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79-425: Wine Spectator editors review more than 15,000 wines each year in blind tastings. Wines are reviewed on a 100-point scale. Every issue contains 400 to 1,000 wine reviews with detailed tasting notes and drink recommendations Each year since 1988, the publication has released its Top 100 list, where editors select the most exciting wines from the thousands reviewed during the course of the year. The Top 100 includes

158-400: A Chef's Challenge , where their wine pairing skills are put to the test. José Andrés , Eric Ripert , Emeril Lagasse and Danny Meyer are all regular participants. The magazine's Grand Tour takes the tastings on the road to three cities each spring, with more than 200 wines, all rated 90 points or higher by Wine Spectator editors, poured at the events. In 2023, Wine Spectator announced

237-569: A vinegar smell. In medieval Europe , the Roman Catholic Church supported wine because the clergy required it for the Mass . Monks in France made wine for years, aging it in caves. An old English recipe that survived in various forms until the 19th century calls for refining white wine from bastard—bad or tainted bastardo wine. Later, the descendants of the sacramental wine were refined for

316-576: A 53-minute documentary, Cigars: The Heart and Soul of Cuba , in which he travels across Cuba, interviewing various well-known personalities in the region. Suckling comes to the conclusion that the high quality and success of Cuban tobacco can be attributed largely to the industriousness of the Cuban people and to their culture. The film premiered at the Havana Film Festival in December 2011. Suckling,

395-883: A base of city-states along the Mediterranean coast centered around modern day Lebanon (as well as including small parts of Israel / Palestine and coastal Syria ); however, the Nuragic culture in Sardinia already had a custom of consuming wine before the arrival of the Phoenicians. The wines of Byblos were exported to Egypt during the Old Kingdom and then throughout the Mediterranean. Evidence for this includes two Phoenician shipwrecks from 750 BCE, found with their cargoes of wine still intact, which were discovered by Robert Ballard As

474-465: A combination of these three materials. This is probably one of the main reasons why wine derived from grapes has historically been more prevalent by far than other types, and why specific types of fruit wines have generally been confined to the regions in which the fruits were native or introduced for other reasons. Mead, also called honey wine, is created by fermenting honey with water, sometimes with various fruits, spices, grains, or hops . As long as

553-512: A common practice due to their resistance to phylloxera , a root louse that eventually kills the vine. In the late 19th century, most of Europe's vineyards (excluding some of the driest in the south) were devastated by the infestation, leading to widespread vine deaths and eventual replanting. Grafting is done in every wine-producing region in the world except in Argentina and the Canary Islands –

632-630: A dual system of region of origin and product quality. New World wines —those made outside the traditional wine regions of Europe—are usually classified by grape rather than by terroir or region of origin, although there have been unofficial attempts to classify them by quality. According to Canadian Food and Drug Regulations, wine in Canada is an alcoholic drink that is produced by the complete or partial alcoholic fermentation of fresh grapes, grape must, products derived solely from fresh grapes, or any combination of them. There are many materials added during

711-520: A filter allows the removal of bitter sediments that may have formed in the wine. Sediment is more common in older bottles, but aeration may benefit younger wines. During aeration, a younger wine's exposure to air often "relaxes" the drink, making it smoother and better integrated in aroma, texture, and flavor. Older wines generally fade (lose their character and flavor intensity) with extended aeration. Despite these general rules, breathing does not necessarily benefit all wines. Wine may be tasted as soon as

790-403: A fine wine", he replied, "wine is like music" and therefore in the same way that most musical enjoyment comes not from knowledge of music but music's appeal to the emotions, wine too should be thought of emotionally by wine drinkers, not scientifically. He added that each and every good wine should be able "to move you" in some kind of way "like with music, literature and love". Although Suckling

