About Wines:
White wines:
White wines go well with fish and seafood, but they can also be nice with cheese and light poultry (not duck). The best white wines are Chardonnays. Other good whites are Sauvignon Blancs and Viogneers, but they are less common. There are so many Chardonnays, that I will just list a few of the ones that are most commonly found in restaurants:
Low/Medium price: Sonoma Cutrer, Kendall Jackson. Among French, Macon Villages and Puilly Fuisse(also all Chardonays)
More expensive: Cakebread, Far Niente, Pahlmeyer, Patz & Hall, Kistler. Among French: Puligny Montrachet, Chassagne Montrachet, Mersault.
VERY expensive: Batard Montrachet, Chevalier Montrachet, LE Montrachet, Corton Charlemagne, Mersault Clos De Perrierres, Les Combettes, Les Caillerets, Les Folatieres, Les Demoiselles (all last 4 are also labeled either Puligny or Chassagne Montrachet).
There are MANY others! In stores look for Babcock and also Deloach, both great values. White wines should be between 2 and 6 years old as a rule. Older than that is NOT better unless you know what you are doing.
Red wines: ( Our Favorites )
Red wines can be drink with any meat including poultry, and also with salmon. The best grapes commonly found are Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir and (for more casual wines) Merlot. Inexpensive good reds: Spanish Rioja's (they are also Cabernets), BV Rutherford (note: there are 3 different BV cabernets -- you want the Rutherford), many Pinot Noirs from Washington.
Also Italian wines: Gattinara (one to remember), Amarone, and some Chianti's, the Ruffino and Antinori being most consistent. Even the most mellow reds should be no younger than 3 years old, and 5+ is the rule.
Medium reds: Many California cabernets (Silver Oak, Dunn, Jordan, Freemark Abbey, Clos Du Bois, Heitz, etc., also lesser French bordeaux (particularly good bargains are the Lynch Bages, Chateau Gloria, Chateau Pichon Longueville Baron) and many French Burgundies (Pommard, Volnay, Nuits St. Georges, Chambolle Musigny). Among the Italians Barolos and Barbarescos are great. Other good things to try are French Rhone wines (Chateauneuf du Pape and Cote Rotie). Careful with all medium reds, don't drink anything less than 4-5 years old, and if you want full value, try around 7-10 years old at least.
Great vintages: 1990, 1994 (almost anywhere).
Expensive reds: For those that can afford them, the best and most consistent wines are the French Burgundy Grand Crus. Echezeaux, Richebourg, Chambertin (and many something-Chambertin EXCEPT for Gevrey Chambertin which is not so good), Corton, Musigny, Beaune Greves, Clos de la Marechale, Clos Vougeot, Bonnes Mares, and the very top: La Tache and Romanee Conti. Excellent years were 76,78,85,90,94. In Bordeaux the best are of course Chateau Lafite, Chateau Mouton, Chateau Haut Brion, Chateau Latour, Chateau Margeaux, Chateau Petrus, Chateau Cheval Blanc and Chateau Ausone -- all *VERY* expensive and overpriced -- don't order if you don't know vintages (but 61,66,70,75,78,82,85 were great vintages drinking well now).
From Italy comes Brunello Di Montalcino (it ages very well, try 1990 or older, to much older).
Some California Cabernets have prices to match, but few have quality. Heitz's Martha's Vineyard and Diamond Creek (especially the almost unobtainable Lake Vineyard) are among the best, as are BV Georges De Latour Private Reserve. None of these wines should be drunk young. California good years (for such wines) are 74 (dying now) 78, 85,86, 90.
* Thanks to Stelios Touchtidis for the wine information and his great taste for good wines.....
How to serve wines:
Temperature:
White or pink wines should be served at 50 to 55 degrees. Champagne & sparkling wines colder, about 39 to 50 degrees. Red wine should be at cellar temperature- 62 to 67 degrees (not room temperature, pop them in the refrigerator half hour before serving)
The better the wine, the warmer- up to a point- it can be served to show the depth of flavor. Red wines served too warm are harsh & tannic. Cheaper or sweet wines should be served colder to balance the sugar or mask any flaws.
