An unfamiliar grape? Follow your own taste
Six names on the wine shelf mean nothing to you. You want to try something new without turning a possible disappointment into a test of courage. Here is how to make a first choice and discover what you actually enjoy as you taste.
1. At the shelf, the name is not the starting point
An unfamiliar grape name cannot tell you whether you will enjoy the wine. Nor do you have to read it like a secret code. Ask instead: am I looking for citrus freshness, a fragrant white, juicy red berries or a noticeably rough feeling in the mouth? These are four familiar directions for comparing six very different grape varieties. An unusual name is no proof of quality; it simply gives you something new to explore. If you enjoy citrus, a dry—that is, not sweet-tasting—Merseguera from Valencia described in terms of ripe lemon and blood orange offers a starting point. Begin the comparison with Baldovar 923 - Cañada París and note whether you would like to find this citrus direction again in your next wine.
A useful question in a shop is therefore not necessarily “What is your best bottle?” but “I like citrus, but I want to try something new—which of these bottles goes in that direction?” This gives the person advising you a starting point. You do not need to pronounce every grape correctly or list famous regions to describe a specific preference.
Merseguera Amphora · Alto Turia
▸ Lemon. Orange. Sea salt.▸ Quietly serious.▸ 900-m vines. UNESCO slopes. Picked from 20- to 60-year Merseguera at nearly 1,000 m, this natural white keeps...
2. Three useful words to begin with
Three terms make the first sip more revealing. Dry, here, means that the wine does not taste sweet. Body describes how light or full it feels in your mouth. Tannin is a compound that can produce a rough, mouth-drying sensation: think of strong black tea. That roughness is different from an absence of sweetness.
Notice the aroma separately, too: a wine can smell of peach and still taste dry. You do not need to score these impressions. A sentence such as “I like the aroma, but I enjoy the rough feeling in my mouth less” is already more useful for your next order than another memorised name.
A wine made from pale grapes can also have noticeable tannin. In a skin-contact wine, the winemaker ferments the juice with the grape skins; tannins can pass from the skins into the wine. Pale grapes therefore do not promise a smooth mouthfeel.
Pay attention as you taste: do your gums and the inside of your cheeks feel rough after the sip, a little like after black tea? Kobal Wines - Roots Furmint makes the comparison concrete: after around 15 days of skin contact, this bottle shows a tea-like tannin sensation. In Slovenia, Furmint is also called Šipon. These are two names for the same grape, but that does not mean every Furmint receives the same winemaking treatment.
If you like the fruity aromas but not the rough sensation, you already have a useful question for your next recommendation: is there a wine in this direction with less tannin?
Furmint Skin Contact · Haloze
▸ 35-year vines. Marl terraces.▸ Quince. Melon. Acacia.▸ Quietly serious skin-contact. When someone asks for something different, Slovenian skin-contact Furmint from 35-year vines on Haloze’s...
3. White wine: citrus or fragrant fruit?
With white wine, begin by comparing two aroma preferences: lemon and zest, or peach and flowers. These are directions to explore, not fixed categories for grape varieties. A bottle can combine several of them. Garganega is the new name behind Cavazzawine - Creari from Veneto. Peach and saffron belong to its aroma; its taste is still dry. That makes a useful comparison with the Merseguera: do you prefer the citrus note, or are you drawn to the warmer fruit?
Zibibbo adds another fragrant direction. The dry bottle selected here combines grapefruit, mint and jasmine. Ask two questions in sequence as you taste: do I enjoy what I smell? And do I enjoy how the wine tastes and feels in my mouth? An intense floral aroma does not answer the second question. Smell Cavazzawine - Creari, then take a sip to check whether your expectation of sweetness matches its dry taste.
Describe the result in your own words. “It smells fruity to me, but it does not taste sweet” is quite enough. If the person beside you smells something different, you do not need to agree on a model answer. For your next choice, what matters is whether you enjoy this combination of aroma and taste or would rather explore another direction.