869-560: A friend of Maynard James Keenan of Tool , appeared in his 2010 film Blood Into Wine , a documentary focusing on Keenan's efforts to make wine in Arizona . Upon tasting Keenan's wine, Suckling's reaction is enthusiastic "though not sycophantic". Suckling also featured in Jonathan Nossiter 's 2004 film Mondovino , by some accounts in an unflattering light, as he was shown near a Pinocchio sign and seeming to state he has awarded

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948-549: A large increase of subscribers, relocated with the magazine to San Francisco in 1982. In 1983, Suckling began blind tasting Bordeaux with Alexis Lichine , and for the first time visited Europe in 1984, visiting various leading wineries in Italy. In 1985 he was assigned by Wine Spectator to establish their European bureau, living in Paris while reviewing all European wines, especially Bordeaux wine, Italian wine and Port wine for

1027-628: A more palatable taste. This gave rise to modern viticulture in French wine , Italian wine , Spanish wine , and these wine grape traditions were brought into New World wine . For example, Mission grapes were brought by Franciscan monks to New Mexico in 1628 beginning the New Mexico wine heritage, these grapes were also brought to California which started the California wine industry. Thanks to Spanish wine culture, these two regions eventually evolved into

1106-627: A new building for its Wine Business Institute. The magazine's Restaurant Awards program has come under some criticism. At the August 2008 conference of the American Association of Wine Economists in Portland, Oregon , a hoax exposé submission of the fictitious restaurant Osteria L'Intrepido was revealed by the author and Fearless Critic founder Robin Goldstein : he had won an Award of Excellence for

1185-440: A pale orange to a vivid near-purple, depending on the varietals used and wine-making techniques. There are three primary ways to produce rosé wine: Skin contact (allowing dark grape skins to stain the wort ), saignée (removing juice from the must early in fermentation and continuing fermentation of the juice separately), and blending of a red and white wine (uncommon and discouraged in most wine growing regions). Rosé wines have

1264-575: A partnership with Palm Beach Food & Wine Festival, with the joint venture elevating the festival's lineup of fine wine and spirits, and all wines poured throughout the festival being rated 90 or higher by Wine Spectator The magazine also runs the Wine Spectator Scholarship Foundation. Since its founding in 1982, the Foundation has raised more than $ 30 million to support wine and food education and scholarship programs. In 2021,

1343-460: A restaurant that didn't exist and whose "reserve wine list" was full of the lowest-rated Italian wines in history. He stated the exposé to be part of research for an academic paper, whose aim was to discover what it takes for a restaurant's wine list to receive an award from the magazine. With nearly 4,500 restaurant applications, the magazine takes in over $ 1 million each year from submission fees. Editor Thomas Matthews published an official response on

1422-457: A strongly acid cation exchange resin in the sodium ion form, or a weakly basic anion exchange resin in the hydroxyl ion form. In the United States, for a wine to be vintage-dated and labeled with a country of origin or American Viticultural Area (AVA; e.g., Sonoma Valley ), 95% of its volume must be from grapes harvested in that year. If a wine is not labeled with a country of origin or AVA

1501-413: A variety of fruit crops , including plum , cherry , pomegranate , blueberry , currant , and elderberry . Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are major factors in different styles of wine. These differences result from the complex interactions between the biochemical development of the grape, the reactions involved in fermentation , the grape's growing environment ( terroir ), and

1580-440: A wide range of sweetness levels from dry Provençal rosé to sweet White Zinfandels and blushes. Rosé wines are made from a wide variety of grapes all over the world. Sometimes called amber wines, these are wines made with white grapes but with the skins allowed to soak during pressing, similar to red and rosé wine production. They are notably tannic , and usually made dry. These are effervescent wines, made in any of

1659-460: A wine 90 points because it was produced by his landlord, the winemaker Salvatore Ferragamo. Wine Wine is an alcoholic drink made from fermented fruit . Yeast consumes the sugar in the fruit and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide , releasing heat in the process. Wine is most often made from grapes , and the term "wine" generally refers to grape wine when used without any qualification. Even so, wine can be made from