Red wines benefit from Decanting if they are very old or very young. An old wine will throw sediment as it ages. Stand the wine for a couple of days & allow the sediment to settle. Then very carefully remove the cork & slowly pour it into the decanter. Put a light candle or flash light under the neck of the bottle. Stop pouring as soon as you see sediment. Very young red wines benefits from robust pouring into a decanter. This exposure to air makes the wine more drinkable sooner.
Hold the wineglasses by the stem & avoid the wine heating up from contact with the hand. Glasses with smaller bowls should be used for chilled wines. This allows the wine to be refreshed from the chilled bottle more often to keep the proper temperature. Red wines are served in a larger bowled glass to allow air exposure & to allow swirling to open the wine & release aromas. Champagnes should be served in a glass with a longer narrow bowl, usually a flute or tulip, to preserve the bubbles & direct the aroma to the nose. In France, specially in champagne, the glass of choice is now the half tulip, it's not as deep but has a similar shape. A thin rimless glass or crystal will improve the taste of the wine, buy the best. For the hobbyist, there is different shapes for types of wine to promote certain characteristics.
Suit the wine for the occasion. A simple picnic call for a simple wine & jelly glasses. An important anniversary calls for the best wine & fine crystal. Same with food, simple food like burgers, stew will matched robust hearty wines. Dover sole with lemon butter should be paired with a delicate wine. Match your wine with the dish as you will match a sauce. A fruity peach flavored wine goes with pepper steak. Bold Cabernet Sauvignon goes with chicken Veronique. Use common sense or ask the wine salesman.
Learning the wine name, date, vineyard, vintage, price, taste, check Wine Spectator or Wine & Spirit, The Underground Wine Journal, Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar www.internationalwinecellar.com, & Robert Parker at The Wine Advocate www.wineadvocate.com
More on Wines:
The choice of wine depends on the food you are serving.
There is simply no doubt that certain wines complement specific foods in the most delightful way. As a general rule of thumb, most fish and shellfish are eaten with dry white wine, most meat with red wine, most pudding is washed down with sweet wine or champagne, and most cheese with a full-bodied red or port.
Red wines (with a few exceptions, such as Beaujolais, which is drunk chilled) should be served at room temperature (the cork eased some hours prior to drinking).
White wines and champagne should be thoroughly chilled. Three hours in a refrigerator should be enough to chill champagne to the correct serving temperature of 5 - 6°C. Mineral water should be similarly cold but not freezing.
Quite a few areas of the world are well known for producing good wine.
Of course, they also produce some real stinkers, but the first indication of good wine is where it comes from; unlike beer (which can be made almost anywhere), quality wine can be made from grapes growing in relatively few places in the world. Here are a few:
The United States makes great wine. The best known regions are probably California's Napa and Sonoma counties, as well as Oregon. However, reputable wineries are developing on both coasts.
The French have been famous for wine for so long that it's not funny. Wines from Bordeaux and Burgundy regions are probably the most widely available, along with those from Champagne, of course.
Italian wines are marvelous. The Chianti region in Tuscany is the best known worldwide. Spumante, a popular Italian sparkler, is usually made from grapes from the Asti region in the province of Piedmont.
The Spanish make very good sparkling wines, called Cavas, along with their Rioja (reds) and Sherry.
Chilean wines are growing in popularity, and are known for being good values. The United States imports a lot of reasonably priced, but very good Chilean red wine.
Australia is an up and coming wine producer on the world market, and their Shiraz is generally a good bet.
Know your grape types Different types of grapes make different tasting wines.
There are a few types, or "varietals" that are commonly available. Cabernet Sauvignon grapes make full, rich red wines that go well with hearty food. Wine made from Cabernet Sauvignon grapes ages well, although it's often blended with other grapes such as Merlot, or Cabernet Franc, making it enjoyable to drink right now.
Bordeaux wines are very often Cabernets. Pinot Noir grapes also make full, rich red wines that are usually a bit softer than Cabernets.
Burgundies are most often made from Pinot Noir, and classic Champagne and sparkling wine starts here.
Merlot grapes make lighter, softer red wines that many different people like. California and Chilean Merlots are among the best, and can be real crowd pleasers. Zinfandel grapes are a California specialty. As a red wine, Zinfandel is a full, strong wine with a noticably spicy taste.
