Red Wine Grapes
Viticulture, the process of growing wine grapes, has been raised from ancient art to a complex combination of science and art.
Add in all the other special knowledge and skills required to produce the end product - bottled wine - and you have a gigantic (or is that Dionysian - from the Greek word Dionusos: god of wine) task.
In order to make fine red wine a host of factors have to be considered when growing wine grapes.
The grape variety to be grown is dependent on the terroir as some grow better in some regions than in others.
Terroir is the influence of natural elements - climate, soil type and topography.
Hence, the flavor of the red wine grape is characterized by the environment in which the vines grow.
Climate encompasses temperature range, total sunlight available, annual rainfall, wind and so forth.
Soil type is essential such as the proportion of clay, of sand or silt, fertility, drainage and the ability to retain heat.
Dark soils absorb heat more efficiently and rocky soils allow better drainage and provide stones that also help retain heat.
Relative concentrations of nitrogen and other elements play an essential part.
Topography is the natural landscape such as mountains, valleys and rivers.
The topography of a place affects the soil through the atmosphere, altitude, direction and slope.
Planting time varies from late March to early April, with harvest ranging from late September to early October, depending on location, species and individual judgment.
Fortunately for the homemade wine maker once the wine grapes are harvested the real hard work has been done.
Now we can begin our personal and passionate interest in selecting the grape variety to create delicious homemade wine.
Europe and North America are major consumers of red wine.
In the United Kingdom the consumption of red wine has increased and it remains the most consumed wine in the UK as well in Spain, Italy, Canada and Switzerland.
There is still a preference for white wine in Australia but the consumption of red wine is experiencing a significant increase and in Japan, consumption of white wine has long dominated the red wine but it is no longer the case.
Add in all the other special knowledge and skills required to produce the end product - bottled wine - and you have a gigantic (or is that Dionysian - from the Greek word Dionusos: god of wine) task.
In order to make fine red wine a host of factors have to be considered when growing wine grapes.
The grape variety to be grown is dependent on the terroir as some grow better in some regions than in others.
Terroir is the influence of natural elements - climate, soil type and topography.
Hence, the flavor of the red wine grape is characterized by the environment in which the vines grow.
Climate encompasses temperature range, total sunlight available, annual rainfall, wind and so forth.
Soil type is essential such as the proportion of clay, of sand or silt, fertility, drainage and the ability to retain heat.
Dark soils absorb heat more efficiently and rocky soils allow better drainage and provide stones that also help retain heat.
Relative concentrations of nitrogen and other elements play an essential part.
Topography is the natural landscape such as mountains, valleys and rivers.
The topography of a place affects the soil through the atmosphere, altitude, direction and slope.
Planting time varies from late March to early April, with harvest ranging from late September to early October, depending on location, species and individual judgment.
Fortunately for the homemade wine maker once the wine grapes are harvested the real hard work has been done.
Now we can begin our personal and passionate interest in selecting the grape variety to create delicious homemade wine.
Europe and North America are major consumers of red wine.
In the United Kingdom the consumption of red wine has increased and it remains the most consumed wine in the UK as well in Spain, Italy, Canada and Switzerland.
There is still a preference for white wine in Australia but the consumption of red wine is experiencing a significant increase and in Japan, consumption of white wine has long dominated the red wine but it is no longer the case.
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