Notes:

What I would use it for:

Braising any tough cut of meat

Deglazing a pan of chicken

Pouring into hot chocolate

Drinking plain- hello!

Making any rich tomato based sauce unreal

Mixing with barbeque sauce for something unexpected in a marinade

Mixing with anything chocolate

Mix with 1 c simple syrup, freeze and scrape for a red wine granita

Use in a bath to soften skin

Clean produce and remove bacteria (yes this totally works!)

Revive dead plants

Oh! anything with mushrooms

Description:

There are thousands of bottles of the deep red luxurious liquid but between the types and tastes there are so many versions of red wine how do you know what to use when?

Red wine is one of those things that can be overwhelming for people, especially those who aren’t wine drinkers. No one is expecting anyone to a connoisseur who swills and spits but here’s a basic run down of red wine. The general rule used to be that wine was labeled based on the region is came from and from there you could discern how it would taste. But over time, wine was labeled based on how it tasted (similar to so and so region) versus where it was from. That is how you can now have champagne from Israel instead of from France,

To find a red wine you enjoy, pick something that tastes pleasant. Look for something that feels smooth in your mouth and where you can taste hints of other flavors. As a general rule, dry red wine needs to “breathe” (expose to air) in order to awaken its flavors.

Here are some things you can expect from common types of dry red wine.

Cabernet- herbs black cherry and olives

Merlot- plump powerful and fruity

Malbec -spice, sour cherry, tart

Pinot nior- delicate and reminiscent of cola blackberry and plum

Syrah/shiraz plum-black pepper and clove

Zinfandel- raspberry blackberry cherry and raisin

 

Basic rule: don’t cook with anything you wouldn’t drink! I’m looking at you matouk rouge soft! In general, a dry wine is usually what recipe call for unless they specify using a sweet vintage specifically.