White Zinfandel is a sweeter blush wine that has become very popular. Syrah grapes make a very full red wine which first gained fame in France.
Lately, Australia has been making "Shiraz" with great success out of this varietal. Petite Sirah grapes make a somewhat lighter, peppery red wine, and should not be confused with the similar sounding, but very different Syrah.
Chardonnay grapes are generally made to produce an elegant white wine that pairs well with food. White Burgundies are predominantly Chardonnay, and California is also well known for these wines.
Sauvignon Blanc grapes make a crisp white wine (often sold as Fume Blanc) that is a good choice for drinking on sunny days, as well as serving with picnic foods. White Bordeaux wines are often made with these grapes.
·Riesling grapes make a very refreshing wine. Germany first popularized this varietal, and a German Riesling will be drier and crisper than it's California "cousin." Each year another crop of wine is grown, picked and stored in some fashion. Good wine generally has the year that it was produced (vintage) on the label somewhere, and some years are considered better than others. If you would like to know more about vintages, there are several pocket guides that will give you the lowdown.
Most red wines benefit from a little aging, and some varietals are known for improving for ten years or more in the bottle. Much of the wine produced today though, especially from California, is distributed so that it tastes very good as soon as it appears in the store. A winery will probably not distribute a red wine for at least two years after it was produced.
An additional few years in the bottle will generally help Cabernets, Pinot Noirs and Zinfandels to fully develop their taste, but don't worry too much about it unless you're specifically looking for a bottle to put away for awhile. In that case, find a spot in your house that's always cool and dry, and get a specific wine recommendation from a reputable wine store or book.
Most white wines and sparkling wines generally do not need aging, and are ready to drink right now. The notable exceptions are sweet dessert wines and champagne which can improve greatly with a few years in the bottle ·
When you go into a wine shop, you'll find a wide range of prices.
In the United States that range is from about four dollars a bottle to more than thirty dollars a bottle. What makes one 1994 Cabernet Sauvignon worth twice the price of another? The grapes: All grapes are not created equal. Some vineyards produce better quality grapes than others, and wineries pay premium prices for those lots.
As a general rule, wine that is made of juice from an ideal vineyard is more expensive than wine that is blended from the juice of many lesser quality vineyards.
The method: Some methods of making wine are more costly than others. Storing wine in wooden barrels, for instance is more expensive than storing it in stainless steel vats. If the winemaker wants the wine to taste a certain way, certain methods must be used, and those methods often increase the cost of making the wine.
The final product: When a wine is ready to be bottled (and often before that), the winemaker will evaluate the wine. Each wine is judged by its characteristics, including color, aroma, acidity and overall complexity (what a great catch phrase!).
A wine that has superior characteristics will cost more than a wine that does not. A wine that is set aside for additional aging before release will also command a higher price than one that has been released early. ·
Availability: If a wine is made from small lots of very good grapes, there won't be a lot of it. Similarly, if a winery has an excellent reputation, a lot of wine stores will want to carry that wine. Supply and demand means that those bottles will cost more than other bottles. Never, never underestimate supply and demand. Know your need! Everyone has their own opinions about a bottle of wine.
That's because everyone has a different set of taste buds. As you taste more wine and understand more about how wines differ from each other, you'll choose your own favorites. If your local wine merchant gets to know your tastes, he or she will be able to recommend bottles to you. In the meantime, here are some very general guidelines to help you make your first few selections.
Wine with food: When eating heavier meats, such as beef and venison, choose a full red wine. Heavier Cabernets, Syrahs and Zinfandels are likely candidates.
For lighter meats, such as lamb and pork, a medium-bodied red is a good bet. Merlots, Pinot Noirs and Petite Sirahs are all good choices. These wines also pair well with tomato-sauced pastas.
Chicken and fish dishes can be overpowered by most reds. Try a Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc instead.
With no-meat dishes, try Chardonnays or a spicy, fruity red such as a Zinfandel. A dry white Blanc de Blanc should go very well with delicate fish and vegetarian entrees.
· Wine by itself: Many medium priced Pinot Noirs, Merlots and some Cabernets are made in a softer, more accessible style and can be very nice to sip while sitting in your easy chair at night.
