Are You Ready for Skin-Contact White Wine?
Choosing the right bottle of wine for a friend (or even yourself) can seem daunting, even if the choice was limited to reds and whites. Rosé made the decision even more difficult, and now another color has joined the rainbow of your favorite tapas bar: orange wine. What is this thing, and should you give up your favorite pink to try it?
What is orange wine?
It may seem like orange wine appeared overnight and casually appeared on your menu, but like most wine practices, it has been around for thousands of years . Its popularity was revived when Georgia and other regions (Slovenia, Croatia and parts of Italy) began to re-establish their traditional winemaking techniques . However, the name “orange” is a little misleading – it refers to a hue and is about as much made from oranges as pink is from roses. (That is, it isn’t.) A more appropriate term is “skin-contact white wine,” which much better reflects the way it’s made.
Between tannins, vintages and terroir, the world of wine may seem like a word quiz to some of us. But when it comes to how wines get their color, things are relatively simple. Some wines are made by allowing the juice of crushed berries to dangle (ferment) from the skin that once encapsulated them, and some are not. (Of course, there are many more nuances that depend on the winemaker, but for our purposes, let’s just focus on them.) All the color is held in the skin of the grapes, not the flesh, so that’s when the wine will pick up. up color.
Red wines are made from red grapes and macerated with their skins for a few days to a few months, depending on the wine being made, bringing together all those beautiful red hues that we love so much that we decided to use them to describe indoor paints (indoor paints) . the living room is not red, but “merlot”). White wines are made from grapes that have been skinned before fermentation. Surprisingly, white wines are not only made from white grapes. Red grapes that have their skins removed before fermentation also produce white wine, as is the case with a number of champagne wines. As you may have guessed, this wine does not come into contact with the skin.
How is orange wine different from red and white wine?
Skin-contact white wine is made in the same way as red wine, but from white grapes. Grinding white grapes and fermenting with the skins allows carotenoids (yes, orange carrots also have them) and other skin extracts to impart a color to the wine that ranges from clear honeysuckle to a hazy orange-red, sort of like a late sunset. The skins add complex tannins and body to red wines, but the juice of the white grapes gives it the bright fruitiness you’ve come to love in white wines (for more notes on skin-contact white wine taste, read Pull the Cork’s post here ).
What does orange wine taste like?
Understand the title but still not sure if you’ll like it? Think about what you like about wine. If you love red wine for its oaky undertones, bold aroma, and complex aftertaste, then skin-contact white wine is for you. Maybe light fruity white wines with light tannins suit your style better – sounds like you might like the 2020 Sun Goddess Pinot Grigio Ramato, which is on the Food and Wine list (plus, it’s Mary J’s., and that’s enough). take a glass). Body and aroma intensity have been described as similar or intermediate between rosé and red wines, with flavors reflecting the more powerful stone fruit and floral notes you might get in white wines. It’s more like eating peach pie than smelling flowers in the wind.
Skin-contact white wines are varied, and you’re more likely to find one that matches your favorite aspects of red or white wine, so give it a try. In addition, you can always give a bottle to a friend and take a sip. If you don’t like it, that’s okay. Anyway, it wasn’t for you. After all, using friends as test subjects for wine testing is why they are here. Health, friends.