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1738-491: Is a noted supporter of Bordeaux wine , as illustrated by his blog response to a Bordeaux-critical article by Eric Asimov , he also has affinity for Italian wines , having stated that he feels Italian grape varieties such as Sangiovese , Aglianico , and Nebbiolo are thoroughly unique. Conversely he has on occasion spoken dismissively of New World wines , applying the term "jam juice". In 2011, Suckling, in collaboration with James Orr, produced, presented and appeared in

1817-438: Is commonly used in champagne . Dry (low sugar) white wine is the most common, derived from the complete fermentation of the juice, however sweet white wines such as Moscato d'Asti are also made. A rosé wine gains color from red grape skins, but not enough to qualify it as a red wine . It may be the oldest known type of wine, as it is the most straightforward to make with the skin contact method . The color can range from

1896-494: Is either a borrowing from Proto-Indo-European or the lexeme was specifically borrowed from Proto-Armenian * ɣʷeinyo -, whence Armenian gini . An alternate hypothesis by Fähnrich supposes * ɣwino -, a native Kartvelian word derived from the verbal root * ɣun - ('to bend'). See * ɣwino - for more. All these theories place the origin of the word in the same geographical location, South Caucasus, that has been established based on archeological and biomolecular studies as

1975-587: Is fortified with brandy . In these latter cases, the term "wine" refers to the similarity in alcohol content rather than to the production process. The commercial use of the English word "wine" (and its equivalent in other languages) is protected by law in many jurisdictions. Wine is usually made from one or more varieties of the European species Vitis vinifera , such as Pinot noir , Chardonnay , Cabernet Sauvignon , Gamay and Merlot . When one of these varieties

2054-574: Is from the late 4th-century BCE writings of Chanakya , the chief minister of Emperor Chandragupta Maurya . In his writings, Chanakya condemns the use of alcohol while chronicling the emperor and his court's frequent indulgence of a style of wine known as madhu . The ancient Romans planted vineyards near garrison towns so wine could be produced locally rather than shipped over long distances. Some of these areas are now world-renowned for wine production. The Romans discovered that burning sulfur candles inside empty wine vessels kept them fresh and free from

2133-442: Is the family of rare teinturier varieties, which actually have red flesh and produce red juice. To make white wine, grapes are pressed quickly with the juice immediately drained away from the grape skins. The grapes used are typically white grape varieties , though red grapes may be used if the winemaker is careful not to let the skin stain the wort during the separation of the pulp-juice. For example, pinot noir (a red grape)

2212-589: Is the father of two children, Jack and Isabel Suckling . Isabel was signed by the record label Decca in 2010 as a choirgirl at age 12, the youngest classical recording artist at the time. He is an avid tennis player, passionate about environmental charities and actively supports EcoDrive Hong Kong and the Sea Sheppard Conservation Society . During his time with Wine Spectator , Suckling tasted an average of 4000 wines annually, half of which were Italian wines. He tasted some of them on site at

2291-405: Is used as the predominant grape (usually defined by law as minimums of 75% to 85%), the result is a " varietal " as opposed to a "blended" wine. Blended wines are not necessarily inferior to varietal wines, rather they are a different style of wine-making. Wine can also be made from other species of grape or from hybrids , created by the genetic crossing of two species. V. labrusca (of which

2370-652: Is used in the cheapest of wines. The bottles used for sparkling wine must be thick to withstand the pressure of the gas behind the cork , which can be up to 6 standard atmospheres (88 psi). This refers to sweet wines that have a high level of sugar remaining after fermentation . There are various ways of increasing the amount of sugar in a wine, yielding products with different strengths and names. Icewine , Port , Sauternes , Tokaji Aszú , Trockenbeerenauslese , and Vin Santo are some examples. Wines from other fruits , such as apples and berries, are usually named after

2449-485: The Concord grape is a cultivar ), V. aestivalis , V. rupestris , V. rotundifolia and V. riparia are native North American grapes usually grown to eat fresh or for grape juice, jam, or jelly, and only occasionally made into wine. Hybridization is different from grafting . Most of the world's vineyards are planted with European Vitis vinifera vines that have been grafted onto North American species' rootstock,

