Grape Expectations!
There are alot of wine grape varieties out there - more than 10,000! Some varieties, like tempranillo, are blended with other varieties to make wines. Other varieties form the basis of a varietal, which is a wine made from at least 75% of one grape variety.
Here are the top 10 varietals, including pronunciation, typical flavor profile and the body, or the weight of the wine.
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Varietal
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How you say it
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Body
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What it tastes like
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Pinot Grigio
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pee-no gree-gee-oh
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light
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Crisp, acidic light white. Also called pinot gris. Lemon, almond, pear, citrus.
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Riesling
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rees-ling
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light to medium
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Sweet or crisp light white. Highly acidic. Peach, apricot, honey, mineral.
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Gewürtrzaminer
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guh-vurtz-trah-meener
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medium
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Floral and spicy white. Can be sweet or dry. Floral, honey, citrus, honeysuckle, gingerbread.
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Sauvignon Blanc
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so-veen-yawn blahnc
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medium
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Crisp, acidic, tangy white. Grapefruit, grass, herbal, melon, hay, fig, bell pepper, flint.
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Chardonnay
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shar-dun-ay
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medium to full
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Lush, creamy, most full-flavored of whites. Butterscotch, custard, apple, pineapple, vanilla or tropical.
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Pinot Noir
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pee-no nwah
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light to medium
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Silky, earthy, lightest of reds. Strawberries, cherries, earth, violets, mushroom.
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Merlot
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mer-low
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medium
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A fruity red, softer than Cab. Cherries, blackberries, plums, chocolate, mocha.
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Syrah/Shiraz
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sir-ah/shee-rahz
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medium to full
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Rich, rustic, spicy red. Black pepper, dark berries, smoke, spice, tar.
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Zinfandel
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zin-fin-dell
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medium to full
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Hearty, jammy, ultraripe red. Blackberries, plum, raisin, black pepper, raspberries, leather.
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Cabernet Sauvignon
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cab-ur-nay so-veen-yawn
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full
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Big, bold, most powerful of reds. Black currant, plum, cherries, olive, mint, leather, cedar, tobacco.
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