Red blend wines are popular wines among most wine enthusiasts worldwide. They are the most trending wine types among consumers and the wine industry. Their appropriate pairing with rich foods and wines or grapes makes them common in various places in the market, from the high-end wine shops, liquor stores to supermarkets.
These wines come with recognizable labels and names, making them a better alternative for everyone to suit different occasions. But, what is red blend wine? Read through the article to understand everything about the red blend and why you should choose them over the single grape varieties.
What Is Red Blend Wine?
Red blend wines are a popular type of wine in the worldwide liquor market. It’s a simple red blend that doesn’t come from a specific variety, but manufacturers make it from many wines or grapes. Merlot, Pinot Noir, Graciano, and many others are the common red wines that producers blend to get these wines.
The production of the wine from a wide range of different red grapes and wines provides a wide range of options when looking for the best wine. However, it’ll be good to properly understand the taste and types to get the right one for your needs. After blending, these wines come in different qualities, textures, tastes, aromas, and flavors.
What is the Taste of Different Red Blend Wines?
When choosing the right wines for your needs or occasions, taste is an essential factor to consider. The red blend wines come with a wide range of tastes, where some are sweeter, while others have a variation of being less sweet, medium, and full-bodied. Below are the popular tastes of the different red blends:
1. Chianti blends
It’s one of the famous Italian red wines originating from Tuscany. Manufacturers blend it with various grapes like Cabernet Franc or Cabernet Sauvignon to get a dry and medium-bodied wine. The Chianti in the blend makes the red wine blends have red fruit, balsamic vinegar, gentle cherry tart, and dried taste. Additionally, you may find a brand with rich, savory flavors and tastes after pairing them with Italian foods.
2. Rioja blends
The Rioja is a unique red wine originating from Northeast Spain and contains Tempranillo grapes. Manufacturers blend this wine with Maturana Tinta, Marzullo, or Graciano grapes to achieve a sweet taste. Apart from the sweet taste, it also comes with vanilla, dill, cherry, or plum flavors and has low acidity. Experts recommend that you take older Rioja blends as they come with tannins with moderate oak flavors that bring a medium sweetness.
3. Lambrusco blends
It’s a common red wine blend with a sweet and chilled flavor. The Lambrusco blends are easy to drink as many individuals consider them a refreshing and bubbly light wine. Its floral aroma having juicy berry varieties makes it a better alternative for your holiday drink. To get the best taste, you can pair it with crackers, salty cheese, and spicy charcuterie.
4. Pinot Noir blends
The pinot noir blends are the best alternative when looking for the right light-to-medium red wine having a relatively low alcohol content. These wines come with an earthy, pleasant fruity flavor due to their rich vanilla taste. This versatile red blend is fun to drink as it’s smooth and allows you to pair it with different foods like duck, salmon, roasted chicken, etc.
5. Merlot blends
The merlot blends are full-bodied deep red wines common in most stores. It’s the appropriate choice for red blend wine enthusiasts due to its fruity chocolate and cherries flavors. Beginners will find it proper as it contains low sugars, and you can easily combine it with numerous fast foods like burgers, pizza, or other pasta.
6. Cabernet Sauvignon blends
It’s a common darkish red wine common in most liquor stores worldwide. Manufacturers blend it with various grapes and wines to produce different tastes, which vary with the duration. Generally, these blends have tobacco, black cherry, vanilla, and green pepper flavors. Beginners also find it the best alternative due to its great and mildly sweet taste.
7. Malbec blends
It’s a full-bodied red wine whose flavor depends on the cultivation location. Nonetheless, most blends come with flavors of black cherry and a chocolate taste when taking it. The smooth and dry wine also comes with a tinge of raspberry. It’s ideal for individuals who love non-sweet dry wine and want to pair them with dark meat, poultry, and salmon.
Common Wines Found in Red Blend Wine
Manufacturers produce red blend wine by combining various red wines to achieve a high-quality red blend wine. Below are the most popular wines in the red blends:
1. Cabernet Sauvignon
It’s the king of red wines common in most red blends due to its consistent and steady growth. Producers grow it in different appellations to produce red wines with longevity, richness, and depth. You can easily blend it with Petit Verdot or Merlot to make a complex and delicious wine. This wine comes with the best flavors intensity and strong acidity, making it easy to mix with others to get a delicious and fruity taste.
