Welcome, sports fans! Welcome, wine fans! I wanted to find out what the most popular varietal wine is (at least among people I could get to participate), so I created Meritage Madness! In this inaugural tournament, I’m pitting top seeds Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon against a field of other popular wine grapes in White and Red regions, to see who comes out on top!

It’s that time of year, when everyone ignores their job to watch 64 teams worth of college athletes play 63 games over the course of 18 days to determine a true and indisputable champion. We’re going to do the same, but with wine grapes.

Here are the seedings:

White Region

Chardonnay Pinot Grigio/Gris Sauvignon Blanc Riesling Viognier Chenin Blanc Gewurtztraminer Semillon

Red Region

Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot Zinfandel Pinot Noir Syrah/Shiraz Petite Sirah Grenache Malbec

How did I pick the seedings? I based it on California tonnage-crushed reports from 2012. Is this fair? I don’t know, but I think the seedings pass the sniff test. And any way, this is just supposed to be fun!

Now, I want to make something clear: this is a popularity contest. In the event you have had wine made from both grapes competing, I’d like you to pick your favorite. If you have had wine from one grape, but not the other, please vote for the one you’ve had. If you’ve had neither, you can leave it blank, flip a coin, or pick the one you’ve heard of / want to try / have a friend who loves, whatever.

Just have fun.

We’ll have the Regional Semifinals next week. Here’s the survey to pick the First Round winners (sorry, voting is now closed):

Enjoy the Tournament! (I mean the real one, on TV, with the hardwood and sneakers and backboards and stuff)