Grape Families

Climate informs which grape varieties grow best in an area, leading vineyards across the US to offer an astounding range of flavor profiles

Most of the wines we see come from Vitis vinifera vines, and give us merlot, pinot noir, chardonnay, etc, but in places like Missouri, Ohio, South Dakota and Kentucky, hybrid vines create other wines. Zetong Li/Unsplash

Most people who drink wine on a regular basis have their favorite varieties. Most of us tend to stick with these grapes for years or decades, rarely straying from the familiar.

More adventuresome wine people like trying wines from places they didn’t know existed or from grapes they know nothing about. Depending on where you live, there may be a whole range of local wines that are non-mainstream.