When picnicking, try a slightly sweet blush, such as a white Zinfandel, or a lighter red, perhaps a chilled Beaujolais. If you're looking for a crisp white wine, Sauvignon Blanc is a good choice. Rieslings and Chenin Blancs are good for those who prefer sweeter whites.
Champagne and other sparkling wines are great for celebrating, store well, and can be a nice change when served with appetizers.
A brut wine is the driest, extra dry is a little sweeter. The cheapest sparklers are best for mixing with juices or syrups. Choose a medium priced or more expensive bottle for special occasions. The most important thing to remember is that wine is for enjoying. When you find a wine you like, drink it. Who cares if it's not considered appropriate for the occasion, or the food? · This is not to say that it's not worthwhile to develop a sophisticated palate, because if you do, chances are you'll enjoy wine more than ever.
Ah, sweet nectar of Zeus! There are, at last count, more than 20 zillion books that have been written about wine. That's because there's a whole bunch of wine in this world, and a lot of ground to cover. If you would like to become extremely knowledgeable on the subject you should spend a good deal of time reading some of those books and tasting a variety of wines (life's tough folks). If, however, you would simply like to have a reasonable shot at finding a good or perhaps an appropriate wine, take a few minutes here to learn the basics.
For our purposes, wine comes in three basic forms: red, white and sparkling.
Sparkling white wine that comes from a particular region of France is called Champagne. There are also "blush" or "rosé" wines that are rarely taken seriously by educated winos, but which can be very pleasant on a summer afternoon.
Certain types of wine are associated with particular types of meals. Red wine is considered appropriate with red meat and hearty pasta dishes, white wine with fish and many chicken dishes. These are not hard and fast rules, and the real intent here is to serve lighter wine with lighter food and hearty wine with hearty food.
Wine is generally judged on its color, its smell and its taste.
Speaking about wine is merely an attempt to convey your opinion about these characteristics in descriptive terms. Many of those terms have become widely accepted, and will pop up in most wine conversations. Some are fairly straightforward, while others are more obscure and require explanation.
Champagne, sparkling wine and white wine are best when served well-chilled.
Red wine, on the other hand is best opened when only slightly cooler than room temperature.
To accomplish this: Put white wine in the refrigerator at least two hours before you plan to open it.
Champagne or sparkling wine can go in even earlier than that.
Red wine (really any wine) should not be kept in sunny areas, or on top of the refrigerator. Find a cool, dry place where the temperature remains fairly consistent year-round. Generally this means places like dry cellars and basements, as well as less obvious places, such as under the stairs or in ground floor closets. It is important not to disturb wine bottles too much before opening them. Some red wines have sediment which should be allowed to settle to the bottom.
Sparkling wines should not be agitated if the server wants any of it to remain in the bottle after opening! There are quite a few different corkpulls on the market nowadays, and we'll cover three of them: the traditional waiter's pull, the winglever and the two pronged "dishonest butler" (so named because it doesn't destroy the cork).
Remove the foil completely from the bottle's neck. Use a sharp tool to slice the bottom edge of the foil and peel it off by turning your hand around the bottle. Wipe off the top of the bottle with a cloth or napkin to remove any metal residue.
Using a waiters pull: place the bottle upright on a flat surface or securely hold it between your knees at a slight angle, with the top easily accessible. Firmly place the point of the corkscrew in the center of the cork, and twist it straight in, until the screw part is completely in the cork.
Pivot the corkpull, so that the forked indentation grips the edge of the bottle's mouth and the pull's handle is pointed down. Grasp the handle firmly and pull straight up. Using a winged pull: place the bottle upright on a flat surface. Position the point of the corkscrew over the center of the cork. Firmly grasp both the bottle neck and the barrel of the pull under the wings with one hand. Twist the corkscrew by the "key" at the top until the round mouth of the pull is seated over the mouth of the bottle.
