Wine Information

Wine Tasting...=)?

I love wine.... And tonight is going to be my first time wine tasting (Going on a date) =) Is there anything I should know...... Bring.. etc.... Or just tell me about your experiences. .... Thnx.......

Public Comments

1. You don't need to bring anything, but, first off, watch what other people do. Do they drink the wine or just taste it and spit it out? You want to do what they are doing. If you don't like the wine, just swallow it and smile. Don't chug, sip! Smell the wine first. And don't try to be fancy and make up words to describe the taste, because really, there are technical terms for certain wines, and you'll sound kinda dumb if you say the wrong thing.
2. If you are tasting reds (cabernet, pinot noir, syrah, merlot, etc.) watch out for your teeth! You probably know that these will stain your lips and teeth which is really not attractive. If you carry a big purse, bring toothpaste and toothbrush. If you are a small purse gal then bring some whitening gum. As for the tasting, it never hurts to do a little research, so I am attaching a web site that might be helpful. Have fun and good luck!
3. This is how I taste wine: 1) Swirl wine glass on the table (not in the air, you may spill it on yourself) as quickly as possible without it spilling over the sides. This introduces air into it which will develop the flavor and aerosolizes it so you can get a good smell. 2) Bring it up to your nose (nose slightly in the glass) and inhale. Think about what you are smelling. Does it smell like anything in particular? Can you identify any individual components? Does it smell earthy, sweet, spicy, etc. 3) Take a small sip but don't swallow. Coat your tongue with the wine then swallow it. 4) Take a larger sip, hold it in your mouth, and let it slowly go down. If you exhale through your nose afterwards, the scent/taste will intensify. With dinner: 5) Try pairing it with foods. After you take a bite, take a sip of wine. Certain wines complement certain foods. If the taste of the wine overpowers the taste of the food, or vice versa, it doesn't pair well. Wine will enhance and expand upon the flavor of food. 6) If you get served bread and butter, you may want to skip the butter or use less of it. Fat will actually coat the tongue and make it harder to taste the wine. The bottom line is to have fun, enjoy yourself, and play around with the wine.
4. First off, please keep in mind that there is no absolutes in wine tasting. If you open a bottle of wine and have 10 people try it, you will probably get about 8 different responses... So relax and have fun with it. You may find that wine is not as intimidating as people like to make it out to be. When you get the tasting amount in the glass, you may want to place the glass on the bar/table top and place your hand face down on the base of the glass. Let the wine glass stem be between your index and middle finger. With light pressure, "swish" the wine around in the glass three or four times. For white wines, this releases the bouquet a little and for reds, that's debatable, but it can help aerate the wine a little faster. Next, take three smells of the wine. Put your nose fairly far down into the glass and take a deep inhale thru your nose. Note what you smell, take a second or two and then do this one or two more times. When you taste, take a small amount into your mouth and look for a few things: a) Tannic presence - how "dry" or "sharp" is it? Believe it or not, the first taste of wine is usually the most shocking to your pallette. The next sips are usually softer. b) Sweet versus dry - this is self explanatory c) My favorite - how is the taste versus what you had in your mind as you smelled it? Is it close, or is it totally different. I like this a lot Sorry for the lengthy answer, but understand that there is no "right" or "wrong" - just have a blast and enjoy your date. But lastly, take a small notebook or your PDA along with you. Because you may find that good bottle of wine and the next day, you may not remember which one was which.
5. They will probably give you a note pad or peice of paper w/ the wines on it so you can make notes. This is great if you really love one or two and want to buy them. There are usually crocks or containers in the center of the table to dump extra wine you do not want to drink. Note, these are not for spitting bad wine into! not that I think you would, but I saw a guy do it once at a wine tasting, and he was shunned the rest of the night! Taste the wines with and without the recommended foods or flavors. You might hate goat cheese, but paired with the right red, it's smooth, mild, and velvety. Cleanse your palate between wines. Either with food served (many wine tastings offer meals to go along w/ the selected wines) or w/ crackers. You can also sniff coffee beans in a cup to cleanse your olfactory senses.
