A Selection Of beverage For Your Home beverage Cellar
Wine is perhaps the greatest social lubricant known to humanity, we drink it to celebrate everything from birthdays to deals made, we can enjoy it as a delicious accent to our meals, or alone for its own sake, it is truly a gift from the gods! If you love wine and want to take your affection for the fruit of the vine to a higher level, then why not start your own wine cellar at home?
You don’t really need to have a cellar, or even a basement, but wine does prefer to be kept in a cool, dark space, like under a staircase, or in a walk-in closet. All you need to begin your home wine adventure is a wine rack that can hold around 24 bottles, more than enough to have something special for every occasion on hand! Let’s consider how to fill that wine rack with a variety of wonderful wines for you and your lucky guests to enjoy!
- Cabernet Sauvignon – This delightful red grape originated in the Bordeaux region and has become one of the world’s most sought-after wine varieties! Cabernet Sauvignon wines are full-bodied and feature bold tannins. The higher levels of tannins and alcohol provide a long finish to savour, and they pair well with strong-flavoured meats like beef and lamb, and well-aged cheeses like pecorino and cheddar.
- Zinfandel – Croatia is the original home of this full to medium-bodied red wine that offers a cornucopia of fruit flavours such as raspberry, blueberry, boysenberry, nectarine, and plum, taking the term “fruity” to a higher level! It starts off spicy then settles into a nice, medium-length finish. Zinfandel is great for pairing with pork, cured meats, and even barbecue, and firm cheeses like manchego and cheddar.
- Chardonnay – A full-bodied French white wine from Burgundy that is usually oak aged which gifts it with an almost bourbon-like, spicy note. The unoaked version is quite a bit lighter, with lemony citrus and mellow pear and apple flavours, along with a hint of vanilla. Chardonnay is the perfect wine to pair with shellfish like shrimp, lobster, and crab, and is also a good match for mushrooms, cream based sauces, chicken, and pork. For the cheese choose nutty gruyère or a triple cream brie.
- Sauvignon Blanc – This dry, light-bodied white wine hails from France and features a rather tart, citrusy flavour that has been compared to grapefruit, but also contains a subtle herbal quality reminiscent of green mint. Sauvignon Blanc is excellent paired with white fish, chicken, and pork, and goes well with nutty cheeses like gruyère and herb-crusted goat cheese.
These are just a paltry few of all the amazing wines available for the home sommelier to stock their wine rack with, there are hundreds more just waiting for you to try them! We recommend you get started by purchasing middle-shelf wines that will taste great, but not break your bank, then as your skills increase you can spend more to venture up to the top-shelf varieties and experience the pleasures that await you there! Santé!
