Wine Tasting 101
Tasting wine is what we’ll be looking at in this part of our wine 101 guide…
Aroma, taste, and finish are the three stages of tasting wine. We’ll look at each of those individually.
Swirling your wine in your glass is the first step to smelling it; this process exposes the most amount of the wine to air, which helps release its aromas. To swirl effectively, don’t fill the glass too full – in fact less than half full is recommended. While swirling, put your glass up to your nose and inhale, thinking about what kinds of aromas you’re experiencing. Young wines will have primary aromas, relating to the grape variety (such smells are often fruit related). As wines age more secondary aromas develop, which may be more earthy or animalistic. Remember that a wines aromas can take on many different forms, and very rarely will it simply smell of grapes.
When you taste wine, it’s important to realize that little of the flavor that can be sensed actually involves the tongue. Your upper airways are filled with the aroma of wine when it is in your mouth, and it is your nasal receptors, not your taste buds, that do most of the ‘tasting’. So, breathe in and out through your nose whilst the wine is in your mouth; paying attention to the way the wine changes as you hold it there. Your first impressions on taking the wine into your mouth may be referred to as the fore-palate, which are followed by the mid-palate and the end-palate. Each of these will be different, so look out for the changes in taste.
When you swallow wine, you experience the finish. It will often be different to how the wine came across on the palate. The flavors may linger for a while on the palate after the wine has been swallowed, and this is referred to as the length. The more length a wine has, the more time you have to enjoy it, and it’s probably true to say that such wines are generally of better quality.
Three Tips For Pairing Food And Wine
There are two primary ways of pairing food and wine. First, you can achieve it by drinking and enjoying wine with the food we eat. And, second, wine can become a major component in the preparation of a meal. Of course, the second activity should always be followed by the first for maximum wine and food enjoyment. And you can always enjoy both activities at the same time to provide the ideal combination food and wine.
Enjoying Wine With Your Meal
A good wine will add to the flavor of the food, assist in digestion and, in the case of red wine, be beneficial in keeping your heart healthy. There are several theories regarding which wine to match to a particular food. However, my suggestion is that if it tastes right, it is right. While some gourmets may argue with this, there seems to be little downside in pairing food and wine in this manner.
Cooking With Wine
French and Italian chefs and home cooks are renowned for their use of wine in food. Both cuisines make extensive use of both red and white wines in meal preparation from appetizers to sauces to desserts.
Pairing food and wine in this way avoids any alcoholic taste in the food as heating the wine or other typically boils away the alcohol portion.
The other rule to consider when cooking with wine is never to cook with a wine that you don’t want to drink. This will often mean opening a bottle of wine just for cooking but the flavor boost to your dinner is worth it. Do not be tempted to cook with that wine that has been sitting on the kitchen counter for the last week since it was opened. If you wouldn’t drink it, don’t try to cook with it. Get some more tips about cooking with wine, storing wine and tasting wine at Wine Cellar Secrets.