2. Merlot
Merlot has been a top and famous red wine in most red blends since the 1990s due to its high acreage. You can find many variations of the merlot, like the Cabernet-style Merlot, with up to 25% of the wine. Merlot is the appropriate option for a wine that offers less tannic, intense herb tastes, chocolate notes, and more supple flavor properties. Blending it with other red wines, such as oak, enhances its tannic strength and color.
3. Pinot Noir
It’s an iconic red wine that offers raspberry, classic black cherry spices, and an aroma resembling wilted roses, cola, or tar. Furthermore, the red wines can also offer a simple, herbal, weedy, and even simple taste. Due to its aromas and flavors, you can mix it with different wines to get a glass of great champagne.
4. Malbec
Malbec is a purplish and full-bodied red wine offering top-quality taste and flavor in the different bends. Depending on its origin, its flavors may range from a tinge of raspberry to black cherry. The red wine is also a great smooth and dry wine alternative that’ll leave a great chocolate taste when taking it or the blend. It’s the best option if you’re looking for the best non-sweet dry wine to suit their different occasions and pair with a wide range of fast foods.
5. Zinfandel
It’s a full-bodied red wine with fruity and juicy flavors of strawberries and blackberries. The Zinfandel is a bold wine that’s quite sweet and has a high alcohol content. Manufacturers commonly blend it with single grape wines to enhance their value and complexity. You can also easily pair it with different hot and spicy dishes like Mexican, Indian, and barbecue foods.
Reasons for Choosing the Red Blend Wine over a Single Grape Wine
Blends are some of the popular and interesting wines in the markets. Manufacturers create these blends from different grapes, giving them advantages over the single grapes wine options. Below are the top reason for choosing red blend wine over the single grape options:
1. They come with different tastes and flavors
Unlike single grape wine, these wines come with different tastes and flavors. The taste results from blending different red wines like Port Noir, Merlot, and others to get the red blend wine. Some manufacturers may use red wines or grapes from different regions to enhance the varietal and the flavors.
2. Blended wines are more complex
Most wine manufacturers blend different red wines to enhance the complexity of the red blend wine. Blending helps to enhance the wine’s color, finish, body, texture, and aromas, which makes the wine more complex and well-rounded. For instance, the manufacturers can add potent smelling grapes to your plain wine to enhance their smell and aromas. Furthermore, the different ripeness phases or fermentation vessels enhance their value.
3. Blended wines provide an endless quality option
When looking for the best wine for your occasion, it’ll be imperative to consider the quality. Choosing a quality wine will help provide value for your money and enhance its suitability. Blended wines offer the appropriate option for quality wine, as it’s always smoother and fresher. Additionally, you may blend different varieties like Sauvignon or Cabernet Franc to enhance the tannin concentration or structure to provide an endless quality wine.
4. Allows you to pair with different foods
The best way to enhance your experience when taking wine is by pairing it with appropriate foods. Choosing blended wines over single grape wine is vital when pairing your wine with different foods. Unlike the single grape wine with a single aroma or flavor, choosing a red blend wine will be vital to allow easy pairing. You can pair blended wine with a wide range of foods, including fast foods.
5. They are cost-effective options
Red wine blends also offer more cost-effective wine options than the high-quality single grape brands. Getting a high-quality single grape wine with various flavors and tastes is usually expensive. Nevertheless, manufacturers may add a percentage of different grapes to the singles varietal to better design and quality. Blending different grapes or wines enhances its quality and complexity at an affordable rate, making it a pocket-friendly option.
Concluding Thoughts
Red blend wines are the best options for the appropriate wines, as they come from different red wines and grape varieties. These wines have different qualities due to the varying tastes and aromas from the different blends. Manufacturers blend different red wines like Merlot, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon to enhance their predictability and drinkability. Their high quality, versatility, cost-effective and complex properties make it a better alternative to single grape wines.
