Episode 48: Grapes That Matter: How the Core 25 Actually Work

In today’s episode we explored how a handful of key grape varieties — Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Riesling, Grenache, and Nebbiolo — interact with environment, soil, and winemaking to shape quality and style in D3 theory. We talked about how understanding those interactions — not just memorising traits — helps you connect vineyard decisions to wine outcomes with precision.That conversation comes directly from the Substack article “D3 Cheat-Sheet: Grapes That Matter,” where I introduce the Core 25 Grid and encourage you to build your own factor → cause → effect → style connections for the grapes you’re most likely to see in essays. It’s not a list to memorise. It’s a framework to reason with.If you haven’t yet, the article is a useful companion to this episode — especially if you’re preparing for essays that ask you to explain grape behaviour in context, not just describe it.You can read it here:https://thesommpour.substack.com/p/d3-cheat-sheet-grapes-that-matter This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thesommpour.substack.com/subscribe