Wine Talk: Varietal vs. Variety

As your liquor store in Knoxville, we try to keep updated with all things liquor related. Here’s what got us researching lately: In wine terminology, the words “varietal” and “variety” are often used interchangeably even though they mean two very different things.

A variety is simply a variety of grape vine and should be treated as a noun.

Varietal is adjective referring to a product itself that is composed of a specific variety.

Varietal Wine

This is made from a single grape variety or a dominant variety with smaller amounts of others blended in. The legal percentage in order to label a bottle and sell in liquor stores as a specific variety differs across the globe. This is to preserve the integrity of the final product.

Oregon state law requires winemakers to use at least 90% pinot noir grapes in order to label it as pinot noir. Other varieties like syrah, cabernet sauvignon, and merlot only need to contain at least 75% of the named variety. This is the same for all wines in California.

However in Burgundy, almost without exception, the whites are required by French law to be 100% chardonnay and the reds 100% pinot noir. European laws tend to be stricter to establish tiers of quality.

Drop by your local liquor store in Knoxville and pick out your favorite bottle of wine – be it varietal or not!

Cheers-

Campbell Station Wine & Spirits, Always of Good Cheer! Your Friendly Farragut wine and liquor store ! Conveniently located on the West End of Turkey Creek in Farragut. It is our pleasure to assist in picking the perfect wine or liquor  for your enjoyment. Visit us today and check out our full inventory that includes popular, premium, and even extremely rare wines and spirits. Don't forget we also sell beer, mixers and other wine accessories.  Visit our website www.campbellstationwine.com or call 865.966.7122

Wine Talk: Varietal vs. Variety

4 Creative Ways to Serve Drinks on Your Wedding

Feeling a little overwhelmed with wedding planning is a pretty frequent scenario. Chances are you may have overlooked a handful yet important details. But why should you let the exhausting decision-making process ruin that special moment of your life? Instead, let your friendly liquor store in Farragut give you some pretty fun ideas on how to serve drinks on Your Big Day. Campbell Station Wine & Spirits will help you narrow down your options for an ultimate wedding to remember!

There are plenty of liquor selections to consider -- from arrival drinks, meal pairings, and after-party beverages. It is important that there is an ample supply of drinks available at the beginning of the reception until the wee hours of the wedding after-party. Instead of serving drinks the traditional way, why not let your creative juices flow and add an artistic flair to it?

1. DIY signature cocktails

Considered as a trend, signature cocktails that the couple themselves made have become a popular staple on weddings today. A tasty bowl of rosemary-citrus punch or a pomegranate Caipiroska is perfect to get the festive mood started for your guests.  Or, you can let your guests help themselves with custom-made champagne shots where they can choose fruit garnishes!

2. Nibble-sized food & drink pairings

Food and drink pairings are undoubtedly a mainstay in modern weddings. But have you tried miniature versions of them? Yup! Amp up the reception and get your guests dancing while you serve them with nibble-sized proportions of prosciutto and mozzarella paired with port shot glasses.

3. Alcohol-free bars

Don't forget your guests who arrived sober and opt to leave the party still sober! You can prepare a DIY bar featuring infused waters and iced teas for a special portion of your guests who wants to go alcohol-free. Add a rustic feel to your DIY stations by using mason jars for your drinks!

4. Brew stations 

How about beers on wedding receptions? Champagnes and other sophisticated wines aren't just the only liquors to steal the wedding spotlight. For the beer-loving couples and guests, a vintage, DIY brew station will surely complete the wedding reception before the night ends.

