Guide To Favorite Red And White Wines

Just for your information there are 11 red wines and 9 white wines that are considered all time favorites although there are many other wonderful reds and whites. This guide will at least make you comfortable to know what the majority of people like.  Remember, you are not limited to this list — always drink a wine because you love it not because someone else does!

In fact,  two of my favorite red wines (Primativo (pree-mih-TEE-voe) and Barolo (ba-ROHL-oh or bar-ROW-lo) are not even on this list and one of my favorite whites (Piesporter (pees-PORT-ehr) aren't listed as popular with others but they sure are in our household.   

The Top 11 Most Favorite Red Wines Are:
Amarone (pronounced am-AH-roh-nee or ah-Ma-ROW-Nay — both are acceptable)
Cabernet  Franc (pronounced kab-er-NAY   FRAHN)
Cabernet Sauvignon (pronounced kab-er-NAY   SO-vin-yon)    
Chianti (pronounced kee-AHN-tee)
Pinot Noir (pronounced PEA-no  NWAHR)
Malbec (pronounced MALL-beck)
Merlot (pronounced mer-LOW or MARE-low)
Sangiovese  (pronounced  san-geeo-VAY-Seh)
Shiraz / Syrah (pronounced shur-AZZ  see-RAH also SHEER-oz/Sih-RAH )  The same grape but it is called Syrah in the US, Canada and Europe.  Shiraz in Australia
Valpolicella (pronounced vahl-pole-Eh-CHEL-lah)
Zinfandel (pronounced ZIN-fan-dell also zin-fan-DELL)

The Top 9 Most Favorite White Wines Are:
Chardonnay (pronounced shar-duh-NAY)
Chenin Blanc (pronounced SHAY-Non-Blon)
Gewurztraminer (pronounced geh-VERTS-trah-mean-er)
Pinot Blanc  (pronounced peE-no  BLAHN)

Pinot Gris/Pinot Grigio (pronounced peE-no GREE and PEE-no-GREEZ-gee-oh)
Riesling (pronounced REEZ-ling)
Sauvignon Blanc (pronounced  (SO-vin-yon Blahn)
Sémillon (pronounced say-me-YOHN)
Viognier (pronounced vee-oh-NYAY)

Remember, when you practice pronouncing these words the emphasis is on the capitalized part of the word and some of the words are from foreign languages so they may have a different sound at the end than the spelling would suggest.  There is some variety in pronunciation guides so I have tried to simplify the pronunciation to make it easy to understand and to help develop your confidence by pronouncing the wine name correctly.  

When you can say, Gewürztraminer (geh-VERTS-trah-mean-er) without getting tongue-tied — you'll feel like the king or queen of the wine world — especially when you can ask for the sommelier (so-mell-yay) at a restaurant and flawlessly order a bottle to your table!!!

This list is also an excellent guide for buying the most popular wine kits to make wine at home for a fraction of the cost you normally pay at the wine shop or liquor store.  You will discover that many of these wine kits have won outstanding awards for their excellent appearance and superb taste. Expand your experiences and try wine kit making!

For more wine-related and wine-kit-related information, check out our blog at https://www.winekitmaking.com

Also, for a video preview of the book, "Everything You Need To Know About Wine Kit Making," go to https://www.winekitmaking.com/landing_page.html