Night Train
Maker of Things
- Location
- Greater Manchester
This post, CM?

This post, CM?
ARCH!!!
Please go immediatly to page 1114, half way down the page.
There is something there that you will like but have missed.
cookiemonster's already brought along the hairy dog for the morning...Can I ask a question about wine in Tea?
No, not wine in tea, wine, a question about in Tea?
Along with multitudinous quantities of cakey items, cheese and crackers, I was given four bockles of wine. Red wine, which I do not shusually drink. However, in the sinterests of politeness, I decided to open one of the bockle of red wine this shevening. It is very drinkable indeed. The thing wot surprises me though, is the name: Merlot Cabernet Sauvignon Shiraz????? I thought that each one of those was a type of wine, so why has sthis swon sgot all four snames?
You stopped slurring very quicklyIt is Western Cape, South Africa.![]()
Can I ask a question about wine in Tea?
No, not wine in tea, wine, a question about in Tea?
Along with multitudinous quantities of cakey items, cheese and crackers, I was given four bockles of wine. Red wine, which I do not shusually drink. However, in the sinterests of politeness, I decided to open one of the bockle of red wine this shevening. It is very drinkable indeed. The thing wot surprises me though, is the name: Merlot Cabernet Sauvignon Shiraz????? I thought that each one of those was a type of wine, so why has sthis swon sgot all four snames?
*gross oversimplification alert*
In Europe, you tend to get different grapes grown in different regions. Bordeaux has Merlot, Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon and a related variety, Cabernet Franc. Similarly Burgundy has Pinot Noir and Gamay, Champagne has Pinot Noir, the related Pinot Meunier, and Chardonnay. And so on.
Back in the day, European wines didn't tend to say what grape they were, just where they came from - regional labelling. So Burgundy would be made from Pinot Noir if it came from the Cote d'Or, or maybe Gamay if it came from Macon or Chalon. The point is, it was made from the right grapes for the region, the ones that had traditionally been used, potentially for hundreds or thousands of years..
Enter New World wine. There were no regions, no traditions, so people planted varieties they thought would grow (or sell) and labelled the bottle accordingly - varietal labelling.
To get back to your specific bottles, Speicher, Cab Sav and Merlot are Bordeaux grapes. Shiraz is also known as Syrah and is widely planted in the Rhone valley. A long way away from Bordeaux, and ordinarily the French wouldn't put Shiraz in a Bordeaux blend. They wouldn't call it Shiraz either, for that matter.
The Aussies would. And do. And that's why I asked. Glad you're enjoying it
Seth Effrica counts as New World, for these purposes...
Jilly Goolden???? Jancis Robinson, please. She is at least an MW.Ooooh! get you, Jilly Goolden....
Even I know it's Lambrini with fishJilly Goolden???? Jancis Robinson, please. She is at least an MW.
I did a wine course, and enjoyed it so much I did it again the following year.
Anyway, it's handy knowing your way around a wine list. Means you don't order a nice robust red to go with your fish.