7d • General discussion
Great World Wines
Since my WSET training, a lot of people have been asking me to recommend to them a great wine to pick up. While I certainly don’t mind recommending something that I enjoy, I sure have learned that wine is an intensely personal thing. What I love may be terrible on your palate. And if you love Apothic Red, well, we’ll probably have a difference of opinion
In my opinion, if you like wine, you should really always be trying new varietals and regions. The wine world is so big and so diverse, you can constantly find new gems to add to your cellar. However, it is easy to get lost in the aisles of a wine store, not really knowing if the $40 Barolo is really going to be that much better than the $20 Pinot Gris.
That’s where it comes in handy to look at the wisdom of Father Time. Over the centuries, certain regions have found that specific varieties work really well in their soil and climate. The first trick to knowing how to pick a good wine, is to know what you like, and where that berry grows well. In that manner, you can walk into a wine store, directly to the country that is known for quality in the type of grape you’re looking for. Grab a bottle from a quality region, and 9 times out of 10, you’ll have a great bottle of wine! As for price, we’ll get into that in another post.
Here are some of the most common varietals and regions that are known for producing quality wine of its type. This is simply from my experience and is not a complete list.
Cabernet Sauvignon
- Bordeaux, France: The original benchmark. Gravelly soils on the Left Bank (Médoc, Pauillac, Margaux) ripen Cab beautifully, producing structured, age-worthy wines often blended with Merlot.
- Napa Valley, USA: Warm days, cool nights, and volcanic soils give Napa Cabs their famous ripe black fruit and plush texture. Bolder and fruitier than Bordeaux.
- Central Valley, Chile (especially Maipo): Andean foothills with poor soils and a dry climate produce Cabs with classic structure at often unbeatable prices. Look for "Alto Maipo" on the label.
- Margaret River/Coonawarra in Australia: Coonawarra's famous terra rossa soil yields elegant, minty Cabs, while Margaret River's maritime climate produces something closer to a Bordeaux/Napa hybrid.
Chardonnay
- Burgundy, France (pricey, but amazing): My opinion but the very best. Côte de Beaune (Meursault and literally the best white wine in the world: Montrachet) delivers richer, oak-aged wines that justify their price tags.
- Chablis (still Burgundy, technically): Chablis offers steely, mineral, unoaked expressions.
- Carneros/Sonoma/Monterey in California, USA: Cool coastal influence keeps these wines from getting flabby. Expect bright acidity with riper fruit than Burgundy, often with judicious oak.
- Adelaide Hills, Australia: Higher elevation gives these Chardonnays the cool-climate freshness Aussie whites used to lack. Lean, citrusy, modern style.
- Walker Bay/Coastal/Robertson, South Africa: South Africa quietly produces some of the best-value Chardonnay on the planet. Walker Bay (especially Hemel-en-Aarde) leans Burgundian in style.
Sauvignon Blanc
- Loire Valley, France (mostly Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé): Flinty, mineral, restrained. This is Sauvignon Blanc with its hair combed and its tie straight.
- Marlborough, New Zealand: The opposite approach. Explosive grapefruit, passionfruit, and cut grass aromatics that put New Zealand on the global wine map in the 80s.
Pinot Noir
- Burgundy, France: Where Pinot was perfected by monks who had nothing to do but pray and make wine! Limestone soils and a marginal climate produce the most ethereal, terroir-driven Pinot in the world. Also, where your wallet goes to die.
- Oregon, USA: The closest New World approximation to Burgundy. Cool, wet, and producing elegant, earthy Pinots that age beautifully.
- Martinborough/Central Otago, New Zealand: Central Otago is the world's southernmost wine region, producing intensely fruited yet structured Pinots from a dramatic continental climate. Also, sheep.
- Sonoma Coast and Russian River Valley: Gaining serious traction alongside Oregon. Russian River's morning fog and cool Pacific air produce Pinots with bright cherry fruit and silky texture, while the Sonoma Coast pushes even cooler and more elegant.
Malbec
- Mendoza, Argentina: High-altitude vineyards at the foot of the Andes give Malbec intense colour, plush tannins, and ripe blackberry fruit. The modern definition of the grape.
- Cahors, France: The ancestral home that no one has ever heard of. Darker, more rustic, and more tannic than its Argentinian cousin and can be harder to find. Sometimes called "the black wine of Cahors" for good reason... it's super dark.
Pinot Grigio/Pinot Gris
- Friuli-Venezia Giulia and Alto Adige, Italy: Mass-market stuff is how to get cheap wine but northern Italy's alpine regions are still cheap and produce Pinot Grigio with real texture, pear and almond notes, and a saline finish. Best summer wine. Ever.
- Alsace, France: Here it's called Pinot Gris and it's a different beast entirely. Richer, often off-dry, with notes of honey, smoke, and stone fruit.
- Okanagan, Canada 🍁 Our home-grown success story. The Okanagan's hot days and cool nights produce vibrant, fruit-forward Pinot Gris with great acidity.
Riesling
- Pretty much anywhere in Germany: the Mosel is the most famous, with steep slate slopes producing featherlight, off-dry Rieslings with electric acidity. The Rheingau and Pfalz lean drier and fuller-bodied, with the Pfalz in particular making seriously dry Riesling (look for "Trocken" on the label). You really can't go wrong picking up a German Riesling, and they're often shockingly affordable for the quality.
- Niagara, Canada 🍁 Often overlooked, but our cool climate suits Riesling perfectly. Both dry and off-dry styles can be excellent, and the icewines are world-famous.
What do you think? Did I miss a region for your favourite wine?
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Wine education with Clarke, your friendly Canadian Sommelier. Making wine a little less snobby (but still a little snobby).
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