Varietals & Blends

In general, a varietal wine is a wine made from a single grape variety and a blended wine is a wine made from more than one grape variety. Blended wines are not something new and they are in no way inferior to varietal wines. In fact the Europeans have been blending wines for centuries and some of the most famous and most expensive wines in the world, like Bordeaux, are blended wines.

While it seems like a contradiction in terms, some varietal wines are in fact blended with other varieties. For example, Cabernet Sauvignon is traditionally blended with various combinations of Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot to soften it and improve its drinkability at a younger age. Varietals are blended to improve the end product without significantly changing the varietal characteristics of the wine. It is not always obvious from the label that a particular varietal wine is in fact a blend. As long as the wine contains 75% or more of the principal variety, U.S. law allows it to be labeled as if it was unblended. This allowable percentage varies by country, but all are in the area of 75% to 80%.

By contrast, non-varietal wines are blended to create something altogether new. The intent is to create a wine whose character is different from any of its constituent grape varieties. For example, Francis Coppola produces a wine that is 47% Zinfandel, 32%, Cabernet Sauvignon and 21% Syrah. Coppola’s intent was not to create an improved Zinfandel, but to create something completely different. Drinking this blend you get suggestions of each of the three varieties, but the wine is like none of them.

So what’s in a name? If it’s not a Zinfandel or a Cabernet Sauvignon or a Syrah then what do you call it? Many of these non-varietal blended wines are labeled with one of the popular generic terms designating a blend; cuvee, claret, meritage, or just table wine. Others are given proprietary brand-names like Trilogy or Signature or in the case of the Coppola wine above, Rosso Classic. But in either case, the name doesn’t convey much information about the makeup of the wine, other than it’s not a varietal.

Many producers will disclose the actual content of their non-varietal blended wines on the label. Fewer, but some, will disclose the content of their varietal blends. This type of information will ordinarily appear on the back label, but occasionally it will show up on the front. So the next time you buy a bottle of wine, read both the front and back labels. You may be surprised what’s in there.