okay what is what?

[vLcLwine]

what is merlot? and chardonay? how do you drink them and whats the difference. ignorance is bliss

[Innkeeper]

Well Merlot is red and smooth and usually dry, but dry does not mean the opposite of wet or "sticks to the roof of your mouth." It simply means that all sugar in the grape juice has been turned to alcohol. Most dry wines have anywhere from a mild to a stong fruity component.

Chardonnay is white, and is also an easy drinker. Most American and Australian Chardonnay is treated mildly to heavily with oak. If you don't like this component in a wine, another white wine that doesn't have oak in it is Riesling.

[winophite]

Hi vL, merlot is a type of grape. There's propably hundreds of different merlot veriaties, but generally all have a similar "merlot" characteristic. Chardonnay is also a grape type, as is pinot noir, zinfandel, and many others. French wines however are named after the region they were grown, under strict rules as to what they CAN grow and use. In the Burgandy region,(many seperate villages, each with their own wine)) for ex, the grapes are pinot noir in their red.

Red or white has as much to do with the way the wine was fermented as with the type of grape used. For example zinfadel can be either a big red or a somewhat sweet white, (which actually has a pink blush)

I've read "wine for dummies" and found it very informative. Also another reccommendation here is I think Andrea zimmer Robinson...someone will correct me on this and supply the title I"m sure

This site helps a lot too. Welcome to the board. WP