I’ve always loved drinking wine. Although, I started out drinking white zinfandel (eek!) I know… I know.. but you have to start somewhere. It’s so interesting how your palate advances and you can go from drinking super sweet wines to the complete opposite. I never thought you would see me drinking red wine in my entire life- and now I really enjoy it! Even more so after our trip to Napa Valley. I do have to admit that before going there I was a little nervous about all the wine tastings. Let’s be honest, I had no idea what scents and flavors were in each wine- a hint of pear, fresh lavender.. bleh.. bleh.. what are you talking about?? Why on earth do you swirl that glass and sniff it before you drink it!? Do wines really taste better when they are paired with certain foods?? DISCLAIMER: I am by no means an expert in these areas, but I did learn a little bit while in Napa and I have a little bit of an understanding of these things, so now I’m going to share some of that knowledge with you!
1. Why we examine the color?
The first step to wine tasting is examine the color. You look at the color straight down into the glass, from the side of the glass and tilting the glass. The reason you want to take note of the color is because you can learn a lot from the color. Wine gets its color from the skins of grapes {FUN FACT: Wine grapes are actually very sweet}. You might be able to decipher the type of grape by the color and how long the wine sat with the skins (for reds the longer, the darker). White wines tend to become more golden with age. You can also determine the alcohol content by examining the legs {when you swirl the way it falls down in your glass}. Some people believe that the more legs the better the wine will be. So is it really that important? In my opinion- yes and no. I always did notice what the wine looked like, however, I didn’t really use this step very often. I am definitely a beginner- so maybe one day I will have that “ah ha” moment and get it.
2. Why we swirl?
The next step to wine tasting is swirling your glass. Beginners usually leave the glass on the table and swirl so you don’t have red wine poured all over yourself {I think I will always do this beginner or not, I’m always clumsy.} I learned from watching the Food Network that tasting is 80% of smelling. This step- I totally get. When you swirl your glass you are aerating the scents and flavors so they come out. I will vouch that this theory is true. Easy test- smell your wine before swirling and then smell after you swirled. You will note a huge difference in the smells. Being the beginner that I am some can really pin point some scents in the wine. {Fun Fact: Those scents you are smelling are not actually IN the wine- wine is simply grapes and the fermentation process–here I thought they put lavender, chocolate, and citrus in all of these wines somehow} My beginner nose mainly smells the cherry, chocolates, pepper, and florals (and not specific florals either).
3. The Taste
The final step- the best part- is to taste the wine. Have a little sip and try to taste the aromas you just smelled. You will be surprised at what you can taste after the smell and swirl step. Perhaps this is because I’m a beginner, but I didn’t always taste everything I smelled either.
4. Pairing-
Now, if you really want to up the intensity of flavors- then pair your wine with particular foods. Savory.TV has an excellent chart about what to pair with certain wines. I always just thought I wasn’t fancy enough to do this. After having a cheese pairing with wines- I became obsessed. The flavors completely intensify the wine and and the food and just compliment each other so well. Really. I’m not kidding or exaggerating.
What are some of your favorite wines?? How do you prefer to taste them?
Love this post! One of my fav things is going to Coopers Hawk wine members only events because they serve you 3 courses with a different wine for each course! Super yummy! 🙂
October 29, 2014 @ 9:47 pm
I’ve been on a wine tour once, and it was a blast. This is great advice to take my wine tasting skills to the next level!
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November 6, 2014 @ 5:11 pm
So glad you found this helpful!!
October 31, 2014 @ 1:54 am
oohhh.. i wanna go on a wine tasting/tour! I’ve been shifting my taste from beer to cocktails and now to wine! 😀
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November 6, 2014 @ 5:12 pm
It definitely takes time, but i hope you enjoy wine as much as I do one day hahahah!!
November 3, 2014 @ 1:52 am
I am dying to go on a wine tasting!!!! I so pinned this for when I go in the future!
November 6, 2014 @ 5:12 pm
Ooooh you have to! There has to be some wineries near you!
November 4, 2014 @ 10:28 pm
Love this post! One of my fav things is going to Coopers Hawk wine members only events because they serve you 3 courses with a different wine for each course! Super yummy! 🙂
November 6, 2014 @ 5:12 pm
That sounds like sooo much fun! I’d love to do a full food pairing!!