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2528-502: The Mediterranean Basin in the early Bronze Age and was consumed and celebrated by ancient civilizations like ancient Greece and Rome . Throughout history, wine has been consumed for its intoxicating effects . The earliest archaeological and archaeobotanical evidence for grape wine and viniculture, dating to 6000–5800 BCE was found on the territory of modern Georgia . Both archaeological and genetic evidence suggest that

2607-525: The Mycenaean Greek 𐀕𐀶𐀺𐄀𐀚𐀺 me-tu-wo ne-wo (* μέθυϝος νέϝῳ ), meaning "in (the month)" or "(festival) of the new wine", and 𐀺𐀜𐀷𐀴𐀯 wo-no-wa-ti-si , meaning "wine garden", written in Linear B inscriptions. Linear B also includes, inter alia, an ideogram for wine, i.e. 𐂖 . The ultimate Indo-European origin of the word is the subject of some continued debate. Some scholars have noted

2686-566: The Okanagan Valley of British Columbia , and the Niagara Peninsula and Essex County regions of Ontario are the three largest producers. Some blended wine names are marketing terms whose use is governed by trademark law rather than by specific wine laws. For example, Meritage is generally a Bordeaux-style blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, but may also include Cabernet Franc , Petit Verdot , and Malbec . Commercial use of

2765-624: The Papal visit to the United Kingdom , named One Wine One World . The project, funded by art collector and philanthropist Nasser David Khalili , aimed at bringing Jewish, Muslim, and Christian faiths closer together, with proceeds going to the Maimonides Foundation , an interfaith charity. The wines, one red and one white, were created by blending grapes from California , Mexico , Hungary , Slovenia , Roussillon and Friuli , and were to be

2844-605: The University of Wisconsin , Madison where he was hired in 1978 by a local paper as a crime news gofer . Having completed his course in journalism at the University of Wisconsin he moved to San Diego , and through the influence of his father began to be interested in the world of wine. At this time Suckling responded to an advertisement for a new contributor to Wine Spectator , then a local publication with only eight hundred subscribers. Suckling joined Wine Spectator in 1981, and after

2923-465: The acid . The most revealing element is the persistence of the taste in the mouth, the aftertaste. And another thing to bear in mind is that a wine is like a person, there isn't one which is the same as the next. It should be an emotion, not something scientific. Fine wine is harmony, the balance of all the characteristics which I look for." In reply to the Italian magazine Gentleman on "what really makes

3002-513: The aroma and taste influences of their unique terroir . However, flavor differences are less desirable for producers of mass-market table wine or other cheaper wines, where consistency takes precedence. Such producers try to minimize differences in sources of grapes through production techniques such as micro-oxygenation , tannin filtration, cross-flow filtration, thin-film evaporation, and spinning cones. About 700 grapes go into one bottle of wine, approximately 2.6 pounds. Regulations govern

3081-574: The indigenous peoples of the Americas but is mainly connected to later Spanish traditions in New Spain . Later, as Old World wine further developed viticulture techniques, Europe would encompass three of the largest wine-producing regions . Based on statistics gathered by the International Organisation of Vine and Wine in 2022 the top five wine producing countries were Italy, France, Spain,

3160-662: The Foundation donated $ 10 million to Napa Valley College, supporting the college's Viticulture, Wine and Technology program teaching spaces. Construction of the Wine Spectator Wine Education Center, a 7,000-square-foot classroom building featuring flexible sensory classrooms and lab stations, is set to commence in spring 2024. In 2017, it pledged $ 1 million to the Washington State University Viticulture & Enology Program. In 2014, it granted $ 3 million to Sonoma State University, toward

