Wednesday, March 20, 2013
What Does NV Mean on a Wine Label?
"NV" on a wine label means "Non-Vintage". This means it is a wine made from grapes from more than one harvest. This is very common in Champagne, where the goal of the winemaker is to match a specific flavor and style, so wines are blended over the course of years to create a specific flavor. In other wines, it can be a method to deal with an especially poor growing year, to maintain a winemaker's quality standards.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I have also sometimes seen specific vintage champagnes, but they seem to be more expensive.
ReplyDeleteA "vintage" champagne means that wine-maker feels it was an ideal growing year for the grapes, and that they can create a wine that matches their quality standards without blending. Not quite sure why that translates to more expensive, but that's how it is.
ReplyDelete