Two thirds of wine drinkers in Wigan can't pronounce world's top wines

Over a quarter of wine drinkers in Wigan don’t drink the wine they want - because they can’t pronounce it.

A survey of 2,000 people by Spanish wine brand Marqués de Cáceres has revealed just how many Brits are getting in a tizzy over the names of their favourite tipples.

Over half of people in Wigan can’t pronounce Chianti correctly (55 per cent), just under a quarter of people say Rioja in the right way and over two thirds (73 per cent) slip up when trying to say Riesling.

This leads to awkward social situations, with one in four saying they’ve changed their order in a restaurant or shop because they couldn’t pronounce it, almost half (48 per cent) pointing at a bottle rather than attempting to say its name and almost as many (45 per cent) admitting they’ve been corrected by someone else when they’ve tried to say the name of a wine and got it wrong.

As well as the names, it appears there’s a lot we don’t know about wine in Wigan.

Of those surveyed, three per cent believe you should drink red wine at temperatures above 20 degrees celsius, while nearly a quarter of people in the survey (23 per cent) insist it is served below ten degrees celsius. The ideal temperature for serving red wine is 15 degrees celsius.

When it comes to white wine, which should be served at a crisp, chilled nine degrees celsius, two per cent would serve it at temperatures above 20 degrees celsius, with nearly a third (32 per cent) opting for temperatures below five degrees celsius.

We are equally clueless when it comes to the country of origin of some of the world’s most popular drinks. Over half (59 per cent) of people in Wigan don’t know where Rioja is from (Spain) or that Prosecco is Italian, and nearly as many (52 per cent) do not know Chianti is Italian, while half (50 per cent) do not know Riesling predominantly comes from Germany.

Instead, we choose our wines for different reasons with almost half selecting a bottle purely on price, over a quarter going on a name they’ve previously heard of and some even looking first at the alcoholic strength of the wine before making a choice - this goes for one in 10 men and eight per cent of women.

Cristina Forner, President of Marqués de Cáceres, says: “People should not be afraid of asking the name on a bottle of wine, nor of getting it wrong. You’ll only get it wrong once.

“It’s what is the liquid inside the bottle that matters and by trying new things, people can educate themselves on what they like when it comes to wine.

“When I’m not sure of a wine I’ll simply take a photo of the label on my phone and then I always have it to show at bars or shops.

“Drinking ‘like the locals’ on holiday helps too, as you can discover names that are not as everyday as some of the labels we see in supermarkets.

“Marqués de Cáceres is a family-owned bodega in Rioja that has been producing wines for generations. We are established as a trendy choice with Spaniards and have a name that is completely unforgettable!”