Cooking Wines: Wine of extremely poor quality is usually labeled "cooking wine," as if being poured into a pan is one step up from being poured down the drain. Typically containing a large amount of salt, cooking wine isn't made to be consumed by itself. Instead, it is meant to be used as a way to enhance a dish, bringing out certain flavors and seasonings.
Country Wine: It may seem like country wines are wines in possession of a laid back lifestyle and a southern drawl. But, in actuality, they are simply wines that are made from a fruit other than a grape and supplemented with sugar and honey. However, because the word "wine" legally insinuates a drink made from grapes, country wines are often fruit-specific in their definitions. They include types such as plum wine and apple wine.
Dessert Wines: Known for being served beside a piece of carrot cake or a slice of apple pie, dessert wines are wines that range between medium sweet to extremely sweet on the spectrum of sugar. They typically include wines such as port wine, Tokay, and sweets herry. Aside from baked goods and fruity creations, dessert wines also go very well with many types of cheese.
Red Wine and White Wine: It may seem like red wine and white wine are always in competition with each other, with bottles of each snapping in unison as the other approaches. But, the truth is that red wine and white wine are so different in flavor, and go best with such different dishes, that the two don't need to compete. While red wines are typically good at enhancing meals made of red meat or tomato sauce, white wines are usually good at enhancing meals made of white meat or white sauces. They are also different in taste because red wines are made with grape skins during the fermentation process, which imparts a substance called tannin, which is the cause of a sensation you get that makes your tongue feel as though liquid is evaporating off of it. White wines, however, are made without grape skin and never contain tannin.
Rose Wine: Rose wines are also called pink wines, and because they are often refreshing in mid-summer heat, summer wines. Like a beverage that can't quite make up its mind, rose wines aren't really red and aren't really white. Instead, they possess attributes of both true red wines and true white wines. They are often best served with seafood, salad, cold cuts, and pork.
Article comments
1 - Victor Lana
Jennifer, I bet you enjoyed Sideways with a glass or two of wine. And why not? Benjamin Franklin said, "Beer is proof that God loves us." I am sure wine also has roots in divine inspiration. So, I say lift a glass (or more appropriately goblet) of the Nectar of the Gods and say "Cheers!"
2 - Lisa McKay
What you should have said about cooking wine is that it's best left on the supermarket shelf. If it isn't good enough to drink, it isn't good enough to put in your food.