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Which wine tastes best?
How good a wine tastes is a matter of personal preference. Even the most expensive and highest-rated wine does not automatically taste good to everyone - on the contrary, these wines are often particularly demanding from a sensory point of view.
The taste of a wine essentially depends on the aromas and the content of residual sugar, acidity,tannins and alcohol. Ideally, all these components are in a harmonious balance. Some people prefer dry wines, others residually sweet wines, some people like fresh acidity, others are sensitive to it, some people appreciate powerful, full-bodied wines, others prefer slender, light wines.
To find out one's own preferences, only one thing helps: try it! You can then pay attention to which flavour, which grape variety and/or which region of origin you like the most or don't like at all. In this way, you gradually gain a feeling for which wine or type of wine you like best.
"Objective" quality
If the question of which wine tastes best should rather be understood in terms of which wine is best (i.e. objectively of the highest possible quality ), other criteria can be consulted. Basically, the lower the yield, the closer the geographical origin and the higher the quality of the terroir(climate, soil, topography as well as methods of vineyard cultivation and winemaking), the better the wine. These factors are reflected in the respective quality level or protected designation of origin that the wine bears on the label. ( For details, see the question "What factors influence wine quality?")
For the most important European wine-producing countries, the following indications suggest that the wine in question is of high quality:
- Germany: GG(Großes Gewächs, officially VDP.Grosses Gewächs)
- Austria: DAC (Districtus Austriae Controllatus)
- France: AOC/AOP (Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée/Protégée = controlled/protected designation of origin)
- Italy: DOCG (Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita = controlled and guaranteed designation of origin) or DOC/DOP (Denominazione di Origine Controllata/Protetta = controlled/protected designation of origin)
- Spain: DOCa (Denominación de Origen Calificada = qualified designation of origin) or DO/DOP(Denominación de Origen Protegida = protected designation of origin)
In addition, organically or biodynamically produced wines are in many cases better than conventionally produced wines. The seal of an organic association(Demeter, Ecovin, Bioland, Naturland etc.) or at least the EU organic seal on the bottle provides information about this.