Pinot Noir

• Pinot Noir is an especially difficult wine to produce, but the outcome is a robust drink that pairs well with a wide variety of foods. The grapes are temperamental and hard to grow, and the fermentation process for this particular wine is so violent that it often bursts the fermentation container. Oak is a natural choice for this process, as the wood is hard and dense enough to keep the barrel from bursting. The wine itself is full-bodied and rich, with a complex cherry aroma and a velvety, neutral taste.

Merlot

• Merlot has recently gained popularity in America. With a similar flavor profile to that of the Cabernets, Merlot tends to have a more fruity and herbaceous taste and smell. Merlot's low acidity gives it a luxuriant feel, an easy to drink trait that wine enthusiasts adore.

Syrah

• The richest and darkest of the oak wines, Syrah -- sometimes called Shiraz -- is a deep purple wine with a spicy aroma. Like all oak wines, Syrah has both light flavors like vanilla and sweet wood and dark flavors like smoke and toast. This nearly black-colored wine is high in tannin and is used in mixed table wines, but also stands alone as a lovely full-bodied, fruity wine.

Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc

• Both members of the Bordeaux family, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc, each have their own distinctive oak barrel-aged flavors. Cabernet Sauvignon is a classic barrel-aged red wine with a distinctive black currant aroma. Wine drinkers love Sauvignon for its taste undercurrents of cedar, violets and smoke. Cabernet Sauvignon has become one of the most popular red wines in America because of its complex oak flavors. Cabernet Franc is generally fruitier and lighter than Sauvignon, and is most often mixed with other reds to produce multi-flavored table wines.