Red Wine Grapes

A glass of red wine with loved ones or friends after a hard day’s work is a great way to load off some stress. Having a glass of wine is also proven to be beneficiary to your health as well, as it lowers cholesterol and keeps blood sugar levels at bay. To that end, you need to have at least some basic knowledge about red wines grapes and which ones are considered the best. Here are the top five, and some background information on each.

As a note before we get a bunch of angry comments, we know that assigning any ‘top five’ to five different types of red-wine grape is pretty arbitrary, so we want to point out that we’re just picking the top five in terms of general appearance in popular wines. Yes, we love a good Tempranillo as much as the next wine blog, but you’re a lot less likely to find one gracing the shelves of your local supermarket than you are a Merlot or a Cabernet Sauvignon.

Fundamentally, the best thing about wine is the variety. If you’ve come here searching for the “best 5  red wine types” then you’re going to be sorely disappointed because every single wine has it’s own benefits, it’s own beauty and it’s own perfect pairing (and we’re talking about environment here, not just food!).

Experiment and find out what you love – such is the beauty of wine.

Cabernet Sauvignon

This variety can be found in almost every corner of the world. However, not all are good for producing high quality red wine. It ripens late and its ideal environment includes a cold climate, somewhat like it is in Chile. The renowned Cabernet Sauvignon flavors are bell pepper, green olive, herb, cassis, and black cherry.

Merlot

Merlot is grown in Bordeaux, as well as in Italy, Australia, United States (Washington State and California), Romania, Chile, etc. It ranks fourth regarding red wine grapes coverage in the world. Its softness makes it an ideal as an introductory wine for those that haven’t tried red wine. Concerning food pairing, it goes well with almost everything. The typical scent features herbal flavors, plums, and black cherry. 

Pinot Noir

From all red wine grapes, the Pinot Noir is considered as one of the noblest ones. It’s hard to grow, has no roughness so ever, and is almost never blended. The best ones come from Burgundy, France. Other areas where it is grown are New Zealand, Oregon, California, and Austria. It has a delicate structure, very soft tannins, and is very fruity (plum, strawberry, cherry). 

Malbec

Its origins are from the famous Bordeaux region in France. Great Malbec is also grown in Australia, Chile, some colder parts of California, and in Argentina where it is extremely popular. Its characteristics largely depend on the region where is grown and how it is cultivated. Generally speaking, it is well-colored and easy to drink wine with notes of spice, berries, and plums. Very often Malbec is blended with other red wine grapes like Petit Verdot, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Cabernet Franc. Typically it is paired with meat-based dishes.

Syrah

The best Syrah wines come from Rhone Valley in France, California, and Australia. It is grown in other regions, but from those areas comes top quality Syrah. Its taste can vary from region to region, but generally, it has a fruit sensation complemented by gripping tannins and warm alcohol. Syrah is an excellent match with meat dishes like steak and beef.

It also contains significant quantities of antioxidants making it one of the healthiest red wine grapes in the world!

Red Wine Grapes – All the variety

However, the biggest takeaway here is that these are just a small sample of the red wine grapes available. There are literally thousands upon thousands of varietals of grape, and when you combine this with different growing and maturation techniques we’re graced with an exponential number of different wine varieties.

Every grape, and every wine brings something unique to the table and the key is to identify the aspects of the wine which are favorable and use these to your advantage. Some pair brilliantly with salmon, some are ideal to round off an evening, and some better suited to an engagement celebration.

Find the variation for the event, and make it yours.