Tasting Wine

Wine Tasting Component I: Look

The first step you have to undertake in wine tasting is visual.

1. Fill up the glass up to 1/3 of its volume; never fill it more than half;

2. Hold the glass by the stem. Initially you may find this too pretentious but there are good reasons for it:

а) by doing it this way you can actually observe the wine in it;

b) this will keep your fingerprints off the bowl;

в) the heat from your palm will not change the temperature of the wine.

There's a good saying by one of the greatest French wine lovers, Emil Painot: Offer someone a glass of wine and you can immediately tell whether he/she is a connoisseur by the way they hold the glass." Even though you may not think of yourself as a connoisseur, you could still learn how to hold the wine glass.

3. Focus on the color intensity and the transparency of the liquid.

a) the color of the wine, and more specifically its nuances, are best observed on a white background.

б) the wine's intensity is best judged by holding the glass without slanting it and looking at the liquid from above;

4. Next comes the swirling of the glass. This can also seem too pretentious or even dangerous if you have a full glass or a white top. But this movement is important since it prepares you for the next step in wine tasting ? the Taste. The easiest way to swirl the glass is to place it on a table or other even surface, and to swirl your hand while holding the glass by the stem. Swirl hard and have the wine almost touch the rim of the glass. Then stop. The wine leaves tiny traces with irregular shapes on the inside of the glass. Some "experts" then read them with as much zeal as coffee-tellers. The truth is however, that they are just an indicator for the quality of the wine ? the more alcohol a wine has, the more wine traces it forms.

What does the color of the wine tell us? The wine's color tells us many things about its character.

First, the color shows the grape variety. Let's take two popular varieties as examples ? cabernet sauvignon and pinot noir. Cabernet's grapes are smaller, with a thicker and darker skin than those of pinot noir. As a result, the color of wines made from cabernet sauvignon is usually described as violet to dark while the color of wines made from pinot noir is associated with ruby.

Second, the color is influenced by the climatic conditions. A hot summer and dry fall result in ripe grapes, with a dark, intense color. A cold summer and rainy fall will produce undeveloped grapes with a lighter color. Third, wine-making practices also have an influence on the color of wine. For red wine, the grapes are fermented with the skin. Since the coloring agents are in the grape skin, and not in the juice, the longer the process of maceration, i.e. the longer the skin stays with the juice, the darker the wine color will be.

Fourth, the process of wine aging also has an influence on the color of wine. The young red wines are rich in coloring agents and that makes their color denser and fuller. In the course of time chemical reactions take place in the bottle and sediment is formed at the bottom. The wine's color gets lighter and is often described as brick or amber.

Let's go through an example: you pour yourself a glass of red wine and after carefully observing it, you notice a full granite color, good density, and not so good transparency. What conclusions can you draw? Well, you can safely say that the wine is:

- from cabernet sauvignon grapes;

- from a Southern region;

- relatively young;

- from a good yield;

- that the wine-maker has gone for a good long maceration.

If you know the wine, compare what you know with what you see: maybe the wine has a very full color and the yield has been bad ? this speaks of a good wine-making technique; or maybe the wine is too pale for its age ? this speaks for undeveloped grape or poor wine-making technique.

http://www.wines-resource.com

---

Beer, Wine and Your Bones

If you like the taste of a good brew, then... Read More

Wine Tasting -- The Traditional Way

Wine tasting is properly known as 'Wine Degustation'. It is... Read More

Pairing Beer With Food

Pairing beer with the fine cuisine has recently come to... Read More

Explore the U.S. Wine Trails

Follow a Local Wine Trail to Discover the Secrets of... Read More

The Old Fashioned: Two Recipes of an Underrated Classic

Like many mixed drinks, the Old Fashioned has a number... Read More

Pairing Food and Wine is a Matter of Taste

First off let me say that I am in no... Read More

DWI and Blood Alcohol Concentration: What does it mean?

Blood alcohol concentration (BAC) is the relationship between the amount... Read More

How Sparkling Wine is Made

There are three methods that may be used to make... Read More

Buying Wine, How to Read a Wine Label and Select a Great Bottle of Wine

I must admit, that for many of us, walking into... Read More

What is Corked Wine?

Keeping a wine bottle sealed is probably the most important... Read More

The Mystery of Decanting

Decanting is a strange word to many people. Some do... Read More

Tasting Wine

Wine Tasting Component I: LookThe first step you have to... Read More

Bordeaux Wine

Bordeaux is a region in France that produces some of... Read More

The Truth About Red Wine and Heart Disease

Red Wine, Heart Disease, Hungry Sharks and Knights in Shining... Read More

Uses of Mirror Tinted Contact Lenses

Mirror tinted contact lenses have become a topic of interest... Read More

How To Open Champagne

I manage a highly regarded web community for corporate flight... Read More

The Origin of the Cocktail

The cocktail has the distinction of being an original American... Read More

Choosing a Wine Gift Basket

During the holiday season, most of us are in a... Read More

Whisky Syndicates

Whisky syndicates are groups of private owners and many have... Read More

Sauvignon Blanc Wine

Sauvignon Blanc wine is crisp, high in acidity and light-... Read More

Riesling Wine

The most famous cool climates for Riesling wine are in... Read More

How to Order Wine in a Restaurant

Ordering wine in a restaurant is not much different than... Read More

The Stuff of Poetry ? Mead

People have been drinking fermented beverages since the dawn of... Read More

Who Made the First Wine Anyway?

Although details are understandably sketchy, it is believed that, around... Read More

Carignane Wine

The Carignane grape variety is one of the most widely... Read More

Champagne

Champagne is without question the finest sparkling wine made in... Read More

Burgundy Wine

Burgundy red wines are produced in an area of France... Read More

Australia Is More Than Jacobs Creek

The Jacobs Creek Brand of wines have taken the world... Read More

White Zinfandel Wine

White Zinfandel wine is a blush wine made in California... Read More

Merlot Wine

Merlot wine is a rich, soft wine with the flavor... Read More

Chablis Wine

Chablis is thought to have originated in northern Spain and... Read More

Rare Varietals Cure Wine Boredom

The future of the Australian wine industry will be shaped... Read More

Build Your Own Wine Rack (In An Afternoon)

A good drink is what even Gods enjoy and to... Read More