3239-645: The United States, and Australia. Wine has long played an important role in religion. Red wine was associated with blood by the ancient Egyptians , and was used by both the Greek cult of Dionysus and the Romans in their Bacchanalia ; Judaism also incorporates it in the Kiddush , and Christianity in the Eucharist . Egyptian , Greek , Roman , and Israeli wine cultures are still connected to these ancient roots. Similarly

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3318-526: The above styles (i.e, orange, red, rosé, white). They must undergo secondary fermentation to create carbon dioxide , which creates the bubbles. Two common methods of accomplishing this are the traditional method , used for Cava , Champagne , and more expensive sparkling wines, and the Charmat method , used for Prosecco , Asti , and less expensive wines. A hybrid transfer method is also used, yielding intermediate results, and simple addition of carbon dioxide

3397-478: The apparent dispassionate manner of the Shanken announcement, Suckling himself described the departure from the company as "totally amicable" and stated he would go on to "pursue other projects", He later published on his own Twitter account that reports of his retirement had been "greatly exaggerated" and he was "planning an exciting future". In September 2010, Suckling announced his charity wine project ahead of

3476-427: The average wine drinker, the vintage year may not be as significant for perceived quality as had been thought, although wine connoisseurs continue to place great importance on it. Wine tasting is the sensory examination and evaluation of wine. Wines contain many chemical compounds similar or identical to those in fruits, vegetables, and spices . The sweetness of wine is determined by the amount of residual sugar in

3555-607: The bi-weekly newsletter focused on California into a glossy consumer magazine that covers the whole world of wine. In 1981, the magazine introduced its Restaurant Awards program, which reviews restaurant wine lists on three levels: the Award of Excellence (basic), Best of Award of Excellence (second-tier), and the Grand Award (highest). In 1986, the magazine organized and sponsored the Wine Spectator Wine Tasting of 1986 on

3634-524: The bottle is opened to determine how long it should be aerated, if at all. When tasting wine, individual flavors may also be detected, due to the complex mix of organic molecules (e.g. esters and terpenes ) that grape juice and wine can contain. Experienced tasters can distinguish between flavors characteristic of a specific grape and flavors that result from other factors in wine-making. Typical intentional flavor elements in wine—chocolate, vanilla, or coffee—are those imparted by aging in oak casks rather than

3713-1315: The classification and sale of wine in many regions of the world. European wines tend to be classified by region (e.g. Bordeaux , Rioja and Chianti ), while non-European wines are most often classified by grape (e.g. Pinot noir and Merlot ). Market recognition of particular regions has recently been leading to their increased prominence on non-European wine labels. Examples of recognized non-European locales include Napa Valley , Santa Clara Valley, Sonoma Valley , Anderson Valley, and Mendocino County in California; Willamette Valley and Rogue Valley in Oregon ; Columbia Valley in Washington ; Barossa Valley in South Australia ; Hunter Valley in New South Wales ; Luján de Cuyo in Argentina ; Vale dos Vinhedos in Brazil ; Hawke's Bay and Marlborough in New Zealand ; Central Valley in Chile ; and in Canada ,

3792-420: The course of the manufacture, such as yeast, concentrated grape juice, dextrose , fructose , glucose or glucose solids, invert sugar , sugar, or aqueous solutions. Calcium sulphate in such quantity that the content of soluble sulphates in the finished wine shall not exceed 0.2 percent weight by volume calculated as potassium sulphate. Calcium carbonate in such quantity that the content of tartaric acid in

3871-521: The coveted Wine of the Year honor. Jeffery Lindenmuth is executive editor. As of 2023, senior editors include Bruce Sanderson, James Molesworth, Alison Napjus, MaryAnn Worobiec, Tim Fish, Kristen Bieler and Aaron Romano. Past wine tasters include former managing editor Jim Gordon, Per-Henrik Mansson, former senior editor and European bureau chief James Suckling , who served at the magazine from 1981 to 2010, and former senior editor Nathan Wesley, who worked in