Garganega Single Vineyard · Veneto
▸ Quince. Sea salt. Stony.▸ 2-ha limestone island vines.▸ Made for herby sea bass. South-west Garganega at 240 m on rare limestone sharpens the wine’s...
Zibibbo Volcanic · Terre Siciliane
▸ Grapefruit. Mint. Blossom.▸ Pioneering dry Zibibbo.▸ Sunlight vs Sea Breeze Picked in early September from breezy Trapani plots at 0–400 m, the grape keeps...
4. Red wine: berries or noticeable tannin?
With red wine, another comparison is useful: juicy red fruit or more noticeable tannin. Our two selected bottles provide Frappato and Freisa for that purpose. In the Frappato from Sicily, wild strawberry, raspberry and floral notes come to the fore. The Freisa from Piedmont combines ripe raspberry with liquorice, vanilla and a dry, chalky tannin sensation. This describes these two wines, not every bottle made from their grapes.
Smell both first, then notice the difference on your palate. Is it the berries you enjoy, or the rougher sensation after the sip? You might prefer the aroma of one and the mouthfeel of the other. That is a useful observation, not a contradiction. Darker colour alone cannot make the decision for you. Nor do you need to establish a family connection between the grapes or know their history to describe a difference.
If you enjoy both, you do not have to declare an overall winner. Note instead which detail you would like to find again: the berry aroma, the rougher sensation, or their combination. A wine you find interesting today need not become your new standard order. You can keep it in mind for a particular mood or a shared tasting. Equally, you can leave a grape aside after one bottle without claiming that all its wines taste that way. On another occasion, ask about an example made differently and compare your notes. The aim is not an ever-longer list of exotic names, but a clearer description of what you feel like drinking.
Frappato Single Parcel · Sicily
▸ Strawberry. Violet. Salt.▸ 2.4-hectare lake parcel.▸ Berries vs Saline At 12–14 °C the wine slides easily: low-lying clay soils near Mazara del Vallo keep...
Freisa Superiore · Asti
▸ Rose. Raspberry. Liquorice.▸ Quietly serious, chalk tannin▸ White-chalk hills. UNESCO zone. Freisa is Nebbiolo’s older cousin; here it sees three weeks on skins and...
5. Compare rather than memorise
Six bottles are not an exam to complete in one evening. Spread the comparison over several occasions and pour small amounts to get acquainted. Begin with two wines: Merseguera and Garganega, for instance, for different fruit impressions. On another occasion, Zibibbo can sit alongside Furmint to help you distinguish aroma from a rough mouthfeel; Frappato and Freisa form the red pair. This order is a suggestion, not a ranking. Simply note which you prefer and why. If the word “body” means little to you yet, write “lighter” or “fuller in the mouth”. You do not have to find jasmine just because a description mentions it. A personal observation will help you more with your next purchase than six new names with no memory of their taste. The selection does not explain an entire grape variety, either: you are getting to know a particular bottle first.
For an uncomplicated comparison at the table, we suggest three simple companions: a tray of roast vegetables, pasta with tomatoes, or bread with mild cheese. These are ideas to try, not a claim that a particular wine must work with every dish.
First taste a small sip without food, then again with a bite. Has your impression changed? What would you serve together again? “I preferred the wine without the food” is a useful answer, too.
Keep the exercise small: a pair of wines and one dish are enough to notice something. You do not have to compare all six grapes, three dishes and every aroma at once. Remembering a comparison you enjoyed helps you ask a more specific question on your next purchase, instead of simply reaching for a familiar label again.
6. Make your next sip count
Our view: you do not need a grape dictionary to order with curiosity. What helps is a selection whose differences you can describe for yourself. Merseguera, Garganega, Furmint, Zibibbo, Frappato and Freisa offer six new names for that comparison. We have selected these exact six wines for our tasting set. Try them, compare them over several occasions and find your own favourites.
New Names, Familiar Flavours
Explore six different grapes: Merseguera, Garganega, Furmint, Zibibbo, Frappato and Freisa. One bottle of each. Compare aroma and mouthfeel across several occasions.