6. There are a lot of good tips given by everyone. As for me, I host monthly wine tasting dinner. So, I have a few experiences with wine tasting. First and foremost, find out what type of wine tasting event this is. Most of my wine tasting is BYOB, where I expect all of my guests to bring their wine to share with the group. I have also done several wine flight tasting, where I bring my own wine, all from the same winery of different vintages and open and drink them consecutively, and for those tasting, I am the only one bringing wine while my guests sit and enjoy. Find out what type of wine event and whether you or your date should bring wine. Secondly, it sounds like you are rather experienced with wine, being a wine lover. If that is the case, bring a note pad and write down the wines you will be drinking. The fun thing about wine tasting is to learn about wine, so you know what type or what brand of wine you might enjoy for your reference. Since different people like different wines, the purpose of wine tasting is to share the experience, instead of convincing someone a certain wine is better than another. If you like something, write it down and read more about it. If you hate something, write it down as well. Third, make sure you have some food in the stomach before even drinking. Snacking on some food before you go will help, since food will help slow down absorption of alcohol and help you not get drunk so easily. There is nothing worse, for a host like myself, to have to handle someone who is drunk - way too much hassel. Enjoy your wine with food and know when to say when. Fourth, have fun. Wine is about having fun. It is about sharing and enjoying. If you don't like a certain wine, it is OK to pour into the waste vessel, so if you are not certain whether you might like the wine or not, get small pour first and try. Wasting a huge glass of wine is a bit of insult to the host. If you like the small pour, help yourself with a larger pour. As for a couple of stuff, if you are not used to swirling, don't. It is embarrassing to have wine fly out of your glass if you are not used to that. Drink wine the way you always do and don't pretend to know more or do more than you normally do. There will always be someone who knows more about wine than you do, and there will always someone pretending they are the know-it-all. Those of us who drink a lot and have a lot of experience with wine are still discovering new facts and factoids about wines and drinking, and I never claim to know everything, or even a lot.
7. The most important thing to avoid looking like an idiot is: NEVER hold the wine glass by the "bowl", but always by the "stem" or "base". The bowl, or the part that holds the wine, should be kept clean of fingerprints and your hands. The snooty winetasters all do this and if you walk in and just grab a glass by the bowl, they will avoid you as being ignorant. Holding the glass by the stem is the coolest way to do it. You don't have to stick your pinky out. Never sniff a cork, either. And if you want to spit out or pour out some bad wine in the spit bucket, perfectly acceptable!
8. Silly as it sounds, I love to look at the red wine with a light behind it. Reds have subtle shades to them, as well as subtle differences in taste. I usually swirl the wine in the glass a little, and watch it "rain" down the sides. I don't know why I do it, I just do. lol But then I smell it. A lot of times, the way a wine smells is how it will taste. Sometimes that isn't true, but usually it is. If it smells kind of "sharp", it will have a "sharp" taste to it, or a "bite". Always start with the dry wines first. It doesn't matter if it's red or white, just start with dry and work your way to the sweet. One of the wineries I like to visit has the sugar ratings for each wine. The higher the number beside the wine name, the higher the sugar content. My family and I will make our notes on the paper and we'll decide which ones to buy, or which ones we really didn't like. Just remember, it's all a personal thing. If you think it's good, then it's good. If you think it's nasty, then it's nasty. As far as "spit v swallow".... watch the others around you. Most of the wineries I go to don't have "spit buckets". You end up just drinking it.... unless you really don't like it, then they'll dump the glass into the sink, rinse it out and offer you a taste of something else.
9. you don't need anything to bring with you other than your smile for your date ;) will you be tasting a lot of wines? If yes, it is OK to not drink the whole thing. you can pour it out. It won't offend anybody. will you be having food with the wine? If not, I would suggest eating before hand. if you have wine on an empty stomach you can get very tipsy. ask questions to the server. whatever you want. an experience sommelier should be there for you.
10. The most important thing a person can do when wine tasting for the first time is tell people they are new to it. It doesn't hurt to confess because there is nothing a wine lover loves more than helping someone love wine. So lay your sole bare and let the people/staff help you learn about wine tasting. If you were to come into my tasting room and pretend, I or my staff would probably spot you before you even pick the glass up. I think that is true for most experienced people in tasting rooms. We end up playing a game where we know you're a newbie, but don't want to embarrass you, but still want you to get something good out of the experience. If you just say "Hey I'm new to this, can you help me" you'll probably have to fight people off. Sorry if I'm too late with this response