Buying a bottle of wine... part 2 : The two poster

Before I continue with "Buying a bottle of wine" I have to tell that I will try in the future to update my blog at least twice a week. Since some of my friends has been asking me the last week. However the last week was quite busy for me and on the weekend I did something good for my health by attending a Winterseminar from my Martial Arts... so therefore this post will be a little big bigger (I hope you won't fall asleep while reading sooooooo much..) So back to the wine:

Last time we faced probably the most difficult decision: To choose between between white or red wine. Fortunately we figure it out (I hope at least for the one who reads this..). So now we can focus on some more important things. The information on the bottle itself. Actually when you are having a bottle of wine you find to 99% two poster on it. One on the front and on the back. Since most of the people who are not into wine (and also some who are a little already into wine) think that the front poster is for PR and attraction of the eye and of course also contains some information. The back poster contains often a small text about either where the wine comes from and/or what the composition (also called blend) of different grapes is and/or what kind of aromas and also the color of the wine. So of course someone would assume that either both poster containing most information or even just the back poster. Et ben...pfff... bref.... partially right I have to say. The back poster is definitely good to get a better idea about the wine before tasting it or if someone wants to buy it as a present. BUT to be honest personally I see that the back poster even more for PR and a "suggestion" why you should buy this bottle than the front.............

A French red wine from an Alko shop, Finland

You might now start to realize that actually the front poster contains more information than thought before. But what can an "untrained eye" actually decipher from all the data, numbers and words on it? Lets rather first have a look and tell what a so called "untrained eye" can immediately understand. I have marked some numbers on the two pics so it might be easier to follow (yeah now it looks like a medical study book about anatomy, but it can't be helped since I can't point my finger onto it...)

A French red wine from an Alko shop, Finland

So 1) tells us the name "Chateau Le Vieux Chantre" (if it is possible to translate into English, if not a name: "Castle The old chorister"), 2) From which region the wine comes from, 3) the alcohol amount of the wine, 7) a nice pic most probably of the mansion or the castle, 8) the vintage, 10) the number of the bottle. Ouais ouais pas mal. But what do 4),5),6) and 9) tell you??

4) Grand vin de Bordeaux ("Great wine of Bordeaux") actually tells you how good the wine is ranked.

5) Appellation Puisseguin St. Emilion contrôlée is a sign that the wine has been produced and proceed and controlled according to the rules to preserve the originality of wine making. So in shorts no extra added conservatives or any other stuff which is not supposed to be in the wine!

6) Mis en bouteille...: Where the wine was filled up. Normally when it is filled up from the Mansion, the Chateau or by a person (the Name of the person is then indicated) you can assume that is a good wine. There is also "Mis en bouteille aux Domaine", but however I personally don't go for these wines.

And last but not least 9) "Elevé en Fûts de Chêne" means rested in vanila oak barrels. That is actually a very good sign and normally prices for these bottles are a little bit more expensive. Nevertheless the wine is resting in barrels made out of oak wood which will give the wine a slight and very smooth vanilla taste to the wine. Honestly I was only able to taste and smell it once where it was a little bit stronger, but I really liked it. These bottles often do have a number on it (to make it also a little bit more special..). Btw the oak wood of the barrels are from oak trees in France which have been planted in the 14th or 16th century. So one more point why special.

Et bien mes amies ca sera tous pour aujourd'hui (Well my friends that should be it for today,) I hope you enjoyed getting all these informations at once and a new post will come latest at the end of this week.