Wine for the Weekend of 3/13/20
Wine Enthusiast top 100 wines of 2018 is the Wine for the Weekend of 3/13/20. The good news is that 30 are from the U.S. I am happy to see Italy in second place. They deserve it. Italy produces more types of grapes into wine than all other countries combined. Over the centuries, many different grapes were brought there as the center of trade. France deserves to be third. Obviously, they produce excellent wines. Unfortunately, the American people have not fully discovered the greatness of some of the other countries. I will discuss them in the next paragraph. I am not going to discuss many of the specific wines. You might be able to find them on their website. The problem I find is that whenever a magazine recommends specific wines, they are hoarded by the rich or they are difficult to find in stores. Therefore, it is best to focus on similar wines in each country. Here is the breakdown of their Top 100 wines of 2019. They range from affordable to expensive.
- United States 30
- Italy 17
- France 16
- Australia and Spain 5
- Argentina, Chile and Portugal 4
- Austria, New Zealand and Germany 3
- South Africa 2
- Georgia, Greece, Israel and Uruguay 1
Other Countries
Europe has some great bargains! Countries like Spain, Portugal, Germany are just as important. Try a nice tempranillo or Rioja from Spain from $10 on up. German rieslings are some of the best in the world at $10-$20. One comes in a bottle shaped like a cat in various colors. It is delicious! Try Vinho Verde from portugal for a nice warm weather white wine with a green tinge for less than $10. Australia has differentiated itself by experimenting with French varietals such as grenache, syrah and mouvedre which are from France’s Rhone region. Argentina took a French blending grape called malbec and turned into a great wine. Plus, they make a delicious and beautiful smelling white called torrontes. New Zealand has made amazing wines using French varietals as well. The white bordeaux grape sauvignon blanc tastes different in a good way. And, they have made some world class pinot noirs because their climate is very similar to Burgundy, France. South Africa has done wonders with the French grape chenin blanc. When is the world going to take some of the hundreds of Italian varieties and work with them? I hope soon. Look at all the areas where wine is being produced in Europe. They have more great wines at bargain prices than most countries. In my opinion, it is hard to find a bad wine in Europe, unless it is made by an American winery. Try them!
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