Red wine has very ancient origins, the first references of this type of wine date back to ancient Mesopotamia. In the world there are different facets of this type of wine, from tannic and structured to lighter and more drinkable. The fine Italian, Piedmontese, Tuscan and Veneto red wines are all on top of the great French reds from Burgundy or Bordeaux, not forgetting the lesser known but equally surprising ones, such as the Spanish or South American reds.
On Grandi Bottiglie you will find a wide selection of fine red wines, Italian and French, from the products of the most prestigious and renowned wineries to the lesser known bottles that tell the story of a terroir.
How red wine is make?
The red wine is produced only from red grapes, through the production process of red wine making. Even before the vineyard, the wine is "designed" in the head of the producer or oenologist, depending on the type of wine to be produced, the time of harvest is decided: during the ripening period, the sugars inside the berry increase (which will turn into alcohol during fermentation) and the acids decrease. Usually red wines tend to have less acidity than white wines, so the harvest takes place only when the grapes are perfectly ripe, or in some cases, during the over-ripening phase.
Once the harvest is over, the bunches are taken to the cellar and a second decisive choice is made according to the result to be achieved, you can proceed with destemming, the separation of the berries from the stalks, before pressing, or you can press the whole bunches; since the woody part of the stalks contains a lot of tannins, deciding to proceed without destemming will make the red wine obtained in the end will have much more astringency in the mouth.
From the pressing of the bunches of grapes the must is obtained, a greenish colored grape juice that will be fermented together with the skins and grape seeds of the grapes, in a production phase that takes the name of maceration. In this phase, which lasts from 10 days to 4 weeks, the coloring substances are extracted from the skins, anthocyanins, and other polyphenols that will enrich it with aromas and perfumes, while the grape seeds release tannins that will give structure to our wine. The longer the maceration the more the final wine will be tannic and of a more intense red color.
Simultaneously with maceration, the alcoholic fermentation of the must also takes place, thanks to the indigenous yeasts present in the skins or added on purpose: the sugars are transformed into ethyl alcohol thanks to the action of the yeasts. Alcoholic fermentation can be spontaneous or induced through temperature control, in order not to compromise the quality of the final wine it is necessary to keep it between 25 and 30°C.
During fermentation, the marc is joined together to form the so-called cap of the marc, a solid and compact layer that prevents contact of the liquid with the air, risking the formation of the annoying acetic acid. To counteract this phenomenon there are various techniques that have the function of mixing must and cap, such as fulling, a mechanical pressure exerted to sink the cap onto the must, pumping over, which consists of tapping the must from under the cap and pouring it over or the submerged cap so that the cap is held under the level of the must.
Once the alcoholic fermentation is over, the malolactic fermentation takes place during which the malic acid is transformed into lactic acid, in order to file the hardness and the sharpness of the wine. Now that the must has completed its transformation, racking is carried out, i.e. the separation of the wine from the lees and exhausted yeasts, this can be done by filtration or in a natural way by lowering the temperature of the tanks.
Before being bottled, there is a final step, that of maturation, which can take place in steel, in cement tanks, in amphora, in large wooden barrels or in barriques. The duration of maturation depends on the production specifications or on a choice of the producer. Once the maturation is over, the wine is finally bottled and after a further pause in the bottle, called period of aging, is ready to be sold and drunk.
The best italian red wine
Italy has a great oenological tradition and our wines are recognized as excellences all over the world, the most famous Italian reds are produced in Piedmont and Tuscany, although great red wines can be found all over the peninsula.
Nebbiolo is the main grape of Piedmont, at the base of the fine Piedmontese red wines such as Barolo and Barbaresco, but also Carema, Roero Rosso, Gattinara and Ghemme.
In Tuscany, on the other hand, it is Sangiovese that gives life to the great Tuscan red wines, such as Brunello di Montalcino and Chianti Classico, but also Morellino di Scansano, Nobile di Montepulciano and Sangiovese di Romagna.
In Veneto famous red wines are produced in Valpolicella with native grapes such as Corvina, Rondinella and Molinara from which Valpolicella andAmarone della Valpolicella are obtained.
In the rest of Italy the red berry varieties from which the great Italian reds are obtained are Montepulciano, Primitivo, Negramaro and Aglianico.
The best French red wines
In France, the two most famous regions for red wines are the region of Bordeaux, where great wines based on Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot are produced, and Borgogna where several varieties of fine red wine are produced, but from a single grape variety, Pinot Noir. The other most important production areas are the Rhone with its wines based on Syrah and the Loire Valley with wines based on Cabernet Franc and Gamay.
On Grandi Bottiglie you can find a wide selection of red wines for sale online from the best production areas of the world, buy your bottles of red wine online at the best price.