Allow the wings to rise until they won't go up any farther. Put a hand on each wing and push them all the way down. The cork should draw out of the bottle. If any part of the cork remains in the neck, grasp the entire corkpull in one hand and gently pull it straight out. Using the "dishonest butler:" place the bottle upright on a flat surface. Gently insert the tip of the longer prong between the edge of the bottle and the cork. Now bend the thing so that you can insert the other prong between the other side of the cork and the edge of the bottle. Once you've got both prongs between the cork and the bottle's edge, grasp the top of the pull and rock it back and forth. The prongs should sink further in with each movement. When the handle is right up against the top of the bottle, pull the cork out with a slow twisting motion, clockwise for righties, counterclockwise for lefties.
·Opening a bottle of sparkling wine - This includes French champagne, as well as sparkling white and rosé wines from any other country. The first method here is the correct one to use when you would like the wine to taste its best. Use the second method when consumption is not as important as the fun of watching corks fly around the room.
Correct Method, Step1: Securely hold the bottle at a slight angle, with the top easily accessible. Remove the foil and wire cage from the bottle, being careful not to aim the bottle at anyone (no fooling around here).
Correct Method, Step 2: Firmly grasp the cork with your palm over the top of it and gently twist the bottle, not the cork. You'll be able to feel the cork sliding free by itself, and you'll need to keep it under control so that the cork "pops" as little as possible. Try to insure that it only makes a little 'gasp' when it comes out, and the wine shouldn't froth.
Fun Method, Step 1: Securely hold the bottle at a slight angle, with the top easily accessible. Remove the foil and wire cage from the bottle, being careful not to aim the bottle at anyone (no fooling around here either).
Fun Method, Step 2: Now point the bottle away from you or anyone else, and grasp it by the neck with both hands. Press your thumbs against the sides of the cork, and first press on one side, then the other. By rocking the cork like you mean it, it will first creep out, and then pop out of the bottle. After it flies across the room, froth will pour out and everyone will laugh. Have those glasses handy to catch the bubbly.
· Serving the wine It's nice to have the proper glasses to drink from.
Red wine glasses are wider at the mouth and rounder than white wine glasses to allow for swirling and sniffing.
White wine glasses are generally taller and have longer stems to keep the wine cold longer.
Sparkling wine glasses are typically much narrower, so that the bubbles last longer. White wines may be served immediately after opening.
Good red wines will benefit from being allowed to "breathe" for half an hour. The idea is to get as much surface area as possible, to allow as much wine as possible to come into contact with the air, while not disturbing it too much.
The process of decanting will allow your wine to breathe. Decant wine by gently pouring it into another container. Not only does this provide the neccessary surface area, but any sediment present (most likely in very old or unfiltered wines) should stay in the bottle. If no decanter is available, pour off a half-glass 15-30 minutes before serving and let both the glass and bottle sit.
When pouring sparkling wines, wrap the bottle in a cloth napkin (clockwise, of course, darling!) for effect and to insulate the bottle from your warm hand. Tilt the glass, and pour down the side of it to minimize frothing.
· If you don't finish your wine in one sitting, here are some tips for saving what's left.
White wine will generally keep in the refrigerator for four to five days once it's opened.
Red wine, if you keep it at room temperature, will only last up to two days. The less air that gets to it, the better, so keep the cork! Transferring your wine to a smaller container, such as a clean 350ml bottle, and corking it tightly will help preserve it longer.
Products you can use for preservation include cans of inert gases that settle over the surface of the wine in the bottle (these can be expensive), and vacuum pumps that expel most of the air from a bottle and seal it with a rubber stop. · Remember to enjoy it!
· When you smell the wine, it may remind you of certain things. Aroma is almost a synonym for bouquet. It is sometimes used to describe the grapelike smell of young wine, as opposed to the more complex smell of a mature wine. Bouquet describes the fragrance of a wine.
Sometimes used to specifically denote a complex "winey" smell, rather than a simple grapelike smell. Corky refers to an unpleasant musty odor or taste in wine, often caused by a moldy cork.
Flinty is used to describe the fragrance or taste of some white wines, especially a White Bordeaux. If you can remember what flint smells like when struck with steel, you'll have an idea of this characteristic.
Fruity is used to describe a wine that has few tannins. It may smell or taste like any number of fruits, most commonly berries and citrus. A fruity wine is not always a sweet wine.
Grassy is used for a wine that has a smell or taste reminiscent of fields of grass.
Heady is used to describe the smell of a wine high in alcohol.
