Collegiate Times

When beginning to discover wine, many people prefer whites and have a hard time warming up to red wines. They may be stronger in taste and make your mouth feel a little dry — but they offer a complexity that a lot of whites lack, and I find them to be much tastier.

For the first few red wines, you want to start with something light. Don't immediately go to cabernet sauvignon, one of the stronger reds. I suggest starting off with one of my favorite wines: pinot noir (pronounced something like "Pea-no No-wa").

Pinot noir is a prima-donna grape: it is difficult to grow and ferment and requires a lot of special attention. For this reason, the resulting wines can be a little more expensive but worth every penny. Pinot generally has softer tannins. Tannins are chemicals in red wine, derived from the grape's skin, which create that dry mouth sensation when you swallow. Tannins break up fatty substances, which is why red wines go so well with high fat red meats and heavy cream sauces.

One of my favorite things about pinot is the smell. I am often reminded of a bowl of cherries when drinking a glass of pinot, there is a wonderful fruity smell of cherries, raspberries and rose petals.

The flavor of pinot noir matches these smells; it is very fruity and should have a velvety texture in your mouth that makes this wine very sensual. While this is a rich wine, it is not heavy, especially compared to other wines. The fruitiness and light, but still complex, character of pinot noir makes it a great introduction to red wines.

The Burgundy region in France (sometimes identified by its French name "Bourgogne" on the bottle) has had the most success with this grape and is largely responsible for the reputation of pinot noir. I find that the pinots from France are the best ones — I have never really enjoyed pinots from any other region as much. In fact, although it is my favorite wine, I am often disappointed by Californian Pinot Noirs.

With French wines, keep this in mind: wines are named after their region, not the grape. Because of this, you usually won't see a wine in the "France" section of the store that says "Pinot Noir" (I have seen this, but not often). So you need to know what regions produce what types of wine. For pinot noir, pick up a bottle of Burgundy.

One inexpensive but delicious pinot that runs around $10 is called "Moulin Rouge Pinot Noir." This is a light red that has a wonderful fruity smell and taste and is a good example of pinot noir. This wine is available at Kroger and is frequently on sale. You'll find it on the bottom shelf of the "France" section.

United States has also had some success with pinots, Oregon in particular. If you are going to try an American Pinot Noir, I would start with one from Oregon, whose climate is similar to Burgundy and makes similar style wines. In particular, look for wines from Willamette Valley, the major wine making region in Oregon.

Pinot Noir is paired easily with food, in particular plain slices of roast beef, and many people love it with salmon. It is suggested that the food you eat with Pinot is not heavily seasoned, as the seasons will mask the flavor of the wine and bring out a more pungent alcohol flavor.

I find pinot noir to be enjoyable on its own, too, it is one of my favorite wines to sit and sip while watching TV or talking with friends. Don't shy away from red wines and give pinot noir a try. Its fruity character and soft texture make it an excellent introduction to reds.