3950-704: The earliest production of wine outside of Georgia was relatively later, likely having taken place elsewhere in the Southern Caucasus (which encompasses Armenia , Georgia and Azerbaijan ), or the West Asian region between Eastern Turkey , and northern Iran . The earliest known winery, from 4100 BCE, is the Areni-1 winery in Armenia . A 2003 report by archaeologists indicates a possibility that grapes were mixed with rice to produce fermented drinks in ancient China in

4029-470: The early years of the seventh millennium BCE. Pottery jars from the Neolithic site of Jiahu , Henan , contained traces of tartaric acid and other organic compounds commonly found in wine. However, other fruits indigenous to the region, such as hawthorn , cannot be ruled out. If these drinks, which seem to be the precursors of rice wine , included grapes rather than other fruits, they would have been any of

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4108-464: The finished wine shall not be less than 0.15 percent weight by volume. Also, sulphurous acid , including salts thereof, in such quantity that its content in the finished wine shall not exceed 70 parts per million in the free state, or 350 parts per million in the combined state, calculated as sulphur dioxide. Caramel, amylase and pectinase at a maximum level of use consistent with good manufacturing practice. Prior to final filtration may be treated with

4187-874: The first great traders in wine ( cherem ), the Phoenicians seem to have protected it from oxidation with a layer of olive oil, followed by a seal of pinewood and resin, similar to retsina . The earliest remains of Apadana Palace in Persepolis dating back to 515 BCE include carvings depicting soldiers from the Achaemenid Empire subject nations bringing gifts to the Achaemenid king, among them Armenians bringing their famous wine . Literary references to wine are abundant in Homer (8th century BCE, but possibly relating earlier compositions), Alkman (7th century BCE), and others. In ancient Egypt , six of 36 wine amphoras were found in

4266-698: The first modern wine industry was Japanese wine , developed in 1874 after grapevines were brought back from Europe. The English word "wine" comes from the Proto-Germanic *winam , an early borrowing from the Latin vinum , Georgian ღვინო ( ghvee-no ), "wine", itself derived from the Proto-Indo-European stem * win-o- (cf. Armenian : գինի , gini ; Ancient Greek : οἶνος oinos ; Aeolic Greek : ϝ οῖνος woinos ; Hittite : wiyana ; Lycian : oino ). The earliest attested terms referring to wine are

4345-446: The flagship wines of the producer. Superior vintages from reputable producers and regions will often command much higher prices than their average ones. Some vintage wines (e.g. Brunello ), are only made in better-than-average years. For consistency, non-vintage wines can be blended from more than one vintage, which helps wine-makers sustain a reliable market image and maintain sales even in bad years. One recent study suggests that for

4424-444: The fruit from which they are produced, and combined with the word "wine" (for example, apple wine and elderberry wine ) and are generically called fruit wine or country wine (similar to French term vin de pays ). Other than the grape varieties traditionally used for wine-making, most fruits naturally lack either sufficient fermentable sugars, proper amount of acidity, yeast amounts needed to promote or maintain fermentation, or

4503-451: The grape itself. Vertical and horizontal tasting involves a range of vintages within the same grape and vineyard, or the latter in which there is one vintage from multiple vineyards. " Banana " flavors ( isoamyl acetate ) are the product of yeast metabolism, as are spoilage aromas such as "medicinal" or "Band-Aid" ( 4-ethylphenol ), "spicy" or "smoky" ( 4-ethylguaiacol ), and rotten egg ( hydrogen sulfide ). Some varieties can also exhibit

4582-421: The grape skin, by allowing the grapes to soak in the extracted juice . Red wine is made from dark-colored red grape varieties . The actual color of the wine can range from violet, typical of young wines, through red for mature wines, to brown for older red wines. The juice from most red grapes is actually greenish-white; the red color comes from anthocyanins present in the skin of the grape. A notable exception

