Red wines are produced by mixing the dark grape skins with colorless grape juice for a portion of the fermentation process. Red wines tend to be drying, stronger, and more complex than white wines. Red wines are perhaps more closely associated with the very concept of wine than whites because the red color of red wines so closely matches the color of grapes. If you want to learn about wines, you need to learn about how red wines taste, how they smell, and what foods red wines pair best with.
Colors of Red Wine Grapes
Red wines are created from grapes with the darkest, reddest colors:
- Blue
- Purple
- Purple-black
- Red
Colors of Red Wines
Red wines vary greatly in color, depending on the color of the skins of the grapes they were made from and how long the skins were left in contact with the grape juice during the fermentation process:
- Tawny
- Ruby
- Garnet
- Brownish-red
- Violet
- Purple
- Purple-black
- Maroon
- Dark-red
- Light-red
The color of a wine doesn't directly affect it's flavor, but what causes red wine to be more purple or red will also affect its flavor. Mostly, though, the color of a red wine affects the aesthetic experience of drinking the wine.
