We often have the opportunity to taste wine on our travels and enjoy using it. Often we discover true treasures, but most of all, we have learned that there are many possibilities for wine tasting. There are wine tastings that involve the sale of the wine. Often, these take place in the sales rooms of wineries or in wine shops, where wines from various winemakers are offered. Here are offered a variety of wines for tasting. Sometimes this happens directly in the cellar, another time in a dedicated room or, as we experienced in Purbach on Lake Neusiedl, in a wine shop, where the wine is served computer-controlled.
How do you taste wine properly if you want to get to know regional wines?
There are also wine tastings where the goal is simply to get to know the fine wines of a region and to enjoy them in a very special atmosphere. Often, the food served with the wine plays a role, and the wine is selected to match the dishes served. We had a truly enjoyable wine tasting at Loisium Resort & Spa in Langenlois in the Kamptal in Lower Austria. It's a truly special experience when each course is paired with a specially selected wine that truly enhances and complements the flavor characteristics of the food.
I also find it interesting when the wine is presented to us with its characteristics, and we are practically tuned into the taste experience we can expect before the first sip. We particularly appreciate the combination of good wines served in a pleasant setting, and are therefore more likely to enjoy a wine tasting paired with a meal to complement it. In this blog post, we explore the question: How do you taste wine properly?
No hesitation in judging wine
As a newbie to wine tasting, it's often difficult to determine what's important. I can still remember how I was initially hesitant to share my opinion about the wines in front of wine connoisseurs who obviously knew much more about it than I did. I was bombarded with terms like bouquet, aroma, and people talked about the "breathing" of the wine. Back then, I had no idea what that meant.
And when people started discussing whether the wine tasted like blackberries, nuts, or raisins, I couldn't make sense of it at all. To me, it tasted like wine. That's it! Only with more frequent tastings did I notice the subtle flavor differences between the wines. It takes time, and you have to train your palate to recognize them. Today, I search for the subtle notes that define a wine's flavor myself. The question of how to taste wine properly isn't so easy to answer.
How do you taste wine properly? It's all about the visual aspect.
Already the color of the wine says something about what we will taste later on the tongue. To do this, hold the glass with white wine at an angle to the light and check whether the wine is more greenish or golden yellow. The lighter and greener the color of the wine, the younger the wine. The darker and more intense the yellow of the wine is, the richer and sweeter it is. So you can get at first glance information about how the wine will taste.
How do you taste wine properly? Your nose smells the aroma.
Next, you put your nose in the glass. You assess the wine's aroma by determining whether you like it. With a little practice, you can gather initial clues about the wine's aromas. Perhaps it smells more like lemons? Or perhaps more like sweet raisins?
The intensity of the olfactory experience also depends on the shape of the glass. We were recently Tasting of ice wines We were invited to a tasting where we were served the same wine in different glasses. The intensity of the aroma varied greatly from glass to glass.
The ice wines developed their most intense aroma in bulbous glasses that taper towards the top, glasses I'd previously used for pouring red wine. You can further enhance the aroma experience by swirling the wine glass, thus introducing oxygen into the wine, allowing it to "breathe." You'll notice that this makes the wine smell stronger than if you just sniff it.
How do you taste wine properly? Your tongue tastes the wine.
At a wine tasting at the Nederburg winery in Paarl, near Cape Town, I learned how important the tongue is when tasting wine. Before we were allowed to taste the various wines, a plate of small snacks was placed in front of us. On it was a piece of pickle, a pile of potato chips, a biscuit, a piece of cheese, a few olives, and other little things that didn't seem to fit together at all. But that was precisely the point: every bite we put in our mouths stimulated a different part of the tongue. This way, we learned through practical experimentation how and where we taste sweet, sour, spicy, or salty. And it became clear to me what an important role the tongue plays in wine tasting.
To evaluate the wine, take a large sip and swirl it around in your mouth, ensuring that all parts of your tongue come into contact with it. This allows you to detect every nuance of the wine's flavor and, with a little practice, even taste its subtle aromas. It's best to repeat this process a second time, as it's often only then that you discover the unique flavors of a particular wine variety. And if you want to try several varieties of wine, you can spit out the sip. A spittoon is always available for this purpose at a professional wine tasting.
What do I do if I want to taste several types of wine?
How do you taste wine properly when you're tasting red and white wine? The rule here is: it's best to rinse the glass with clean water after tasting each type of wine to neutralize its flavor and allow you to taste the new type of wine without being influenced by the first. You should do this at the very latest when switching from white to red wines. You should also cleanse your taste buds in your mouth, or rather, eliminate the taste of the first glass. For this purpose, a professional wine tasting usually includes a plate of dry bread or biscuits on the table to ensure your mouth is ready for new wines.
In any case, a wine tasting should be fun and show you how different wines can taste. And the best wine? You can argue about that. Or better: wine is a matter of taste. And everyone tastes a different wine. A wine tasting is there to find out the wine that tastes best to you. Maybe our tips on the question will help you: How to taste wine properly.
A good wine tasting can be found, for example, in the Loisium WineWorld
More things to know
- Wine list
- The right glass of wine for tastings
- Drink the best Hochland coffee in Salzburg
- What you should consider when traveling to Croatia by car
Source: own research on site
Text: © Copyright Monika Fuchs and TravelWorldOnline
Photos © Copyright MonikaFuchs and TravelWorldOnline
