 0% (after removal) |
| Flavour | Sweet, fruity | Similar to wine, less sweet |
| Structure | No tannins, low acidity | Wine acidity, sometimes tannins |
| Complexity | Low | Medium |
Alcohol-free wines (0%) are included in the list of OrganicBioWines.eu, only if it has been established that these have been fully fermented and the wine has then been dealcoholised. All kinds of grape juice variants (that have not been fermented) are therefore not included.
Which wines are included in the list of OrganicBioWines.eu
- The wines must be produced in accordance with the stated sustainability criteria: organic, biodynamic, vegan, regenerative, or natural.
- Only wines produced from grapes are included. Wines made from other fruits (e.g., apple, berries, etc.) are not currently included.
- Some wine producers grow and vinify wines conventionally and also produce organic/sustainable wines. Only the organic/sustainable wines are included.
- Fortified wine (wine + added alcohol), such as sweet dessert wines, are included in the wine list.
- Grape distillate (strong alcoholic drink made by distilling wine) is currently not included.
- Furthermore, the most common vintages (incl. NV: Non-Vintage) are included that can be found with the wine producers themselves and with the larger wine merchants. Specialised wine merchants may of course offer additional (older) vintages.