People think that wine “tasting” makes you a pretentious bastard. But all my friends that have now tried it have admitted, however begrudgingly, that for the first time they can taste the difference between grape varieties and even the difference between wines from cooler and warmer climates. So not only does it help them choose wine they’ll actually like, but they also have a lot of fun in the process.
Step One: Look
Pour yourself some wine. Ok, hold it there - you only want a small sample or this won’t work. So just two fingers into a decent sized glass. Hold the glass at an angle, preferably against a sheet of white paper, and look at the colour. If it’s a white wine, is it lemon, gold or amber? For red, is it purple, ruby or verging on brown?
The colour of the wine is determined by age, grape variety and region. White wines develop from water white to lemon yellow to dark amber as they age. Reds go from purple/pink to ruby and finally to brown. The warmer the region, often the more opaque the wine will look. So a young Shiraz from South Australia will be very dark but still very much purple.
Other observations worth making: are there bubbles? (this could either be a very young, spritzy wine like Muscadet or, of course, a sparkling wine). As you swirl the glass you may notice the wine runs slowly down the inside of the glass, and this is what we call ‘legs’. Lots of legs indicates the wine is either higher in alcohol or sugar, so New World wines tend to have more legs than Old World wines because the grapes are often much riper. Dessert and fortified wines tend to be pretty “leggy” too.
Step Two: Smell
This is where the sample size is important as you don’t want to pour it down your front (definitely not a good look). Swirl the wine around the glass to get some air in there, and then stick your nose in and have a smell. By mixing air into the wine you’ll get the maximum aromas possible. What can you smell? Citrus/white/tropical fruits? Grassy leafy aromas? Nuts? Vanilla? The possibilities are endless!
Step three: taste!
This is the fun part. You’ve all laughed at Oz Clarke, it’s now your turn. Take a sip and, as you do this, take some air with it, sucking through your front teeth (why do you think us wino’s always avoid the dentist?). Then make sure you let the wine get to every corner of your mouth, let it coat your cheeks. Avoid gargling. The flavours often echo the aromas in wine, particularly in young New World wines. Just remember that as a wine ages (so long as it’s of good quality) it will develop more non-fruit aromas and flavours (e.g. the petrol in Riesling and the farmyard in Pinot Noir), making it a more complex, exciting wine.
REMEMBER! Wine tasting is very personal, perceptions differ so don’t be scared to say what you think. Here are some basic guidelines to help you on your way.
• Citrus fruits, grass, elderflowers, and gooseberries suggest Sauvignon Blanc. Warmer climates produce riper fruits (e.g. pineapple). If you like this, try out Spanish Albarino, Austrian Gruner Veltliner.or English Bacchus.
• Melons, peaches, vanilla and butter, suggests Chardonnay. Again the warmer the climate the riper the fruit flavours. Vanilla/nutty/buttery flavours indicates the wine has been aged in oak barrels. Unoaked Chardonnays are a great bet if you don’t like this as they’re all about the fruit. If you like this, try some Viognier, Chenin Blanc, or Pinot Gris from the New World.
• Limes, flowers, flint or petrol, suggests Riesling (the petrol thing isn’t bad but is indicative of an aged Riesling or one from a hot climate like Australia). Riesling comes in all kinds of styles. Some German versions are particularly divine. Just make sure you go to a decent wine shop that can recommend something to you.
• Rose petals, turkish delight and lychees suggests Gewurztraminer. Try drinking this with really pungent cheese like Munster as it’s the only wine with enough va-va-voom to stand up to it
• Blackcurrant, chocolate, tobacco and mint suggests Cabernet Sauvignon. If you like this, keep your eyes peeled also for Cabernet Franc, Cab Sav’s less aristocratic first cousin. Merlot is also very similar (I often mistake it for Cab Sav in blind tastings!) but a little riper, softer and easier to drink.
• Blackberries, black pepper and chocolate suggests Syrah (aka Shiraz, courtesy of the Aussies). If this is to your liking, try bagging yourself some South African Pinotage or Argentinian Malbec.
• Raspberries, strawberries, violets and ‘farmyard’ aromas, suggests Pinot Noir (the ‘farmyard’ thing is classic of aged red Burgundies, not so obvious in New World Pinots which are far more jammy). Pinot Noir tends to be a lighter red wine - perfect for summer drinking. If you like this, look out for Grenache or Beaujolais (the proper stuff, eg Fleurie, NOT “Beaujolais Nouveau”).
• If you can smell musty old socks or wet dog send it back, it’s corked!
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