Wine Basics | Giggly Grapes

Vintage vs Non-Vintage Champagne: The Difference Explained

16/05/2024

Two Champagne bottles and two flutes, one paler and one deeper gold

Non-vintage is a blend of years made for consistency; vintage is one great year aged longer. How each is made, how they taste, what they cost and which to buy.

MCC vs Champagne: The Difference, and Which One to Buy

13/05/2024

Two glasses of sparkling wine side by side on a timber table

Same method, different place, very different price. What Méthode Cap Classique is, how the rules compare to Champagne, and when each one is the right bottle.

Best Cheese With Orange Wine: What to Serve and Skip

23/04/2024

Aged gouda, comte and washed rind cheese beside a glass of amber orange wine

Aged gouda, comte and washed rind cheeses are the best match for orange wine. The full board, what to avoid, and a bottle to try tonight.

Albariño Wine Pairing: The Foods It Was Built For

19/03/2024

A platter of oysters with lemon beside a glass of crisp white wine

Albariño is a seafood wine first and a flexible one second. Here is what it matches best, what to avoid, how to serve it, and an honest pick when none is in stock.

Wine With Salami: What Fat, Salt and That Tang Really Need

10/03/2024

Sliced salami on a board with olives and bread beside a glass of red wine

Salami is fermented, not just cured, so it brings its own acidity. That is why Sangiovese, Barbera and dry Lambrusco work and a big Cabernet does not.

Lemon Chicken Wine Pairing: Two Dishes, Two Different Wines

04/03/2024

Roast lemon chicken with lemon halves beside a glass of white wine

Battered takeaway lemon chicken and roast Greek lemon chicken are not the same dish and do not want the same wine. Here is the split, plus one stocked dry Riesling.

Wine With Eggplant Parmigiana: What to Pour and What to Avoid

02/03/2024

Baked eggplant parmigiana beside a glass of red wine

You are not pairing the eggplant, you are pairing baked tomato, melted cheese and olive oil. Here is why Sangiovese wins, and what to do about lasagna.

Mendoza Wine: The Argentine Region Behind Your Malbec

17/12/2023

Glass of Malbec with vineyards and the Andes behind

Mendoza makes two thirds of Argentina's wine in a desert fed by Andes snowmelt. What it tastes like, why altitude matters, and one bottle to start with.

Australian Riesling: Why It Tastes of Lime and Ages for Decades

09/12/2023

Glass of pale Riesling beside fresh limes on slate

Australian Riesling is dry, not sweet. Why it tastes of lime, how Clare and Eden differ, how long it really lasts and what to eat with it.

Best Wine for Sangria: What to Buy (and What to Skip)

06/12/2023

Jug of red sangria with orange slices beside a bottle of red wine

Cheap, dry and fruity beats expensive every time. The red and white grapes that make good sangria, the ones to avoid, a jug recipe and how strong a glass really is.