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- Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Archives Revels Classifieds Real Estate Menu Guide Wedding Weather Subscribe Contact Us November 15, 2005 Off The Vine Questions about wine answered Lorn Razzano I’m going to continue this week with the “most asked questions” about wine. In fact, some years ago, I asked every student at the university wine appreciation class to ask me a question about wine that they wished answered and some of these questions are the basis for today’s column. Here we go. 1. I thought Zinfandel was only a red wine, and I’m seeing white Zinfandel everywhere on the shelves. Is there a white Zinfandel grape? All grapes squeeze out to a transparent juice. There is no inherent color in grape juice. The color from unfermented grape juice in wine making (called the “must”) is colorless. White Zinfandel, most of which has some “blush” red, pink or orange color to it (hence the name “blush wine”) comes from leaving the skins (peel) of the grape in contact with the juice. The longer the skins stay in contact with the juice the darker the color. This is why it is very common to see shades of white Zinfandel on the shelf from almost transparent to a very dark rosé color. I think the rule of thumb on these wines is to choose the white Zinfandel with alcohol standing between 12.5 and 14 percent alcohol. These wines will be dry and not have that bizarre “cotton candy” taste that so many lighter-alcohol white Zinfandels exhibit. Better yet, try the dry European rosé wines if you like a “blush” type vino. Great structure and mouth feel on these wines. 2. Every time I drink red wine I get a headache. My husband loves red wine and I really like the taste of red wines but I suffer from these awful headaches. What should I do? This is a tough one. Of course, be moderate in your wine drinking and always check with a health care provider if you feel unwell after consuming a certain beverage. Unfortunately, I hear of the headache syndrome quite a bit. There could be a few things that are happening. The first issue is that it may not be the wine itself that is giving you a headache but could be a combination of the wine and something you are eating along with it. Some folks get a “raging head-ache” with a cheese/wine pairing. Others find other combinations of food groups and wine that simply precipitate “headaches” while consuming wine. There are those sensitive to sulfites that are naturally found in fermented grape juice as well as the use of wood in the making of wine. I had a friend who got a headache from red wine only when he went to an old friend’s house to drink red wine with his dinner. It turned out that it was not the wine at all that caused the headache but the lanolin based hand lotion that his friend’s wife used to handle the stemware! Lanolin, it seemed, caused a mild but uncomfortable allergic reaction to him wherever he went. My suggestion is that you may want to invest in nice half bottles of red and white wine. This way both of you can enjoy wine with your meals. Next, try a dry rosé wine and see if the headaches persist. Thirdly, take a small sip of an unoaked red wine and see if there is any headache problem. Again, be safe and check with your doctor before any experimenting with an alcoholic beverage. 3. Why are some wines really cheap and other wines so very expensive? The price of wine reflects the market value of the product. This means, of course, that the price on the shelf for a bottle of wine is the price that the consumer will pay for the product. Wines are discounted by the winery and the retailer if the wine simply does not sell. On the other hand, some wines are artificially high in price because they may have a cult following, scarcity, celebrity winemaker or have been rated by some publication at a very high level. The “basis” price of wine is the production cost of the item plus the profit needed for the producer and retailer to stay in business. Most wineries have a formula they use to show the wine at a certain price on the shelf or a “suggested” retail price to the consumer. This formula usually, besides production cost, is based on “like wines” in the marketplace originating from the same growing region. This may sound like a bunch of baloney, but this is how it generally works. I suggest that you purchase wines within your means and jump up occasionally for special occasions. Remember, not all “higher priced” wines are “better” wines. Buy what you like, that’s always the bottom line. See you next time. 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