Red, White, or Rose?
Which wine is more complex: White, Rose or Red Wine?
Red wine has a greater volume of phenolic compounds, for this reason one can argue that red wine has more complexity to it. Does this mean that red wine is better? No. Wines quality is subjective, the best wine is the one you, as a customer, enjoy the most. But before we dive into this topic, let me assure that, no other drink, alcoholic or not will be as complex as wine, be it red, white, or rose.
First thing first: What makes wine different from any other drink.
Have you noticed that, if you were to buy today some juice from the supermarket and then buy the same brand next year, open both, you would not notice any difference? Many of these products (including other alcoholic beverages) have a recipe. Usually this is done in batches with cocktails which makes it possible to taste and smell always the same. Good for client fidelity (people get used to it), bad for everything else. Let me elaborate.
You, as a winemaker will have a big challenge (many to be honest), every year will be different: same grapes, same place, same everything, different result. This is a nightmare that makes winemaking so artistic and beautiful.
You will learn something new every harvest, until your last harvest. For customer fidelity, will be harsh. Every harvest will be unique, but they can all be great.
My wine is different every year, how to deal with it?
To ensure that your wine follows a pattern you can use blends. Blend is simply mixing two different wines. You know where I’m getting? Let’s imagine a scenario where after this year’s harvest you make 1000L of wine with all the characteristics you want. It smells great and tastes even better. Instead of drinking 1000L, you save 250L. Ehen next year’s harvest ends you will have 250L of “old” wine with the characteristics that you like to blend with this year’s harvest wine. This is, by far, one of the most important skills that any winemaker must have.
Now, will it be this simple? No. So many factors will be involved, from economic to chemical reasons. How well will your 250L age? How good, or bad will next year’s wine be? Can you save 250L? I love this part of my job. Any decision can make it or break it for you and the company at any moment. Pressure all the time. Exhilarating. You will age faster than your wine.
White/Rose/Red
To keep it simple, I will give you some guidelines. Red ages well, white and rose are consumed earlier than red on average. Why? Mostly color and smell standards. White and rose are by nature more acidic than red wine, this goes better with fresh young wines smell and taste. Red is more versatile, it can be appreciated young and old in diverse ways.
Does this mean that all white and rose are young? No. My advice is to try it by yourself, see what you enjoy and what you can sell the best, design your masterpiece your own way, you might find something unique that works against all odds, but keep in mind that these things have a reason of being. My advice is to keep it simple, then (with tiny amounts) experiment and try new things, if it doesn’t work? Blend.
Some guidelines to follow in the beginning of winemaking
White wine should be fresh with a pale yellowish color. This means using sulfur dioxide during fermentation to avoid oxidation, and no malolactic fermentation (if acidity bellow 7ish).
Rose should be its own wine, please don’t make it your garbage vat (if you know what I mean), low volatile acidity with a beautiful pink color (rose means pink not brown).
Red, oh red. It’s hard to go wrong, incredibly hard to master.
Conclusion
White with fish, red with meat. Is it true? No. But is a great guideline. Winemaking is all about expression of yourself. Sounds corny I know but is deeply true. If you want to make money and impress your friends, follow the guidelines. If you want to become filthy rich and impress the world, follow your instinct and be smart about it, be bold.
