Although white Burgundy is a popular wine that is prepared with Aligote, a lesser known grape, the fact remains that white Burgundy can t be made without the use of Chardonnay grape. What this goes to show, is that Chardonnay grapes have more than a few uses. In appearance, Chardonnay grapes are green in color with thin skins. This very exhilarating type of wine is made from black grapes, drawing their color from the skins of the grapes. During the beginning stages of making red wine, the grapes that have been picked are put into a crusher. Here, the crusher will gently break the skins of the grapes. Depending on what type of wine is being made and the tannin that s required, the stalks will either be used or discarded at this point. Even though sparkling wine is made in various locations, many agree that the best place is the Champagne region of France - which is where sparkling wine first began and was first introduced to the world. These days, sparkling wine is an essential part of life, for celebrations and events. With most celebrations, sparkling wine is simply a must have. When the wine is swirled around in the glass, the swirling will release the flavors in the wine and bring them out when the wine is tasted. At wine tastings, you ll need to look at the wine, smell it, then after swirling it around in the glass - taste it. Smells play an integral part of the process, as you ll get a lot more from the wine by smelling it first. Once your tongue detects these various sugars, the stimulation of sweetness from the wine will be ever so present in your mouth. Alcohol is also present in wine, although your tongue doesn t really know how to decipher the taste of alcohol. Even though the tongue doesn t really taste alcohol, the alcohol is present in the mouth. To prevent damage to the wine from sediment, you should also store wine in a location that is free of vibration. If you store wine in places that are free from vibration, it will give the sediment in the bottle ample time to settle. Vibrations are never a good thing for wine, as the sediment becomes unsettled and can ruin the wine or shake it to the point where it tastes horrible.