Wine Tasting 101.5 part 1

I am by no means an expert on wine. I don't claim to be and never will. If you want Wine Tasting 101, you should probably consult a qualified sommelier. I can offer you Wine Tasting 101.5 from a humble farm girl who loves good wine at a great price.

Let's start with your first and most important lesson: How to enjoy the wine you are drinking to the fullest.

When you open a new bottle of wine, there are 4 key steps to enjoying that bottle of goodness.

Step 1: Put on your glasses. LOOK at the wine. Read the label on the bottle, what does the wine maker tell you that you should be tasting. This is a good way to prepare yourself and you will start to train your palette. Pour a glass. Look at the wine in the glass...can you see your hand thru the glass? The thickness of the wine is called viscosity. Tip the glass to see how the wine coats the inside, as it runs down the insides of the glass it drips lines, these are called legs. Look at where the wine meets the glass at the top. This is called the meniscus, a darker one=full body.

Step 2: SWIRL. Now would be a good time to change out of that white shirt and put on a black one. This has the potential for a wine mishap. I don't want you slurping off the table so I recommend this: keep your wine glass ON the table. Press your fingers on the top of the base and start to move the glass in a circular motion on the tabletop. Swirling the wine exposes more of it to air and releases more aromas!

Step 3: SNIFF! Stick your nose into your glass and inhale deeply. What do you smell? Does it match what's on the bottle? If not, that's not a wrong answer, everybody's sniffer picks up different things.

Step 4: Finally... TASTE!
Restrain yourself. Take a small sip. Hold it! Let it roll back on your tongue and now...CHEW it. You will figure it out. Ok, now very carefully you need to open your mouth just a little bit and suck in some air. I bet you're glad you changed out of that white shirt now. The point of this is to expose the wine sitting on your tongue to more air. The flavor will explode. Swallow and savor. How long is the finish of the wine, in other words, how long can you taste the wine after it is headed down to your belly? The longer the finish, the better the wine. A long finish can last up to or longer than a minute.

I hope these steps help you enjoy your next new wine test. Or maybe you will discover something new about an old favorite? Let me know how it goes!

Cheers!
Robin