More Wines of the World Trivia Quiz

Answer: Piedmont

Barolo is made from the Nebbiolo grape, and is one of Italy's greatest wines. The macerating wines were traditionally left in contact with the grape skins for at least three weeks, contributing to the high levels of tannin that were present in the wine.

It was then aged in barrels for over three years after vinification. The product was a wine that needed to be kept for at least ten years before drinking and which could last for many years after that. Recently, however, modern viniculture methods have introduced lighter, less tannic wines as the taste for big wines has decreased.

A shame, in my opinion - an old-fashioned 20-year-old Barolo is a wonderful wine. It's best served with rich pasta dishes or roast meat (especially wild boar). However, it's not cheap - expect to pay at least Ł20 a bottle.

The link with the Italian royal family dates back to the mid-19th Century, when the House of Savoy that ruled Piedmont became the Kings of the newly-unified Italy.

Answer: Portugal

This delightful wine comes from the Minho province in Northern Portugal, where it's been made for hundreds of years from a variety of grape types. The name literally means "green wine" but translates as "young wine" as the wine is normally released between three and six months after making.

Originally malolactic fermentation in the bottle led to the wine's slight spritzy prickle, but these days it's induced by artificial carbonation.

Answer: Mavrodaphne

Mavrodaphne (literally "black laurel") is an extraordinary wine, dark and fragrant with chocolate, coffee and plums on the nose. The grapes are harvested and vinified in large open vats and then the fermentation is stopped by adding spirits distilled from previous vintages, leaving residual sugars.

The wine is left to mature but with the addition of older wine by serial blending. The first time I went to Greece I had a glass of this and was blown away, so a bottle of Mavrodaphne is now top of our shopping list when we arrive on our favourite Greek island.

Answer: Bull's Blood

Bull's Blood from Hungary was the only cheap red wine worth drinking in those days of empty pockets and uneducated palates. It's still around, except that it's now called Egri Bikavér. It's made from a number of different grape varieties, although the Kékfrankos grape is always present.

The Hungarian authorities have tightened up its manufacture: it was the first Hungarian wine to be produced from a specified area, and there are also now Superior and Grand Superior wines. However, the quality is till variable - calling it "weasel spit", however, is perhaps a bit unfair! By the way the famous English author Kingsley Amis was a noted authority on wine, and he described Premier Cru Chablis as tasting like "a mixture of cat's pee and alum" - absolutely correctly in my opinion!

Answer: It was served at Richard the Lionheart's wedding.

Commandaria is made from both black and white grapes; the Greek poet Hessiod described the production of its prototype in 800BCE. The Knights Templar produced large quantities of the wine on their estate in South-West Cyprus for export to royal courts and for pilgrims to drink.

It was indeed served to Richard the Lionheart and his bride Berengaria of Navarre on the occasion of their marriage in Limassol in 1191; he described it as "the wine of kings and the king of wines".

Answer: Sauvignon Blanc

Sauvignon Blanc is the variety that has attracted so much attention and praise. In the early 1980s it was just one of a large number of varieties being planted, but a government initiative led to the removal of many of the high-yielding varieties and their replacement with higher-quality ones. Sauvignon Blanc was the prime beneficiary of this initiative, and soon came to dominate New Zealand's vine planting and its wine exports. I have to confess that because of its acidity I'm not partial to it myself, despite it being such a huge best-seller and the praise that's been lavished on it.

However I've yet to try the more recent production that has been aged in oak barrels.

Answer: Lebanon

The Lebanon region has been producing fine wine for millennia; there is evidence of exports going to Egypt in around 2500BCE, and shipwrecks have been found of Phoenician ships dating from about 750BCE with intact amphorae containing wine preserved by olive oil and resin. I discovered Chateau Musar totally by chance, and I'm very glad I did! It first came to attention at the Bristol Wine Fair in 1979, when the critics fell in love with it.

However it has to be said that as the winery is only 15 miles from Beirut production is sometimes disrupted.

Answer: Chateauneuf-du-Pape

Chateauneuf-du-Pape is one of the great Rhone wines, and the Papal crest on the bottles immediately identifies it. The making of this wine almost certainly began during the mid-14th Century at the time of the Avignon Papacy, probably helped by Pope John XXII; during his reign it was termed "Vin du Pape".

The wines are mainly red, although a white wine accounts for about 5% of production. A veritable cocktail of grape varieties are used, and the wines are high in alcohol and can be kept for years. Looking at the incorrect responses, Hermitage from further up the Rhone valley is my favourite red, Vacqueyras is from an area near Avignon and is often called "the poor man's Chateauneuf-du-Pape", and Tavel is an excellent Provencal rosé.

Answer: Marsala

The Sicilian city of Marsala gave its name to this wine. Demand for it in the UK was so great that by 1796 Woodhouse was mass-producing it, and within a few more years it was also being exported to the rest of Europe and America. Dry Marsala goes well with cheese while sweet Marsala is a wonderful dessert wine as well as being used in making zabaglione and tiramisu.

Answer: Limoux

The Roman historian Livy traded in wines from the Limoux area before AD 10, and the sparkling wine known as Blanquette de Limoux has been produced there for a least 500 years; the Benedictine monks of the Abbey at Saint-Hilaire fully documented its production and bottling in papers dating to 1531. I visited Limoux in 2004, and thoroughly enjoyed sampling the produce of the various local winemakers!