Category Archives: Ultimate Grape Guide

In today’s blog post, I am going to focus on the Cortese grape. It’s a grape that I knew very little about (actually, change that to nothing about!!) when I started at Virgin Wines but it’s one that I have … Continue reading →

The rise and fall in the popularity of grape types is a strange thing. I for one would love to be able to predict what’s going to be next. There aren’t that many grape varieties, so surely it can’t be … Continue reading →

I wanted to write a quick blog today focusing on Chile’s Carmenère. A deeply concentrated, low yielding red varietal, that was originally held in high regard in its birthplace, Bordeaux. It found its way to Chile at some point in … Continue reading →

When we listed this unusual and almost unheard of wine, outside of its native Italy, we weren’t sure what to expect in terms of customer response. It has, quite frankly, been superb. After first showing it at a few of … Continue reading →

Pretty much all grape varieties have synonyms but few are better known than our subject grape today – Syrah/Shiraz. I’ll use Syrah. That’s no slight on New World efforts as there are superb wines to sample, at all price points, … Continue reading →

You only need to scan the supermarket shelves and your local pub’s wine list to see how popular Sauvignon Blanc is. In fact, Sauvignon Blanc (particularly from the New World) has become so well liked in recent years that it … Continue reading →

As we move into the warmer months, notice I’m refraining from calling it summer, in addition to the obvious white and rose wines, this is the time of year when you can really get the most out of lighter red … Continue reading →

Malbec – thin skinned black grape variety. Synonyms include Cot, Cot Noir and Auxerrois. It is suited to dry warm climates, can handle some time in American and French oak and typical flavour characteristics include damsons, raisins, liquorice and a … Continue reading →

I’ll start today by throwing out a few facts about Chardonnay that you may or may not know. It is the second most widely planted grape variety in the world, but the widest of the noble varietals (an old French … Continue reading →

At Virgin Wines, we are predicting that today’s profiled grape will be making some waves over the coming months. We are adding new wines to our portfolio that will champion the virtues of this wonderful, often overlooked variety… Cabernet Franc!

The third highest planted grape variety in Italy and it’s no surprise really because of its versatility and ability to pair with food magnificently. I love it because of its black cherry nuances; welcome to the wonderful world of… Barbera! … Continue reading →

Hi! My job involves sampling/drinking lots of wine (I’m sure this won’t have come as a surprise to you!), and because of this I am a very lucky person. Not for all the reasons you are probably thinking. I am … Continue reading →