Types of Wine -> it depends on the Grape!

The wine is usually made by one or more varieties of the European species Vitis vinifera, as Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Gamay and Merlot. When one of these varieties are used as the predominant grape (usually defined by statute as a minimum of 75% or 85%), the result is a varietal, as opposed to a mixed wine. Blended wines are not necessarily considered inferior to varietal wines, some of the world's most expensive wines from regions like Bordeaux and Rhone Valley, are blended from different grape varieties of the same vintage.

Wine can also be made of other species of grapes or from hybrids, created by the genetic crossing of two species. Vitis labrusca (of which Concord grape is a variety), Vitis aestivalis, Vitis rupestris, Vitis rotundifolia and Vitis riparia are native North American grapes usually grown for consumption as fruit or for making grape juice, jam, or jelly, but sometimes made into wine.





Crossing is not to be confused with the practice of grafting. Most of the world's vineyards are planted with European V. vinifera vines have been grafted onto North American species rootstock. It is common practice because North American grape species are resistant to phylloxera, a root louse that eventually kills the vine. In the late 19th century, most of Europe's vineyards (only excluding some of the driest vineyards in southern Europe) were destroyed by mistake, leading to massive vine deaths and eventual replanting. Inoculation takes place in every wine producing country in the world apart from Argentina, the Canary Islands and Chile are the only ones that have not been exposed to insecticide.

For wine production, terroir is a concept that includes the varieties of grapes used, elevation and shape of the vineyard, type and chemistry of soil, climate and seasonal changes, and the local yeast cultures. The range of possibilities here can result in large differences between wines, influencing the fermentation, finishing, and aging processes as well. Many wineries use growing and production methods that preserve or enhance the aroma and taste influences of their unique terroir. However, flavor differences are not desirable for producers of mass-market table wine or other cheaper wines, where consistency is more important. Such producers will try to reduce differences sources of grapes by using production techniques such as micro-oxygenation, tannin filtration, cross-flow filtration, thin film evaporation, and spinning cones