4661-628: The largest wine regions in Italy, Spain , and France have heritages in connection to sacramental wine , likewise, viticulture traditions in the Southwestern United States started within New Spain as Catholic friars and monks first produced wines in New Mexico and California . The earliest known traces of wine are from Georgia ( c.  6000 BCE), Iran ( Persia ) ( c.  5000 BCE), Armenia ( c.  4100 BCE ), and Sicily ( c.  4000 BCE). Wine reached

4740-682: The magazine's forum site. James Suckling James Cameron Suckling (born September 29, 1958) is an American wine and cigar critic and former Senior Editor and European Bureau Chief of Wine Spectator as well as European Editor of Cigar Aficionado . Suckling is internationally regarded as one of the world's most influential wine critics, and one of the most experienced critics of vintage cigars. Born in Los Angeles, California , Suckling studied political science and journalism at Utah State University . After graduating from Utah State University, Suckling studied journalism at

4819-503: The magazine's tasting department from 2005 to 2013. Thomas Matthews served as executive editor from 1999 until his retirement in January 2021. Longtime senior editor Kim Marcus, who helped shape the magazine's global coverage of wine for more than three decades, died in January 2022. Founded as a San Diego –based tabloid newspaper by Bob Morrisey in 1976, The Wine Spectator was purchased in 1979 by Marvin R. Shanken , who transformed

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4898-541: The oldest and largest producers, respectively, of wine of the United States . Viking sagas earlier mentioned a fantastic land filled with wild grapes and high-quality wine called precisely Vinland . Prior to the Spanish establishing their American wine grape traditions in California and New Mexico, both France and Britain had unsuccessfully attempted to establish grapevines in Florida and Virginia respectively. In East Asia,

4977-529: The only places not yet exposed to the insect. In the context of wine production, terroir is a concept that encompasses the varieties of grapes used, elevation and shape of the vineyard, type and chemistry of soil, climate and seasonal conditions, and the local yeast cultures. The range of possible combinations of these factors can result in great differences among wines, influencing the fermentation, finishing, and aging processes as well. Many wineries use growing and production methods that preserve or accentuate

5056-626: The only wines served at the Birmingham farewell dinner for Pope Benedict XVI . The wine's label is based on a multi-faith celebratory painting commissioned by Khalili from the British artist Ben Johnson with the forthcoming Olympic Games in mind. Suckling also announced that he had been signed by IMG Artists . The website JamesSuckling.com was launched in October 2010 and Suckling stated it would mainly focus on video content featuring "key wine figures around

5135-513: The origin of viticulture. Wine types: The types have such different properties that in practice they are considered different drinks. Wine is made in many ways from different fruits, with grapes being the most common. The type of grape used and the amount of skin contact while the juice is being extracted determines the color and general style of the wine. The color has no relation to a wine's sweetness —all may be made sweet or dry. Red wine gains its color and flavor (notably, tannins ) from

5214-424: The percentage requirement is lowered to 85%. Vintage wines are generally bottled in a single batch so that each bottle will have a similar taste. Climate's impact on the character of a wine can be significant enough to cause different vintages from the same vineyard to vary dramatically in flavor and quality. Thus, vintage wines are produced to be individually characteristic of the particular vintage and to serve as

5293-453: The primary substance fermented is honey, the drink is considered mead. Mead was produced in ancient history throughout Europe, Africa and Asia, and was known in Europe before grape wine. Other drinks called "wine", such as barley wine and rice wine (e.g. sake , huangjiu and cheongju ), are made from starch-based materials and resemble beer more than traditional wine, while ginger wine

5372-452: The publication. Suckling moved to London in 1987 where he lived for eleven years before moving to Italy. In 1990, Suckling published his book titled Vintage Port . In press releases by Wine Spectator and Cigar Aficionado published in July 2010 it was unexpectedly announced that Suckling had retired from the publisher M. Shanken Communications magazines. Following some public criticism to

5451-491: The region. Portugal has developed a system resembling that of France and, in fact, pioneered this concept in 1756 with a royal charter creating the Demarcated Douro Region and regulating the production and trade of wine. Germany created a similar scheme in 2002, although it has not yet achieved the authority of the other countries' classification systems. Spain , Greece and Italy have classifications based on

