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An editorial guide to obscure wines

Obscure wines.No pedigree required.

This week: Schiava (Vernatsch), for people who love Pinot Noir

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Wine Match

Five guilty pleasures, yes or no. Ben finds the wine you’d actually like. You don’t need to know anything about wine. Ben certainly doesn’t.

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Every wine fact here comes from the grape guides on Wine Underdogs. Ben has never opened a bottle, and neither does this game. For readers 21 and over.

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Editor’s pick

Rheinhessen, Germany

Liebfraumilch: The Ghost of German Wine, and the Grape That Outlived It

Liebfraumilch was once half the wine Germany sent abroad. The bottle faded; one of the grapes inside it, Silvaner, is now the wine worth finding.

Chris Berry · October 30, 2026

Latest

  1. Silvaner · Franken, GermanySilvaner: Germany's Dry White That Isn't RieslingOctober 31, 2026
  2. Wine GuideA Chemistry Map of 126 Grapes, Read for the UnderdogsOctober 29, 2026
  3. Wine GuideMost Red Wine Is Wearing a Costume. Saperavi Came as Itself.October 29, 2026
  4. Saperavi · Kakheti, GeorgiaSaperavi: The Red-Fleshed Georgian Grape, and Where to Find a BottleOctober 29, 2026

This week’s underdog

Schiava (Vernatsch)skee-AH-vah

If you love Pinot Noir, start here.

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Find your next bottle

SwapA famous wineTell us one you know. Get its underdog.BrowseThe grapesEvery underdog, A to Z.ExploreThe field guideUnderdogs by country, on the map.

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Petit Verdot · Israel

Kosher Wine for Hanukkah: Bring the Petit Verdot Nobody Else Will

Every Hanukkah table gets the same kosher Cabernet. Bring Petit Verdot instead: a Bordeaux blending grape almost nobody bottles alone, made kosher in Israel, where the heat finally ripens it.

Wine Guide

The Master Sommelier Cheating Scandal, and 57 Years of the Exam

In 2018 a two-word email cost 23 new Master Sommeliers their titles. Here is what happened, what the exam has looked like since 1969, and whether it has quietly gotten easier. It hasn't.

Voskehat · Armenia

Voskehat and Areni Noir: The Two Grapes Armenia Is Leading With

Armenia has hundreds of grape varieties and is putting two in front of the world. A Concours Mondial de Bruxelles judge explains why Areni Noir and Voskehat are the pair to learn, and why the good bottles cost more than you'd expect.

Why underdogs

I started Wine Underdogs because the same handful of grapes kept crowding out hundreds worth drinking. Great wine doesn’t have to be famous — it just has to be honest, and a little overlooked.

Chris Berry, founder of Wine Underdogs.

Notes from Chris Berry

Founder, taster, and full-time champion of the world’s overlooked grapes, from Portugal’s Alentejo to the cellars of Georgia, Armenia, and the Italian Alps.

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