What is rouge wine

Drink with: just about any meat, especially if it's fatty. A Cabernet Sauvignon would be delicious with a burger, short rib, or lamb. Merlot is the second-most planted grape, and it's a great entry point for someone trying to get into red wine.

The wine is really "easy" to drink, meaning it's fruity and yummy and won't make your mouth pucker up with tannins. For some reason the marketing campaigns of the s , Zinfandels are often associated with moms. Which is OK! Moms are great, and they have awesome taste: Zinfandel is an interesting wine because the taste can really vary based on where it's grown, though it's usually nice and juicy and high in alcohol content.

Imagine juicy, spicy strawberries that get you smashed. Called Syrah in France and other European countries, and Shiraz in Australia, South America, and elsewhere, this wine is just plain fun to sip on—it can be peppery, spicy, and bold, with the flavor of rich fruits like blackberry.

Break this one out after a long day when you want to sit with a book and a glass of wine and really taste something. Drink with: a charcuterie plate, because it'll play off all the salt and spice and subtle flavors in the cheese and meats.

Though it's French in origin, most of the world's Malbec is now produced in Argentina so you may often see that country on its label. It's another easy drinking wine, with a deep purple color and plum or cherry flavors, ending in a hint of smoke. It's another crowd-pleaser. Drink with: leaner meats like flank steak, or spicier food like Mexican or Indian.

Among the lightest and most delicate wines with this hue, Pinot Noir won't punch you in the face like some reds can; it has a "light body" in the lingo and feels silky to the tongue. You might taste bright berries like raspberry or cranberry. Ciao, vino bello! Zinfandel isn't used in a ton of blends, but you may find it blended with the Petite Sirah grape or in some blends. In Italy, Primitivo is actually the same grape as Zinfandel, so wines labeled Primitivo are also Zinfandel wines.

While it is primarily recognized as an Italian wine grape found in Chianti, Sangiovese is also grown in other wine regions, such as the United States, and used to produce single-varietal named wines. Other wines that contain Sangiovese as either the primary grape or in blends include super Tuscans, Brunello di Montalcino, and Vino Nobile di Montepulciano. This red wine is more on the earthy side in flavor characteristics with medium tannins and high acidity.

The Nebbiolo grape can be found labeled as the varietal, but it's mostly found in Italian wines from Tuscany including Barolo and Barbaresco. Nebbiolo is a medium-bodied wine with strawberry characteristics and powerful tannins. Nebbiolo wines can often be aged for longer than a decade because of the powerful structure the tannins provide. Known in Spain as Garnacha, Grenache is often earthy, smoky, and soft. You'll find Grenache also grown and labeled as single varietals in Australia, the United States, and other regions from around the world.

Malbec is growing in popularity as a wine varietal, particularly in South American wines from Argentina. Malbec is a medium-tannin wine with flavors of cherries and cocoa. It has raspberry and peppery flavors. Barbera is a grape and wine varietal that comes mostly from Northern Italy.

It's a low-tannin red with soft plum flavors and zingy acidity. Barbera is almost exclusively used as a single varietal wine, and you will find some wine regions outside of Italy produce Barbera wines.

Cabernet Franc originated in France and is used in single varietal, Bordeaux wines, and Bordeaux-style blends from around the world. It may also be blended in small amounts in Chianti, super Tuscan wines, and Meritage style wines. Cabernet Franc has medium-tannins with flavors of plums, berries, and spice. While it's impossible to list every red wine in the world, there are many common reds to learn about.

Many are blends with the grapes used to make the wines governed by labeling laws. Bordeaux wines must come from the Bordeaux appellation of France. Labeling and winemaking laws govern the types of grapes that can be used to produce Bordeaux wines. Red Bordeaux wines coming out of one of the best-known wine regions in the world are rich and complex. Burgundy wines are another French labeled wine named after the region in which they are produced and governed by labeling and winemaking laws.

Red Burgundies are complex and have flavors of ripe dark berries. They are some of the most expensive and sought-after wines in the world. While Burgundy is primarily Pinot Noir, it may also have some Gamay grapes blended in for balance. Beaujolais is a sub-appellation of Bourgogne in France.

The wine is labeled for the region, and labeling laws govern how the wines are produced and what grapes are included. There are two types of labeled red Beaujolais: Beaujolais Nouveau and Beaujolais. Both are fruity wines meant to be drunk fairly young. The primary grape used in Beaujolais is the Gamay grape, although the wines may also contain small amounts of Pinot Noir. It's a smoky, earthy, lightly fruity wine that pairs well with food and can have good aging structure.

These wines are affordable, spicy, and full-bodied wines that make a great table wine. They are complex wines with nice red berry fruitiness. These are rich, savory wines with flavors such as black fruits and leather. Chianti comes from Italy's Tuscany in the Piedmont region. Chianti must contain 70 to 80 percent Sangiovese depending on the subregion , although it may have one of a few other approved varieties blended in smaller amounts. Chianti is a fruity, medium-bodied, acidic wine that pairs really well with spicy foods and tomato sauce, perfect for Italian cuisine.

The wines are big and tannic and made to age for years; but they're also surprisingly delicate with medium-bodied fruit flavors such as strawberry. It's like the Goldilocks of red wine. Supple, silky, fruity—but with a little more complexity than merlot—pinot noir is just behind cab in terms of overall wine popularity.

Compared to other wines, it has a lighter body, and is less overtly tanic. This makes it a very drinkable, yet respectable, wine. Basically, if you want a sure thing—but also want to get a little weird— trust pinot noir in your glass. Pair it with some barbecue-glazed salmon, ideally. Syrah—typically associated with France—is generally leaner in profile than shiraz, which is an Australian blend.

Its French counterpart might be a little bit more tart, with less complexity. But they are both very easy to drink, and great wines to bring to a party. If you like red wine, you'll probably like either version. Best food to pair it with: This is one of the rare red wines that pairs well with spicier foods.