Wine Tasting Etiquette In Three Easy Steps
Look
You can tell a lot just by looking at the wine. Usually with whites,
color indicates more flavor and age except brown, which can mean the
wine is bad. Reds tend to lighten as they age but different varietals
have different colors. If you tip the glass and look at the "rim" of the
wine you can learn even more. A purple tint can suggest a young wine or
an orange or brown tint can indicate maturity.
Smell
You've seen people swirling the wine around in the glass. Swirling
releases the aroma of the wine but it requires a loose wrist and a
little practice. You don't want to swirl all over your fellow tasters.
You can lose some good wine. So go slowly and while you're swirling,
continue to look at how the wine clings to the glass. If it's thick it
can indicate a higher alcohol content or sweeter wine.
Most recommend taking two whiffs, a quick one for a first impression and
a longer one to really get a feeling for what flavors you smell. Well
over half of what you taste is a result of your smell so this is
important. Put your nose just over the rim of the glass so you can get
the most out of it.
Taste
Finally it's time to taste. There's usually a two-sip
process. The first you let roll around in your mouth. Is it smooth,
harsh, light, heavy? Does it taste like some of the things you smelled?
Take your time.
The next sip you can swish it around in your mouth. Some people even
sort of chew it to get more air in.
The most important thing is to think about what you taste and formulate
your own opinion. See if you can smell those redolent fragrances
of cherry and roses. It's not just whether you like it or not, for scoring you'll need to know how much you like it and exactly why, so give each wine a chance for you to formulate your opinion.
