Types Of Grape Varieties you should know about or that may be seen in India shortly :

1. A-G

2. M-P

3. Q-Z

Malbec (Mahl-bek) - Red-wine grape used as a nominal element of the Bordeaux blend, where it's intense color and extract add to the wine's body. However this grape has come into its own in Argentina and nearly all the top Argentinian wines showcase this varietal.

Malvasia (Mahl-va-SEE-ah) - Italian white-wine grape, often blended with other grapes (including the traditional Chianti), occasionally seen as a 100 percent varietal.

Marsanne (Mahr-sahn) - Excellent white-wine grape of the Rhone, increasingly planted in California.

Merlot (Mare-low) - Very good red-wine grape, a key player in the Bordeaux blend, more recently grown as a varietal in its own right, especially in the US, Australia, Chile, Washington State and Argentine. Wine-geeks will always talk about its "softness". We didn't know what they meant till we tasted it.

Mourvèdre (Moor-VED'rr) - Red grape commonplace in Southern France, Languedoc and the Rhone, also Spain (where it is known as Mataro) and, increasingly, California.

Müller-Thurgau (MEW-lehr Toor-gow) - Relatively modern grape, perhaps a Riesling-Sylvaner cross.

Muscadet (Moos-cah-day) - A light, dry Loire white wine made from a grape of the same name (alternatively named Melon ("May-lawN"), sometimes showing a light musky or cantaloupe quality.

Muscat (Moos-caht) - Aromatic, ancient grape with a characteristic grapefruity and musky (as the name implies) aroma.

Nebbiolo (Nay-BYOH-low) - Noble grape of Northwestern Italy's Piedmonte region, source of such powerful and age worthy red wines as Barolo, Barbaresco and Gattinara.

Petit Verdot (Peh-tee Vehr-doe) - Red wine grape, fine quality but a minor player in the Bordeaux blend.

Petite Sirah (Peh-teet See-rah) - California red grape, probably the same as the Durif of the Rhone.

Pinot Blanc (Pee-noe BlahN) - White wine grape, making a dry, full white wine that some liken to Chardonnay, but typically medium in body and sometimes showing melon scents.

Pinot Gris (Pee-noe Gree) and Pinot Grigio (Gree-joe) - French and Italian names, respectively, for the same grape, typically making a dry and very crisp and acidic white wine.

Pinot Meunier (Pee-noe Mehr-n'yay) - Relatively uncommon as a varietal, but frequently used in the Champagne blend.

Pinot Noir (Pee-noe Nwar) - Classic red grape, widely accepted as one of the world's best. Think Burgundy when you think of this grape. In the last few years, Oregon has emerged as one the best regions for this grape.

Pinotage (Pee-noe-tahj) - A cross between Pinot Noir and Cinsaut of the Rhone, grown commercially only in South Africa, where it makes a fruity, dark red wine with an odd earthy character often described as "paintbox."