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Grape Varieties

Chenin Blanc

Chenin Blanc is another grape that makes a wide variety of wines - from the cheap and decidedly cheerful dry Chenins of South Africa to some more serious and expensive wines from the Loire Valley, France. Chenin tastes of apples and sometimes limes or guava, and even simple examples can be lively and refreshingly fruity. Those smart Loire Valley wines have intriguing nutty flavours reminiscent of walnuts. You won't see the words Chenin Blanc on the French label - look out instead for Vouvray, the name of the most famous spot where the grape is grown.

Gamay

The grape responsible for Beaujolais, Gamay produces bright purple, juicy wines with soft strawberry and cherry flavours. Beaujolais is meant to be an easy-drinking wine, especially the 'nouveau' style, although the Beaujolais 'crus' - wines from named villages in the Beaujolais region are richer and are taken more seriously. Gamay is hardly ever grown outside France.

Gewurztraminer

The most exotic grape variety of all, Gewurztraminer is certainly different. It has a heady aroma reminiscent of roses, lychees, peaches and a touch of ginger. The flavours are similar, and 'Gewurz' is often made in a rich but dry style, with a weighty rounded texture. Some of the best examples come from Alsace in France, or sample a lighter, slightly steely Gewurztraminer from Germany for a change. Some dry white wines are made from this grape in northern Italy and Hungary, or head to New Zealand or Chile for fresh, aromatic, new-wave examples. Try these exciting wines with Chinese or Thai cuisine.

Grenache

This grape’s moved up in the world. Grenache used to be thought of as a 'workhorse' variety, churning out bottle after bottle of decent but unexciting French and Spanish plonk. These days it is taken much more seriously, and sometimes it can create wines that are quite gutsy with rich raspberry and cherry fruit, to tannins with a hint of black pepper spice. The best Grenaches come from the Rhône and the south of France, northern Spain (where it is also used to make fruity pink wine), Australia and California.

Malbec

Argentina has burst onto the international wine scene recently, and the grape to make the biggest impact is Malbec. The Argentinians make velvet-smooth, ripe reds from this grape with flavours of black cherries, blackcurrants and plums - that go brilliantly with steak. Malbec originates in the south of France, but it is Argentina that has put it firmly on the map.

Merlot

It used to be regarded as Cabernet's poor cousin, but not any more. Merlot is now a very trendy grape and produces some of the finest single varietal wines from the New World. It has a rounded, soft, plummy flavour, and top Merlots are packed generously with red ripe fruit. This fleshy fruit provides a good contrast to the harder tannins of Cabernet in many blends - Claret (Bordeaux red) is the most famous. Merlot is sometimes used on its own in Bordeaux, for example, to make the fabulously concentrated and majestic wines of St Emilion and Pomerol.

The Californians can make superb Merlot, with lots of upfront ripe fruit. It is also worth trying examples from Chile, the North Island of New Zealand, the south of France, and lighter, cherryish wines from northern Italy. Eastern Europe, especially Bulgaria, produces some fruity, good-value bottles of Merlot.