Cheers-
Campbell Station Wine & Spirits, Always of Good Cheer! Your Friendly Farragut wine and liquor store ! Conveniently located on the West End of Turkey Creek in Farragut. It is our pleasure to assist in picking the perfect wine or liquor  for your enjoyment. Visit us today and check out our full inventory that includes popular, premium, and even extremely rare wines and spirits. Don't forget we also sell beer, mixers and other wine accessories.  Visit our website www.campbellstationwine.com or call 865.966.7122

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Drink and Discuss: The Napa Cabernet

The Napa Cabernet is about uniqueness & balance

Everyday thousands of cabernet sauvignon bottles are sold nationwide at wine stores like ours, Campbell Station Wine & Spirits. The Napa Cabernet is one of the most popular ones. According to the Napa Valley Vintners Association, Napa contributed more than $50 billion to the U.S. economy. That is a lot for a small region which produces 4% of the state of California’s grape harvest.

So we've inquired a bit about what the Napa Cabernet is. The Napa Cabernet itself was inspired by great Bordeaux wines. The pioneers of the style wanted to make red wines that could stand with the greatest reds in the world. For them, that meant Bordeaux. But the Napa Cabernet is even more unique!

According to Silverado Winery whose wines are exclusively featured in-store this week, "what makes a "classic" Napa Cabernet is balance: richness vs. tannins, ripe fruit vs. dried herb aromatics, ageability vs. instant gratification."

"It has to be delicious; great grapes deserve craftsmanship; wine is more interesting when it reflects its origin”, they continue.

What is more is that the Napa Cabernet is meant to go with food. This cannot be easily said for most wines. It's not for no reason that the Napa Cabernet has become the official wine of American steakhouses.

We recommend Silverado Winery Napa Cabernet 2011. It is available in-store at 707 North Campbell Station Road, Farragut, TN 37934.

Happy drinking!

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Cheers-
Campbell Station Wine & Spirits, Always of Good Cheer! Your Friendly Farragut wine and liquor store ! Conveniently located on the West End of Turkey Creek in Farragut. It is our pleasure to assist in picking the perfect wine or liquor  for your enjoyment. Visit us today and check out our full inventory that includes popular, premium, and even extremely rare wines and spirits. Don't forget we also sell beer, mixers and other wine accessories.  Visit our website www.campbellstationwine.com or call 865.966.7122

Wine, Love, and Religion?

Ever wanted to know about the history of wine making? We know you love to drink it, but how did it all start? We've got a bit of interesting history right here from your friendly Farragut wine and liquor store!

It starts with agriculture in Western civilization. The earliest evidence of a fermented drink (from grapes at least) dates back to China 7000 BC. The first cultivation of wild grape vines was known to happen in coastal and southern Turkey. The oldest known  official winery was in Armenia dating back to 4100 BC.

It became more widespread soon after that in the Near East (Mesopotamia, Israel, Egypt). Then the Greeks, Romans, and the Mediterranean areas were the first to cultivate full plantations.

It's all Greek to me?
Believe it or not, the altered consciousness produced by wine is considered "religious". The Greek god Dionysus (god of the grape harvest, winemaking and wine, of ritual madness, religious ecstasy and theatre) was one reason the Greeks considered themselves to be fulfilling a religious good deed when drinking wine!

Wine for all of Society!
During the 15th century and forward as part of the European expansion (exploration and global mapping of the world) wine production and wine consumption became a part of main stream society and popular vineyards, plantations, and wineries became known around the world.

Now we've talked about religion and wine, how about love and wine?
In Persian legend, King Jamshid had banished a lady of his harem. She became so sad and distraught from this she contemplated suicide. She went to the king's warehouse and found a jar marked "poison" (it had the remnants of grapes that had spoiled and had been deemed undrinkable). After drinking the fermented wine, she got her spirits lifted! She took the drink to the king and he became so enamored with this new drink he accepted her back into his castle and declared all grapes grown in his land would now be devoted to wine making!

Cheers-
Campbell Station Wine & Spirits, Always of Good Cheer! Your Friendly Farragut Liquor & Wine Store! Conveniently located on the West End of Turkey Creek in Farragut. It is our pleasure to assist in picking the perfect wine or liquor for your enjoyment. Visit us today and check out our full inventory that includes popular, premium, and even extremely rare wines and spirits. Don't forget we also sell beer, mixers and other wine accessories.  Visit our website www.campbellstationwine.com or call 865.966.7122

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