5530-415: The relevant wineries and others he tasted blind in his Italy office. Responding to Corriere della Sera on how he "understood, judged, and recognised a fine wine", Suckling replied, "Usually you start from the nose, from the scents of the wine. But for me, this aspect is less important. I put more emphasis on what I taste in the mouth; I find the concentration of fruit, of the tannins , the alcohol and

5609-521: The several dozen indigenous wild species in China, rather than Vitis vinifera , which was introduced 6000 years later. In 2020, a 2,600-year-old well-preserved Phoenician wine press was excavated at Tell el-Burak, south of Sidon in Lebanon , probably devoted to making wine for trading in their colonies. The spread of wine culture westwards was most probably due to the Phoenicians, who spread outward from

5688-518: The similarities between the words for wine in Indo-European languages (e.g. Armenian gini , Latin vinum , Ancient Greek οἶνος, Russian вино [vʲɪˈno] ), Kartvelian (e.g. Georgian ღვინო [ˈɣvino] ), and Semitic ( *wayn ; Hebrew יין [jajin] ), pointing to the possibility of a common origin of the word denoting "wine" in these language families. The Georgian word goes back to Proto-Kartvelian * ɣwino -, which

5767-600: The tenth anniversary of the Judgment of Paris . Wine Spectator hosts the New York Wine Experience, an annual event that includes wine tastings, seminars, lunches and an awards banquet. In 2023, more than 4,000 attendees attended in New York City, where they sampled some of the world’s best wines: a total of 339 wines poured from 16,872 bottles into 48,582 glasses. Each year at the event, culinary stars participate in

5846-533: The term Meritage is allowed only via licensing agreements with the Meritage Association. France has various appellation systems based on the concept of terroir , with classifications ranging from Vin de Table ("table wine") at the bottom, through Vin de Pays and Appellation d'Origine Vin Délimité de Qualité Supérieure (AOVDQS), up to Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée (AOC) or similar, depending on

5925-470: The tomb of King Tutankhamun bearing the name "Kha'y", a royal chief vintner . Five of these amphoras were designated as originating from the king's personal estate, with the sixth from the estate of the royal house of Aten . Traces of wine have also been found in central Asian Xinjiang in modern-day China, dating from the second and first millennia BCE. The first known mention of grape -based wines in India

6004-587: The top winemakers from Tuscany" and to "promote, share and demystify their top rated wines." In June 2021, Suckling was knighted by France and received the Ordre National du Merite by the French Consulate in Hong Kong . The award recognizes his lifetime work with French wines and vineyards. Suckling lives between Hong Kong, Napa Valley and Tuscany , Italy . Suckling is married to Marie Kim Suckling and

6083-477: The wine after fermentation, relative to the acidity present in the wine. Dry wine , for example, has only a small amount of residual sugar. Some wine labels suggest opening the bottle and letting the wine "breathe" for a couple of hours before serving, while others recommend drinking it immediately. Decanting (the act of pouring a wine into a special container just for breathing) is a controversial subject among wine enthusiasts. In addition to aeration, decanting with

6162-498: The wine production process. Many countries enact legal appellations intended to define styles and qualities of wine. These typically restrict the geographical origin and permitted varieties of grapes, as well as other aspects of wine production. Wine has been produced for thousands of years. The earliest evidence of wine is from the present-day Georgia (6000 BCE), Persia (5000 BCE), Italy , and Armenia (4000 BCE). New World wine has some connection to alcoholic beverages made by

6241-559: The world". The content had been produced over several months in collaboration with film creator James Orr prior to the launch. In addition to Suckling's reviews, the site also features blogs by Mike D of the Beastie Boys , and Jessica Harnois, president of the Canadian Association of Professional Sommeliers. In June 2011, Suckling and IMG Artists founded Divino Tuscany, a food and wine tasting event designed to "bring together

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