Herbacious is almost a synonym for grassy.
Depending on the other qualities present in the wine, it can be used to denote either an unpleasant "weedy" quality, or a pleasant, flowery one.
Musty is often used as a synonym for corky, but is more pronounced and unpleasant.
Mustiness can arise from a bad cork, excessive moisture, or storage in a moldy wooden cask.
Nose is a synonym for smell. It's often used to describe how much of a smell the wine has, as in "this wine has a huge nose."
Sour is used for a that wine has an aroma or taste that indicates partial spoilage, often due to improper storage.
Spicy is used to describe a variety of aromas, or tastes such as pepper, cloves, or nutmeg, that give the wine a spiced charactor.
Zinfandel, Cabernet Franc and Gewürztraminer are considered spicy varieties. Stemmy describes a wine with an unpleasant aroma of grape stems. This will sometimes happen when too many stems are left in the fermenting wine.
Woody: discerning wood in the wine can be very desirable. Sometimes, though, a wine will have an excessive smell or taste of the wooden barrel in which it was stored, and this term will be used to describe it. Barrels made from American oak tend to give more of their flavor to wine than do barrels made from French oak.
Yeasty indicates a wine that smells of the yeast used in fermentation. Most often found in younger white, and sparkling wines.
· When the wine is in your mouth, more than one flavor may become apparent. After the wine leaves your mouth, additional tastes may surface (no kidding!). Here's a simple chart which may give you an idea of the directions a wine can take as it tiptoes through your tastebuds.
Acrid describes a wine with overly pronounced acidity. This is often apparent in cheap red wines.
Body is a term that covers a lot of ground. It generally describes how "full" a wine is, or how much flavor is apparent.
Buttery is associated with some white wines, notably California Chardonnays. It refers to both flavor and texture or "mouthfeel."
Complex is used to describe a wine that has a number of discernable characteristics (generally good ones), rather than one or two.
Good wines that have aged well will be complex wines.
Dry is used to describe a wine that is not sweet.
Earthy describes a wine that tastes of the soil in which it was grown.
Red wines most often have this characteristic.
Finish is a synonym for aftertaste, used to describe the characteristics of a wine that remain after the wine has left your mouth.
Flat indicates a wine that does not have enough acidic qualities. A synonym for uninteresting.
Hard is generally used to describe a young wine that has a lot of tannins.
Jammy is used for a red wine that has the taste of dense ripe fruit. A wine can become overly jammy when not balanced by good tannin levels.
Neutral is generally used to describe a wine without any outstanding characteristics, but with no particular bad ones, either.
Nutty refers to a wine with an oxidized character--one that has had exposure to air. This can be a good thing in smaller quantities, but too much oxidation will make a wine taste like sherry when it isn't.
Oaky is used for a wine that has a noticable taste of the oak barrel in which it was stored. This term can be used in both a positive and negative context.
Plummy is used to describe wines with an overipe quality. Grapes that have been left on the vine too long can produce overipe tastes.
Rough usually describes a poorly made wine, one that has a raw quality to it--although it can also refer to a quality wine that happens to be immature.
Round describes a wine that has a good balance of fruit and tannins, with good body as well.
Simple is used to describe a wine that has few characteristics which follow the initial impression. Not necessarily a disparaging term, it's often used to describe inexpensive, young wine.
Strawberry is used mostly with blush, and nouveau wines. It denotes a very fruity, tangy taste.
Supple describes a wine with well-balanced tannins and fruit characteristics.
Toasty is often used to describe a white wine with a nice hint of the wooden barrel in which the wine was stored.
Sweeter wines are rarely described this way.
Vinegary is used for a wine that has the excessive acidic qualities that indicate it has turned to vinegar. This generally occurs through cork failure, which exposes the wine to air, exposure to excessive heat while in storage, or excessive aging of the wine. Set the scene Ask each guest to bring a bottle of wine that they find interesting.
One of the basic differences between wines is tannin levels.
Tannins are acids that give wine an astringent quality. They can nicely balance a fruity taste, or overwhelm the mouth with acidity. A more tannic style is often an acquired taste, but one worth developing .
