White Wine
White wine is a popular and important beverage that accompanies and enhances a wide range of European and Mediterranean-style cuisines. White wines can be very dry to rather sweet; these wines should be served chilled, and go well with white meats, seafood, and fowl. They include Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay and Riesling. White wine tends to be lighter than its red counterpart and can be drunk at any time. Often mixed with soda, called a "Spritzer" and popular in pubs and wine bars.
White wine differs in flavour and body often due to the region from where it is produced. This may be due to the climate or the way that is produced. The length of fermentation will decide whether a wine is dry medium or sweet. The French have traditionally produced good quality dry white wines and are still a major producer. The Germans, on the other hand, produce lighter sweeter wines such as Liebfruamilch. White wine can be made from any colour of grape as the skin is separated from the juice during fermentation. A white wine made from a very dark grape may appear pink or 'blush'. This should not be confused with Rose where the juice of the red grape is allowed short contact with the skin, usually two hours or less.
Sparkling wines, such as Champagne, which is only produced in the Champagne region of France, are those with carbon dioxide, either from fermentation or added later. They vary from just a slight bubbliness to the classic Champagne. To have this effect, the wine is fermented twice, once in an open container to allow the carbon dioxide to escape into the air, and a second time in the bottle, where the gas is caught and remains in the wine. The classic champagnes are produced with the white Chardonnay or black Pinot Noir grapes.
Sherry is a white wine originally produced in and around the town of Jerez. The wine differs from other wines because of how it is treated after fermentation. It is first fortified with brandy and then if destined to be Fino style a yeast called flor is allowed to grow on top. Oloroso style is fortified to the strength where the flor cannot grow. In contrast, port wine is fortified to a higher percentage of alcohol than sherry, effectively preventing the growth of any yeast.