Blended Wines

Almost all of the world's finest wines are made from blending different grapes and different vats or barrels of the same grape. Blending earned a dubious reputation before the mid-20th century when wine laws were either not enforced or were non-existent; "stretching" of a superior wine with an inferior blend was common. Modern blending, important in both the production of fine and table wine, may combine wines with different but complementary characteristics. In the case of table wines, blending is important in smoothing out the variations between different vintages. The wine regulations in many regions permit the addition of a certain proportion of another vintage to vintage-dated wine, as they frequently do a certain proportion, generally less than 15%, of wine from a region or even grape variety other than that specified on the label.

Here are some of the more well known blends:

Champagne

The vineyards of the Champagne region are planted with only three varieties: Pinot Noir, Meunier and Chardonnay. The Pinot Noir provides the basic structure and depth of fruit for the blend. The Chardonnay provides austerity and the ability to mature and the Meunier, early maturing richness and fruitiness. In addition to their basic wines (e.g. the non-vintage Brut, which will be a blend of these three) Champagne houses will also make single vintage champagnes from the produce of three or four of the better years in every decade. Pink or Rose Champagne is made either by adding a small proportion of red wine to the blend or, less usually, by letting the juice remain in contact with the skin of the grapes for a short time during fermentation. By no means are all champagnes "blended"; the Blanc de Noirs, for example, is made exclusively from black grapes.

Sherry

Three vine varieties are authorized for the vineyards of Jerez and the production of sherry: Palomino, Pedro Ximénez and Muscat of Alexandria (or Moscatel Gordo Blanco). Of these, the Palomino is the most important and accounts for over 95% of the vineyard area. There are, in fact, two types of Palomino: Palomino Basto (also know as Palomino de Jerez) and Palomino Fino, which provides better yields and is more disease resistant. Muscat of Alexandria is planted in only 3% of the vineyard area, and is mainly used for sweetening the sherry. Pedro Ximenez has declined in popularity, Palomino Fino being easier to grow.

Port

More than 80 different vine varieties are authorized for use in the Port vineyards of the Duoro; few of the growers will know exactly which vines they have growing at any one time. All but the most recently planted vineyards have a mixture of grapes, often with as many as 20 or 30 different varieties intermingled in the same plot. In recent years, some of the larger shippers, most notably Ramos-Pinto and Cockburn, have conducted their own research to identify the best vines for producing Port. Touriga Nacional, Tinta Barroca, Touriga Francesa, Tinta Roriz (Spain's Tempranillo) and Tinto Cão are the favored black-skinned varieties, although some growers prefer to use Sousao, Tinta Amarela and Mourisco Tinto. Gouveio (thought to be Verdelho), Malvasia Fina and Viosinho are generally considered to be among the best for producing white ports.

You may also be interested in information on spirits and liqueurs.

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