Set out a single glass for each guest on a table. Along with the crackers or bread, have some room-temperature water for rinsing mouth and glass (cold water numbs the tastebuds). Put the clean cloth where it's easily accessible. Collect the bottles from your guests, and open them up Since it's difficult to decant several bottles at once, pour off a half-glass from each bottle of red, so that there's more surface area exposed in each bottle.
This will help the wine breathe a bit (see next point). White and blush wines should be chilled slightly before opening.
If you are decanting your red wines, try the wine again periodically, say, every 10 or 15 minutes. As the wine is exposed to air, it will change a bit--it breathes. If you make a note of your timing preference, you'll know how to serve that wine in the future.
· When tasting many wines, it's a good idea to start with lighter, simpler wines, and move on to drier, heavier ones.
White wine's charms can be obliterated in a mouth that has been puckered by tannic reds. By the same token, swirl some water around the glass after emptying it of wine. Take the clean cloth and dry it out, so that the next wine is not diluted with water.
Taste the wine with your eyes There's a common expression we'll paraphrase here: first you taste the wine with your eyes, then with your nose and finally with your mouth. In other words, a wine may be judged on its color, its aroma and its taste. That's what most tasting boils down to, and those are the characteristics of a wine that you most want to understand. Take a clean, dry glass and pour a small amount of wine into it, perhaps a third of a glass. Hold the wine up to the light, and note the color. Is it a deep purple, or a lighter ruby color? Is it tinged with green, or is it yellowish brown? Does it appear clear or cloudy?
As you gain experience, you'll come to expect the wine to taste a certain way when it looks a certain way. If it's a red wine, tip the glass gently back and forth, then hold it still and look at it closely. The wine will flow back down the sides of the glass, and some wine will form little rivulets, or "legs."
Legs are considered desirable, as they indicate a higher glycerin presence, which indicates an ability to retain flavor and aroma. Taste the wine with your nose Take the glass and swirl the wine around a bit while holding it a little away from your nose. This helps to increase the amount of scent that is available for your nose to smell. Move the glass under your nose and inhale deeply through your nose, then move it away from your face while you think about it. This will allow you to judge the "nose" of the wine, without being overwhelmed by the most dominant of the available aromas.
At this point, you may be able to smell fruit or yeast, grass or earth in the wine. You may be able to smell quite a lot, or not very much at all. Again, experience will lead you to expect certain things from the wine by what you smell in it. Taste the wine with your mouth Rest with the aroma of the wine for a few moments, then take some of the wine into your mouth. Push it up to the front of your mouth, and inhale through your teeth. Slosh it around in your mouth, and cover your tongue. Even chew it if you like. As the wine enters your mouth, you'll gather a first impression of it, and a predominant taste may become apparent. If it's a more complex wine, other tastes may appear, secondary notes that accompany the initial impression. Perhaps you can taste the wood from the barrels that the wine was stored in. Is that wood-taste complimentary or overwhelming?
Different varieties of grapes are grown in various soils and in varying weather, then stored in various ways for varying periods of time. The wine in your mouth will reflect all of these factors. Now spit out the wine into the provided container. You'll notice that you can still taste the wine, even though it's gone.
Aftertaste, or finish is an important feature of some wines, so consider--is there much of it? Does it linger? What does it remind you of? Did you spill any on your blouse or shirt? · · · Take a minute or two between wines to rinse your mouth with a little water (not chilled, you don't want to numb your tastebuds).
Take a bite of an unsalted cracker or bread if you'd like. That will clear the taste of the previous wine from your mouth, before you taste the next one. While you're at it, rinse your glass with water and dry it with the clean cloth. Add a wine to your list of favorites As if an evening of tasting good wine weren't rewarding enough, you have also performed valuable research into your own wine preferences. The next time you buy a bottle or order in a restaurant, you'll be prepared to make a well-informed choice.
Sometimes, you'll find a wine that you like very much. Buy as much as you dare! Go so far as to try to buy bottles from the same case, or cases that arrived at the store at the same time. Wine can change from case to case, especially if it's been mishandled, and there's a good chance that a popular wine will sell out quickly. There are several products on the market to preserve wine once the bottle has been opened.
