WSET Level 1 Flashcards
What is wine?
Wine is fermented grape juice. The grapes are crushed to release their sweet juice, which must then undergo alcoholic fermentation in order to become wine.
Types of grapes
There are two principal types of grapes. White and black grapes. The only difference is that black grapes have deeply coloured skins that also contain tannins.
Part of a grape
Grape is formed by skins and pulp. Black grape skins contain tannins which make the mouth feel dry. The pulp is soft and fleshy. The colour is always the same regardless of the colour of the grape skins. The pulp contains the grape juice which is mostly made up of water, sugar and acid.
Alcoholic Fermentation
Yeast is required for alcoholic fermentation. Yeast are microscopic organisms that eat sugar and create alcohol and carbon dioxide gas. In most cases the process continues until the yeast have eaten all the sugar. The alcohol stays in the newly made wine and the carbon dioxide escapes into the atmosphere.
Sugar + Yeast —-> Alcoholic Fermentation —-> alcohol + carbon dioxide
How is the level of alcohol within wine is usually measured?
Alcohol by volume (abbreviated as ABV, abv, or alc/vol) is a standard measure of how much alcohol (ethanol) is contained in a given volume of an alcoholic beverage (expressed as a volume percent). It is defined as the number of millilitres (mL) of pure ethanol present in 100 mL of solution at 20 °C.
How grapes grow?
Once they reach maturity, in a couple of years after planted, they produce a crop every year. A vine flowers in the spring, the flowers become grapes, which then ripen during the summer. The grapes are picked in late summer.
How grapes ripen?
The grapes swell with water. Sugar levels rise and acide levels fall. Flavours become riper. White grapes change colour from green to golden and black grapes from green to purple.
Where grapes grow?
In order for vines to grow and produce good fruit, they need the right levelsof sunlight and heat. If it’s too cold or too hot they cannot do this. Vines also prefer to grow in areas where the winter is cold enough for them to rest. .
What grapes are grown in cool climate regions?
Regions with cool climate are closer to the poles. Examples include northern France and Germany. White grapes are mainly grown in these regions.
What grapes are grown in warm climate regions?
Regions with warm climates are closer to the Equator. Examples include parts of Australia and parts of California. The average temperature are high and black grapes are mainly grown in these regions.
What is the effect of climate on the grapes?
The colder it is, the lower levels of sugar and the higher levels of acidity in the grapes. At the other extreme, the warmer it is, the higher the sugar and lower the acidity.
The grapes flavours also taste riper in warmer climates. For white wines, flavours change from green fruit to citrus and stone fruit to tropical fruit. For red wines, flavours change from fresh fruit to jammy fruit.
Making white wine process
Crushing of grapes -> Pressing to release juice -> Fermentation in steel tanks or oak barrels adding yeast -> Maturation -> Bottling
Making red wine process
Crushing of grapes -> Fermentation in steel tanks or oak barrels. Colour and tannin is extracted from the skins by mixing them thoroughly with the juice -> Draining the skins. In Rose’ wines the juice is drained after only a few hours -> Pressing -> Maturation -> Rose’ are rarely stored in oak but mainly in steel tanks -> Bottling
Types of Wine
There are 3 types of wine: Still wines, sparkling wines and fortified wines.
Still wines are between 8% and 15% abv. Many still wines are named after the region in which they are produced. Examples include Sancerre and Burgundy from France, Rioja from Spain and Chianti from Italy. Other wines are named after the grape variety used to make them. E.g. Chardonnay and Merlot.
Sparkling wines are fizzy or bubbly. The fizz is caused by carbon dioxide gas that is produced during fermentation and trapped in the wine. Most famous ones are Champagne from France, Cava from Spain and Prosecco from Italy.
Fortified wines have extra alcohol added to them and therefore they have higher levels of it ranging from 15% to 22% abv. Most famous ones are Sherry from Spain and Port from Portugal.
Styles of Wine
The style of a wine is generally a combination of its colour, structural characteristics, and aromas and flavours.
The colour can be either white, red and rose’. It’s determined by the grape variety as well as the way the wine is made.
White wines are usually made from white grapes even though it’s possible to make white wines from black grapes. Since the colour in black grapes is contained in the skins if the skins are removed before fermentation then white wine can be made. e.g. Chablis from Chardonnay grapes or white made of Riesling grapes.
Red wines must be made using black grapes. The skins stay with the grape juice during fermentation bringing colour to wine. E.g. Rioja from Spain or wines made from the Cabernet Sauvignon grape.
Rose’ wines are made from black grapes. The grape juice is left with the skins for a short period of time before the juice is drained. White Zinfandel is an example of rose’ wine.
