Contrasting Wine From The New And Old World

When people began making wines within the new world they often started utilizing the techniques which were seen in Europe at the time, therefore creating similar wines. Variations in environments and land meant that they often had to cope with very different conditions than they had been used to. A good example of this is Californian makers who discovered that the heat was too much to produce superior grapes, till they found the Napa region where mountains cooled the fruit by sucking in colder air from the sea.

The normal definition of " New World " wines are the ones produced in regions established in the beginning by colonial exploration, for example Australia. Simply put, virtually everywhere apart from Europe. It was during the 1960s, when practices were being questioned, and limitations were decreasing, that gave " New World " Wine its opportunity for global recognition. Makers in many locations such as Australia and the USA strove to enhance on the older wine orders. This came together with a complete re-think of the way to connect and market the wines.

In the beginning, the New World had been simply using prominent names from the Old World; "Australian Burgundy" and "Californian Chablis" grew to become common. International law soon caught up with this practice, however, ruling that Burgundy or Chablis are only able to be made in Burgundy or Chablis. so even though the New World producer could use identical grapes and identical techniques to produce a high quality version of one of these renowned wines, he couldn't use any name that the consumer would recognize. The producers soon came to the conclusion that it was the flavour belonging to the different grape varieties which was the single most important factor in their wines, and arrived at the solution of varietal labelling.They featured the grape variety on the label, their own name, and left it at that. This has changed the whole way we think about, talk about, choose - and more importantly - purchaseWine. We now know the importance of the different grapes, as it is these varieties, rather than the place of origin, that is stressed on the label. We're all now accustomed to ordering a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir or a Merlot. No other concept has made the enjoyment of Wine so easily accessible to every one. This accessibility has resulted in a willingness to experiment: to purchase and experience the kind ofwines we enjoy, no matter where it was made, New World or Old World. Now the Old World has recognised that it must move into this contemporary World in order to compete and survive, and the naming of grapes on labels is now virtually as popular in Europe as anywhere in the winemaking World.

By: Bartholomew Higginthorpe

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