The last time you had a glass of wine did you take the time to taste it, savor the aroma, and even look at the color. Maybe not, but if you learn to taste wine properly you may find that you had never really experienced a glass of wine before. When you are given a glass of wine, the first thing you should do is look. The color of the wine can tell you a few secrets. In red wines the color lightens as it ages therefore the lighter color the better the taste.
For white wines, the color will darken with age and the older the white wine gets the fewer flavors remains. After you have looked and examined the color the next step is to swirl the wine. Swirling is why wine testers pour only a couple of ounces in a glass. You gently swirl the wine around in the glass. The point of this is to aerate the wine, or let oxygen into the wine.
The flavors and aroma will become stronger when you do this. The next step is to put your nose as close to the wine as possible and sniff. The first sniff is to smell for anything bad, or if the wine is past its prime. If you detect any sour or vinegar smell it is bad and then returns it for a fresh bottle.
After you have found the first sniff okay swirl the wine slightly and take a long deep smell. You can now close your eyes and try to decipher the smells. Do you smell berry, oak, rose? With a little practice you will be able to soon decipher the smells and tell what kind of wine you have. The next step is to sip.
This may sound easy but be sure to take your time. Take a slow sip but don't swallow yet! Slowly swish the wine around your mouth so all four taste buds on you tongue get a taste. Is it sweet, bitter, fruity? As you swallow part your lips and take a small breath in through your mouth. This allows you to taste what you smell! Is it dry or wet, sweet? As you swallow wait for the aftertaste.
The longer the aftertaste the better the wine, is the aftertaste smooth and long lasting? At last stop and savor! Think about the flavor, was it fruity, woodsy, or sweet. Did the flavor linger or go away quickly? Was the smelly smooth or dry? Was the wine worth the money you paid for it? Now that you can taste wine properly there is only one more thing to know. Wine taste is about a matter of opinion. How do you know if the wine was good or bad? If you liked it then its good, if you didn't it's bad! Enjoy you're new talent!.
Gregg Hall is an author living in Navarre Florida. Find more about this as well as Stemware and Dinnerware at http://www.dinnerwareandstemware.com
