Syrah, aka Shiraz, produces some of the finest wine in the world in a range of climates: from the northern Rhône to all over Australia to Hawke's Bay to South Africa to California and Washington. Known for its meaty, peppery style, arguably no grape more reflects where it comes from. Listen and learn all about Syrah!

Matthew's World of Wine and Drink

Syrah/Shiraz

An in-depth conversation with Michael Terrien of Obsidian Ridge about Lake County, the importance of elevation, and the shiny, sharp obsidian rocks. Michael has worked with the high-elevation Obsidian Ridge vineyard for 20 years: the interview records how he has learnt from the land to make wine that reflects the land's character.

Interview with Michael Terrien of Obsidian Ridge

Sauvignon Blanc is sometimes dismissed as producing one-dimensional wines which are grassy, herbaceous, and vegetal, designed to be drunk now. This episode discusses the much more versatile, varied, and diverse nature of Sauvignon Blanc, exploring the Loire, Bordeaux, Italy, New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, Chile, and California, from dry to sweet wines and the many expressions made from the grape.

Sauvignon Blanc

Mourvèdre is a grape best known as part of a Rhône blend with Grenache and Syrah, but it makes fantastic wine in its own right and in a wide range of styles. Originally from Spain where it's known as Monastrell, it's also planted in California and Australia where it's sometimes called Mataró. Whatever its name, Mourvèdre prefers a warm Mediterrean climate - in Spain, France, California, Australia, and California.

Mourvèdre

Priorat is one of Spain's most prestigious regions, the vines grown on steep slate slopes. Garnatxa (Grenache) and Carinyena (Carignan) are the two most important varieties, often from old vines. The wines of Priorat are known as big and full-bodied, but as I learnt on a recent visit there's a lot more diversity than that.

Priorat

What's the difference between an Old and a New World Wine? Is there a differerence? This episode explores what the terms mean, whether we should use them, and how they can be an easy way into describing the wines of a prominent country? What the episode does not answer is whether England is New World or Old World!

Old World v New World

250 indigenous varieties plus a handful of international; different names for the same variety, named after animals, people, and often hard to pronounce; field blends in a small, fractured vineyard ownership; maritime and continental climates: for such a small country, Portuguese wine is hard to pin down, but an understanding of the varieties helps. Here's an overview of some of the major white and black varieties and the regions they're grown in to gain a sense of Portuguese wine.

Portuguese Grape Varieties

Interview with Rui Lucas of Prior Lucas in Bairrada, Portugal. It's a region heavily influenced by the Atlantic Ocean, and therefore cooler and wetter than other areas further inland. Baga is the main variety, well-suited to the humid climate, producing tannic, high-acid, ageworthy wines. There's also sparkling wine made, which we talk about in this episode. Bairrada is an interesting, very individual region!

https://priorlucas.pt/

Bairrada: Interview with Rui Lucas of Prior Lucas

Henry Jeffreys's book, Vines in a Cold Climate, is an essential and extremely engaging history of the development of English wine since the 1970s. He interviews many characters and charts the change from amateur DIY winemakers to the professionalism of the industry in the 1990s to the investment from wealthy entrepreneurs in the 2000s onwards. I talk to him about how English wine, sparkling in particular, has become such a talking point, referencing the climate, the place, and the people behind the rise of the industry.

Interview with Henry Jeffreys: England

Gouais Blanc is a little-planted white grape variety that in the past has been banned in France. It produces indeterminate, high-acid wines, but is indirectly responsible for some of the greatest wine in the world. Through natural crossings, it's the parent of Chardonnay, Aligoté, and Gamay in Burgundy/Beaujolais, as well as Riesling, Furmint, and Blaufränkisch. Without Gouais Blanc, wine as we know it wouldn't exist, nor would our understanding of DNA and grape genetics.

Gouais Blanc

Terah Bajjalieh is an up-and-coming winemaker in California, making wine from Grenache, Syrah, Vermentino, and Falanghina. The wines are modern expressions of California, but also representations of California's Mediterranean climate and its history from the early days of the nineteenth century. In this episode, we talk about all things California in relation to these Mediterranean varieties.

Interview with Terah Bajjalieh

There are eighteen grape varieties permitted for Châtauneuf-du-Pape, some of them very famous, others much more obscure. This episode details the characteristics of each of the varieties and what they bring to a blend—and why blending is so important in the warm climate of the southern Rhône—as well as looking at some of the other regions the varieties are grown in.

Châteauneuf-du-Pape Grape Varieties

An interview with Agostino Bertolin of notastingnotes.com all about Austria, talking about some of the lesser known regions, Weinviertel, Neusiedlersee, Burgenland, and Steiermark, as well as varieties such as Zweigelt, Blaufränkisch, and Welschriesling. Agostino provides great insight into the many styles of wine made in such a relatively small country.

Interview with Agostino Bertolin: Austria

Ever wondered how a glass alters your appreciation of a wine? Lukas Therre works at Josephinenhütte, a series of very distinctive glassware designed by Kurt Zalto. This is a fascinating interview, which covers how wine glasses are made (an intensive process), the sensory effect of a wine glass, what glass we should use for sparkling wine, and even water glasses. Pick up a glass and listen!

