If you like variety; then wine tasting is for YOU! There are literally thousands of different grape varieties. I have been studying wine for over a decade and there are still many varieties I look forward to tasting for the first time! Wine study is truly a life time pursuit. While this is all true you can learn three lessons about white grape varieties and you will be savvy in about ninety percent of the white wine you will encounter...
First; the most popular grape for white wine making is Chardonnay. Some people think that all white wine is made from Chardonnay!?! Many drink this one wine to the exclusion of any other white grape varieties. Not recommended! However, if you will focus on this one grape variety and the wines made from it and you will have the majority of white wine covered. Chardonnay makes wines that are SUPPLE and complex, it is as full bodied as white wines get.
Second; if a white wine drinker is looking for a different experience they can choose from many alternatives; Pinot Grigio is DELICATE and refreshing with a very light body, Sauvignon Blanc is DISTINCTIVE and frequently exotic in flavor and a medium body, and Riesling is MOUTHWATERING and flavorful ranging from light to medium body. While there are many others the vast majority of wine being consumed in North America today is made from these four white varieties.
Third; To sound like a wine expert associate the "EXPERIENTIAL DESCRIPTORS" in all caps with each variety. Use these like buzzwords for each varietal combined with their body and complexity and you will be talking like a wine expert in no time. These descriptors will take you beyond just saying that the wine is light bodies or sweet and it will start you on the road to talking about what the experience of drinking the wine is like. And that is what every wine drinker is really after; an experience. With a good basic understanding of these four white grapes you can are prepared for most of the white wines you will encounter.
More to come on these great wines...
