Become A Wine Expert... Follow These Steps And You'll Know How To Taste Wine Like A Pro

It can be amusing sometimes to read the labelsred, to tawny.
on the back of wine bottles... you'll see wine givenStep 2: Smell
some very interesting and amusing descriptions,The smell of a wine can be very interesting and
for example:can be almost as enjoyable as drinking the wine!
"This wine has an aroma of fresh citrus, pear andWhen you pour a wine, only fill the glass to a third
orange blossom"full. The best wine glasses are those that close in
ORtowards the top to trap the aroma. Hold the glass
"This wine has a hint of white truffle chocolate,by the stem, and give the wine a swirl to coat
spearmint, spice and black pepper flavours".the glass with wine. This will release the full aroma.
While I always enjoyed a good wine, I never quiteThen, stick your nose into the glass, breathe in
understood those wine descriptions. I used toand concentrate on what you can smell.
wonder where those descriptions came from.When you first start doing this, you may want to
How could these flavours come from fermentedcompare what you smell with the winemaker's
grapes?description on the label. It's interesting that you
That is, until I learnt how to drink a wine so that Ireally can smell the aroma as described by the
could fully appreciate its aromas and flavours. Nowwinemaker, such as "fresh dark cherries and plum,
I understand that by smelling and tasting a wine inspice, white pepper and liquorice".
the correct way I can smell the aroma and tasteStep 3: Taste
the flavours described on the label. You just needSip your wine. Hold it in your mouth for a
to open your mind to it!moment, and then swallow. Look for:
Most people associate the look-smell-taste wine- Fruit flavours or other recognisable tastes
drinking style with wine judges/experts. But with- Wood flavours: has the wine been fermented in
a small amount of knowledge and by followingoak?
their example, you can easily improve your- Nutty flavours: from yeast aging
experience of wine. Drinking the wine is only a- Acid tastes: which contributes to the crispness
small part of the experience!of the finish
Here are 3 simple steps you can use to maximise- Palate length: does the flavour start big and then
the enjoyment of your wine drinking experience:drop away in the middle palate? Or is it long and
Step 1: Looklingering?
It's important to have a good look at the wine. If- Astringency: can you detect involuntary
the wine doesn't look good you may not want to"puckering" of your mouth as the tannins hit your
drink it. Make sure you've got good light, a whitetastebuds?
background and clean glassware.As you can see there is a little more to drinking
White wine should be clear and sparkling with noand enjoying wine than simply swallowing,
sediment or haze. The colour of the wine will beespecially if you want to gain the maximum
affected by the grape variety, whether or not itpleasure. Try the look-smell-taste method and
was aged in oak, the sugar content and bottlecompare the difference.
aging. But generally as it ages, the wine becomesThis is also a great topic of conversation at a
darker in colour; changing from straw, to yellow,dinner party... see who can pick the aroma and
to dark yellow, to gold.taste that the winemaker suggests on the label!!
The colour of red wine varies depending on theThe bottom line though is: drink the wine that you
grape variety. It will also depend on the quality ofenjoy. The best way to find out what wine you
grapes; length of time the wine was fermentedenjoy the most is by tasting as many wine
with the skins and bottle aging. Young red wine isvarieties as you can and make a note about what
generally a vibrant "purple" colour and as it agesyou thought.
the colour will change from plum, cherry, brick