Italy: Wine grapes are grown on every small plot of land available in Italy, but the best wines come from Tuscany, in the middle of Italy and the Veneto and Piedmont regions in the north.

Germany: The Rhine and The Mosel areas of Germany produce the majority of German wine. Most of Germany's wine is white wine: Riesling and Rulander (Pinot Gris).

United States: Although delicious wines are being grown in new areas of the country all of the time (such as Virginia), the majority of wine produced in the United States comes from three states: California, Oregon, and Washington state.

Spain: The bulk of Spain's wine, most of it red wine, is produced in the Rioja region, in north-central Spain, and the Ribera del Duero region, north of Madrid. There are also some very good white wines made in Galicia, in northwest Spain.

Australia: Australia's wine regions are mostly in the southern, cooler section of the country, particularly the states of South Australia, Victoria and New South Wales. Within South Australia, look for wines from the Barossa Valley, Clare Valley, and McLaren Valley.

New Zealand: Cooler than Australia, New Zealand's climate is greatly influenced by the ocean. New Zealand is a nation of two islands : North and South. On the North Island, wines are produced around Auckland and Hawkes Bay, known for its Cabernets. On the south island, Marlborough is the primary wine-growing region. Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay wines grown here take on a unique flavor with ripe tropical fruit overtones.

Other: South African wines are becoming increasingly popular and are generally more affordable than their European cousins. The five major wine-growing districts there are: Constantia, Durbanville, Stellenboch, Paarl, and Franschhoek Valley (a subdistrict of Paarl). South Africa's dominant grape varietal is Chenin Blanc, often called "Steen."

French wine law is the model for most of the world's wine laws. According to French law, there are four possible ranks a French wine can carry: