Don’t FALL for It! Wine and Liquor Misconceptions You Should “LEAF” Behind (See What I Did There?)

As you can imagine, the team at Viscount fields a wide range of questions—and more than a few misconceptions we’ve had to debunk. Here are a few worth sharing.

MYTH 1: SCREW CAPS MEAN CHEAP WINE

This stems from the days when screw caps were used almost exclusively on bulk, low-cost wine. Although screwcaps are less expensive, other benefits have driven the switch. Many premium producers—particularly in New Zealand, Australia, and increasingly elsewhere—use screw caps deliberately because they create a more consistent seal than cork. Cork is porous and can vary bottle to bottle, occasionally leading to a musty flaw known as “cork taint.” The consistent quality of screw caps provides peace of mind for winemakers and a positive drinking experience for consumers. 

MYTH 2: OLDER IS BETTER

Somewhere around 90 percent of wines are made to be enjoyed within one to three years of release. Some bottles, generally those with high acidity and firm tannin, can improve significantly with extended aging. Leave an everyday bottle in the cellar for 10 years, however, and you’re more likely to end up with something flat and tired (and dusty) than something transcendent. Looking for something special that is worth the wait or, even better, one that we have already aged for you? We can help with that, and no patience required!

The belief that older liquor is always superior is also a common misconception. Every spirit has an optimal maturation “sweet spot;” leaving it in a barrel for too long leads to over-oaking. Also, unlike wine, spirits stop aging entirely once bottled, so a bottle of scotch opened today that you bought 20 years ago doesn’t improve no matter how long it has sat on a shelf.

MYTH 3: PINK WINE IS SWEET; AND THE DARKER THE SWEETER

Thanks to the popularity of white zinfandel in the 70s and 80s, misconceptions about pink wines linger. Thankfully, the rosés of today are nothing like that! For the record, it is not made by mixing red and white wine together, and believe it or not, the color has nothing to do with how sweet or dry the wine is. Since the juice is always white, the shade of a pink depends on how long the grape skins sit in the juice during production, and some red grapes naturally have thicker skins or deeper pigments, producing a darker color even with short contact times. Although a darker pink is often indicative of a fuller-bodied wine, it is definitely NOT an indicator of sugar content.

MYTH 4: SULFITES CAUSE WINE HEADACHES

Sulfites get blamed constantly, but the evidence doesn’t hold up, especially since most foods, including dried fruit, contain far higher sulfite concentrations than wine without the same reputation. True sulfite sensitivity is relatively rare and typically manifests as respiratory symptoms, not headaches. More likely culprits include histamines, tannins, congeners from the fermentation process, or simply alcohol itself when dehydration is factored in.

MYTH 5: TEQUILA AND MEZCAL ARE PRETTY MUCH THE SAME THING

Tequila and mezcal are both agave spirits, but tequila must be made from blue Weber agave, mainly in Jalisco, while mezcal can use over 30 agave varieties across states like Oaxaca. Mezcal is traditionally pit-roasted, giving it a smoky flavor, whereas tequila is steamed, resulting in a cleaner taste. All tequila is technically a mezcal, but not all mezcal is tequila.

SEPARATE FACT FROM FICTION

At the end of the day, the best way to actually know what you like is to taste widely, ask questions, and let a bottle’s contents—not its cork, price tag, or age statement—do the talking. Also, watch for more classes in our Viscount Academy series to help you separate fact from fiction and fall in love with wine and spirits all over again!