Interview with Lukas Therre of Josephinenhütte

Matthew's World of Wine and Drink is an educational podcast dedicated to teaching you all about the world of wine - different styles, regions, grape varieties, and its history and culture. It's designed for students taking wine courses such as the WSET, as well as the wine enthusiast. This episode focuses on the Loire Valley, the diverse styles of wine made in this famous region.

Matthew's World of Wine and Drink Podcast

Loire Valley

Matthew's World of Wine and Drink is an educational podcast dedicated to teaching you all about the world of wine - different styles, regions, grape varieties, and its history and culture. It's designed for students taking wine courses such as the WSET, as well as the wine enthusiast. This episode focuses on Chablis, the famous white-winemaking region of northern France which produces restrained, tight wines from Chardonnay.

Chablis

Matthew's World of Wine and Drink is an educational podcast dedicated to teaching you all about the world of wine - different styles, regions, grape varieties, and its history and culture. It's designed for students taking wine courses such as the WSET, as well as the wine enthusiast. This episode continues our focus on Burgundy, looking at the famous wines from Pinot Noir made in the Côte de Nuits.

Côte de Nuits

Matthew's World of Wine and Drink is an educational podcast dedicated to teaching you all about the world of wine - different styles, regions, grape varieties, and its history and culture. It's designed for students taking wine courses such as the WSET, as well as the wine enthusiast. This episode continues to focus on the Côte d'Or and the famous wines from Chardonnay and Pinot Noir made in the Côte de Beaune.

Côte de Beaune

Matthew's World of Wine and Drink is an educational podcast dedicated to teaching you all about the world of wine - different styles, regions, grape varieties, and its history and culture. It's designed for students taking wine courses such as the WSET, as well as the wine enthusiast. This episode focuses on Beaujolais, the famous but misunderstood region producing wines from the Gamay grape.

Beaujolais

Matthew's World of Wine and Drink is an educational podcast dedicated to teaching you all about the world of wine - different styles, regions, grape varieties, and its history and culture. It's designed for students taking wine courses such as the WSET, as well as the wine enthusiast. This episode focuses on the northern Rhône, its great red wines made from Syrah and the less well-known white wines of the region.

Northern Rhône

Matthew's World of Wine and Drink is an educational podcast dedicated to teaching you all about the world of wine - different styles, regions, grape varieties, and its history and culture. It's designed for students taking wine courses such as the WSET, as well as the wine enthusiast. This episode focuses on the southern Rhône, the famous and less well-known appellations for reds, white, and rosés.

Southern Rhone

Matthew's World of Wine and Drink is an educational podcast dedicated to teaching you all about the world of wine - different styles, regions, grape varieties, and its history and culture. It's designed for students taking wine courses such as the WSET, as well as the wine enthusiast. This episode focuses on one of the great grape varieties, Pinot Noir, and the different regions around the world it's grown in.

Pinot Noir

Alsace is one of the more unusual wine regions in France, because of its historic German connections. It produces aromatic, ageworthy white wine from a variety of grapes, the best of which is Riesling. This episode focuses on what makes Alsace so distinctive and special.

Alsace

South-West France is one of the most historic wine-producing regions of France, but it's been overshadowed internationally by Bordeaux. There are plenty of high-quality, good-value, and distinctive wines to be found - definitely a region worth seeking out. Learn more about the different, individual appellations in this episode.

South-West France

North-East Italy encompasses a diverse range of regions, including Alto Adige, Trentino, Veneto, and Fruili-Venezia-Giulia. Some of these have a strongly Germanic and Slavic influence, producing unique wines different from elsewhere in Italy.

North-East Italy

This episode looks at plantings in Champagne, the Cru structure, and the five main regions.

Sparkling Wine

Champagne Regions

South Australia accounts for 50% of Australian wine production, and includes some of the country's most historic and important regions: Barossa, Eden, and Clare Valleys, McLaren Vale, and Coonawarra. Quality is high, although there's also a lot of basic multi-regional blends as well. This episode explores the different areas, styles, and quality levels of wine made in this great wine region.

South Australia

Continuing the focus on Bordeaux, this episode is all about Cabernet Sauvignon and the prestigious appellations associated with this world famous variety, explaining what makes Bordeaux Cabernet so individual and distinctive.

Bordeaux (III): Cabernet Sauvignon

Sardinia is a large, rugged island with a strong Mediterranean culture; it has a strong if rustic winemaking tradition which is beginning to become more internationally relevant. In this episode, I interview Mark Middlebrook of Portovino, an importer of unusual Italian wine. We talk about Vermentino and Cannonau (Grenache), as well as extraordinary wines made under flor (like fino sherry, but not fortified).  Join us for a journey across the island!

Matthew's World of Wine and Drin

Sardinia

Grenache is one of the world's most planted grape varieties, commonly found in warm Mediterranean climates such as the south of France, eastern Spain, Australia, and California. This episode explores the extraordinary diverse range of wines made from Grenache: different blends, rosé, fortified wine, and from old vines. In a warming climate, Grenache may be the future!

Grenache

An Englishman in California soaking up the sun, I am a WSET Diploma graduate and Certified WSET Educator. I blog about wine, teach it at all levels, and drink plenty of it. Follow me on twitter @mattswineworld or check out my website: matthewsworldofwineanddrink.com

Matthew's World of Wine and Drink

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