How to identify French red wine?

1. Look at the wine grade on the wine label

French wine law divides wine into 4 levels: AOC is the highest level of French red wine. When we get a bottle of wine, we can tell whether it is AOC from the bottle label: The wine label is marked as Appellation + production area name + Controllee. Generally speaking, the first and last two words of this label remain unchanged, while the middle word changes depending on the production area. If they are both AOC-level wines, they can be subdivided into many levels. Generally speaking, the smaller the area between the place names, the better the wine.

2. Look at the vintage of the wine

French wine is more complicated than wine from other countries. Not just AOC red wine is a good wine. Good wine must come from a good vintage. Because the quality of wine depends on the quality of grape raw materials, and the quality of grapes is determined by the place of production, the climate of the year, and the management of the grapes. Some of the best vintages since 2000 are 2000, 2003, 2004, and 2005, so when you’re confused looking at French wine labels, it might be a good idea to choose wine based on vintage. The year 2005 is on the wine label, indicating that the grapes for the wine in the bottle were picked in 2005. Others who know a little about wine are too obsessed with vintage, thinking that the older the wine, the better the wine. Of course, this is true, but most of these wines are used for investment collection rather than for drinking. Among French wines, 90% of the products cannot be stored for a long time and will be consumed within a few to more than ten years after leaving the factory. And these wines are also good wines.

3. Identify original imported red wine and domestic bottled wine

1. Appearance of the wine bottle

See whether the bottle label printing is clear?

Look at the lid of the bottle.

Is there any sign that it has been opened?

Look at the label on the back of the bottle. Does the international bar code on the bottle start with 3: the French international code is 3, and the domestically filled one is 6

Look at the label on the back of the bottle to see if there is a Chinese logo: According to Chinese law, all imported foods must be barcoded Chinese back label. If there is no Chinese back label, it may be smuggled and imported, and the quality cannot be guaranteed.

2. Look at the wine liquid

Is the color of the wine unnatural?

Is there any unknown suspended matter on the wine? (Note: There is a little bit at the bottom of the bottle. Precipitation is a normal crystal)

When the wine quality deteriorates, the color will look turbid

3. Look at the label on the wine cork

Open the wine bottle and look at the cork. Is the text the same as the text on the bottle label? In France, wine bottles and wine stoppers are exclusive.

4. Smell the wine

If the wine smells like nail polish, it has gone bad

5. Taste the wine

When you take the first sip of wine, when the wine passes through your throat, normal wine will be smooth, while problem wine will have a stimulating sensation.

After swallowing alcohol, it is abnormal if the odor remaining in the mouth has a chemical or foul smell.

4. About the acidity of wine

Friends who are new to French wine always think that wine with acidity is a bad wine. In fact, this is not the case: part of the sourness of wine comes from grape berries, such as tartaric acid, malic acid and a small amount of citric acid, and part of it comes from fermentation, such as succinic acid, lactic acid and acetic acid. This acidity is unavoidable, it promotes the secretion of saliva, speeds up the body's metabolism, and is essential for health. The acidity of wine is like the bones of the body. Without acidity, wine has no structure. In wine tasting terminology, good wine is balanced. The balance here refers to the balanced and harmonious content of acidity and tannin. The structure composed of these two is called the wine body. A wine with a balanced body is a good wine.