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Article: The taste is all down to the tannins
- Article from:
- Western Morning News, The Plymouth (UK)
- Article date:
- December 30, 2006
CopyrightCopyright 2006 Western Morning News, The Plymouth (UK). Provided by ProQuest LLC. (Hide copyright information)
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Australian red wines are soft, plump, jam-like and high in
alcohol. French reds are harder-edged, lighter in weight, dry-
finishing and lower in alcohol. Both of these assertions are sweeping
generalisations, of course, but they might just ring true.
Why so? It goes something like this: In Australia, there is
relentless sunshine and heat; grapes ripen quickly in recently
planted, irrigated vineyards. These conditions generate thin-
skinned, sugar-rich ripe fruit that makes strong, sweet wine, year
after year.
In France, the weather is unpredictable; grapes ripen slowly and
patchily in ancient vineyards where vine roots grow to great depths