The two most effective seem to be the cans of inert gases that settle over the surface of the wine in the bottle, and the vacuum pumps that expel most of the air from a bottle and seal it with a rubber stop. Both of them work on the principle that wine changes character as it is exposed to air, and minimizing exposure will slow that process.
On storage: Certain wines improve with age. Others do not. The amount of tannin in the wine is one indicator of whether or not it will age well. Tannic qualities often become less apparent with age, and a bottle that you would like to keep for some years should have enough of them to start with, otherwise it won't develop much more character, and will "die" rather quickly.
C'est what? French is spoken by almost 200 million people in the world--in Europe, the Carribean, South America, Canada and Africa. It can also sound baffling when compared with English. However, Francophones take great pride in their language and any attempt at communicating with the local way of speaking is appreciated. What does "get by" mean? It refers to a basic, functional ability to arrange food, shelter and transport and to share basic info about your past. Although mastering this 2torial may not get you any linguistic achievement awards, it will be a step closer to understanding the local cultures and languages of French speakers all over the world. And you'll avoid being a part of the unsightly crowd that floods the streets of Paris in August, who assume that English is spoken worldwide and make no attempt to communicate in the native tongue. Oh yes, one suggestion: Be ready to make mistakes. This is possibly the most difficult lesson to learn. Charlie Parker, one of the best Western musicians of this century, said it very well: "If you don't make mistakes, you're not trying hard enough!"
Perhaps you've enjoyed wine on some occasions and disliked it on others. Or maybe you've heard wine enthusiaists discuss wine and you understood little of their conversation. If so, this 2torial can lead you out of the darkness of wine confusion. It's best read in conjunction with our other wine-related 2torials: Since the taste of a wine is a subjective experience, a wide variety of terms have developed to describe it. Some people might consider this as an example of elitist snobbery, but actually these terms are a useful and enjoyable way to explain what you are tasting. You might feel a bit self-conscious (if not pretentious) the first time you start talking about "a leggy, round Cabernet with a okummy finish," but you'll adjust. As long as you're legitimately trying to convey your winetasting sensations, you're not a snob.
Interestingly, you'll find that many terms are applicable for more than one aspect of wine. A glass of wine to gladden the heart If you find yourself enjoying more wine, you'll begin to develop a taste for certain styles and form opinions about wine in general. After speaking with some of your friends, you'll probably discover that they've developed their own tastes and opinions as well.
What could be better than inviting them over and tasting a bunch of wines together? People have been holding wine tastings for centuries, and a good time will be had by all. It's easy, as this 2torial shows. If you're enthusiastic about having a tasting, but feeling a little inexperienced about wine--don't worry, this 2torial is also for you. Included here is a review of how to enjoy wine, along with suggestions for hosting an informal tasting. Many of us consider it sinful not to swallow any good wine that has passed our lips. However, a traditional wine tasting allows the wine to be tasted in all three ways, yet leaves us sober enough to drive home.
The event itself can be as informal or orchestrated as you like. A neat but basic setting is inviting without making anyone feel stiff or on ceremony. Candlelight (along with other lighting) and soft music may complete the scene for some folks.
Some wine is bound to be splashed or dripped, so a pristine white table linen may not be practical. Hey, where's the screw-top? Now that you've gone and spent a few bucks on a nice bottle of wine, wouldn't it be nice to be able to open it up with a casual flair?
Don't you want to know what a decanter is? And most importantly, do you really want to make that champagne cork fly across the room, and take out the antique cut-glass collection? Apart from the rigidly enforced "dozen cardinal rules" of wine service, there are some simple, casual guidelines that will help convince your new in-laws that you've been doing this all your life.
Remember that anything involving wine should be enjoyable. When you successfully pour a cork-free glass of red wine that has been allowed to breathe properly, appreciate it. On the other hand, if the cork breaks in half, and won't come out, what the heck!
Push it into the bottle, pick out the bits of cork and stop worrying. The world hasn't come to an end. Feeling nervous and awkward with your first language attempts is natural--but "getting by" simply takes patience and an interest in your surroundings.
A hotelier will already be prepared for your room inquiries, a taxi driver will know you want to go somewhere, and a waiter will anticipate that you want a meal. And those exchanges that fall in between, well, that's where the confusion and the fun come in.