What are the 5 most popular wine categories?!
Answers: What are the 6 most popular wine categories. I am looking to figure out the top most popular wine categories to make a cheese pairing guide for these different wines.
Your best bet is to stick with what has been known as the "Noble Grape" varietals. For the red wines they are Cabernet Sauvignon (which new genetic testing has proven to be a hybrid of Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc) Pinot Noir, and Merlot.
For the white wines it is Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Riesling.
You can make a great pairing with these wines as they are not only the most popular they compare and contrast each other wonderfully. It will also allow you to teach your guests while you enjoy the pairings.
To find out more about the noble wines check out this article on the "Food and Beverage Underground" site which has a ton of food and beverage related information. http://www.foodandbeverageunderground.co...
Cheers!
Chardonnay
Merlot
Cabernet Sauvignon
From here it can go many ways:
White Zinfindel
Shiraz or Syrah
Riesling
Chardonnay
Cabernet Savignon
Merlot
Zinfandel (not white)
Savignon Blanc
Pinot Nior
others
Pinot Grigio
Syrah
Shiraz
Cabernet Franc
People like red wines during the colder seasons and chrisp whites like Chardonnay and Pinot Grigio in the summer.
red
white
sparkling
mulled
regional
1.) Merlot
2.) Chardonnay
3.) White Zinfandel
4.) Cabernet
5.) Syrah/ Shiraz
If you want six wine "categories", you could break it down to these three types:
1) Still
2) Sparkling
3) Fortified
Then have a red and a white for each type. BUT,
If I were you I would go to a reputable shop and ask the clerk for six suggestions to serve with the cheeses you have chosen.
Furthermore if you are going to do this it will cost a lot.
Why not try just two wines, I would suggest a decent non-vintage brut champagne, like White Star of Moet & Chandon ($45), and a fair quality LBV port such as Quinta del Porto (also about $45).
Choose some lighter cheeses to pair with the champagne such as Explorateur, Pierre Robert, and maybe a fresh goats milk. For the port have richer cheeses like Epoisses, aged gouda and perhaps a bleu like Fourme d'Ambert. The six cheeses I listed would run about $60, bringing the tasting to a nice manageable $150!
After holding a few different tastings like this consider whether you are qualified to produce a guide and for whom.
Chablis
Sauvignon Blanc
Chardonnay
Bordeaux
Zinfandel
Cabernet Sauvignon
by category do you mean type of wine? or do you mean variety. they are two entirely different things.
Category would be things like still wine, sparkling, fortified. within each of those, you can break them down in to red, white and blush (probably not the fortified though)
If you are talking about varietals (i.e. type of grape) then you could have everything from chablis, chardonnay, sauvignon blanc, cabernet sauvignon, merlot, pinot, etc. too many to list here.
in terms of popular wines i would say the following:
1) white zinfandel
2) chardonnay
3) Merlot
4) pinot NOir
of those, the white zin is totally not suited to food/cheese pairints. I would go to look wine merchant and ask for recommendations. Chenin Blanc and Chablis go quite well with wine, as do a lot of reds. it just entirely depends on the cheese. And a good cheese and wine pairing shouldn't have more than three cheeses. And make sure there is some connection between them. i.e. all sheeps milk.