How to Taste Wine !
Tasting wine is an art that requires attention, practice, and knowledge. Whether you’re an enthusiastic connoisseur or a curious beginner, this guide will help you fully appreciate every glass you taste. As wine tasting evolves each year, I will share some tips I’ve personally learned to better understand wine and enhance the tasting experience. Let’s dive in !
How To Taste Wine - The first key steps in wine tasting :
1. Choose the Right Glass
The choice of glass is crucial for an optimal wine tasting experience. An ideal wine glass should have a slightly tapered opening to concentrate aromas towards the nose. Stemmed glasses are recommended as they allow you to hold the glass without warming the wine with your hand. A good wine glass is essential for appreciating the wine’s full potential, and paying attention to this detail can greatly enhance your tasting experience. A well-chosen glass is truly a must-have for wine lovers !
2. Wine Temperature
Each type of wine has its ideal serving temperature:
- Red wines : Between 60°F and 64°F (16°C and 18°C).
- White wines : Between 46°F and 54°F (8°C and 12°C).
- Champagne and sparkling wines : Between 43°F and 46°F (6°C and 8°C).
For more detailed information about the perfect serving temperatures for different wines, check out my article here : How to Choose the Right Wine Temperature.
How To Taste Wine - The Different Steps : Tasting Wine
1 ) Sight : If you can distinguish between a white and a red wine by sight, you're already on the right track !
The first step in wine tasting is to observe the wine in your glass. Hold the glass up against a white surface and observe the color and clarity of the wine. The color can give clues about the age and type of wine. First of all, know that if you see someone raise their glass towards a wall or any surface that’s not white, they might already be missing the first key step in wine tasting.
You should observe the wine through a white surface, like a cloth, a napkin on the table, or a tablecloth at a restaurant. The surface must be white; if it’s a different color, it can affect how you perceive the actual color of the wine in your glass.
For example, if the wine is pale yellow, you might see it as golden yellow. It might not make much of a difference if you don’t know much about wine, but at least you are already observing it correctly !
- Red wine : A young red wine is often ruby in color, with purple, violet, or bright hues. As the wine ages, it tends to take on brick-red shades, similar to the color of roof tiles, a very orangey terracotta color. This change occurs due to the aging process and the settling of wine compounds, which lightens the color.
- White wine : A young white wine may be pale and clear, while a more mature wine develops golden hues. As white wines age, they may become amber in color, which is mainly due to chemistry, even minimal oxidation, hydrolysis, and interactions between compounds that lead to the formation of new colorant compounds. The Maillard Reaction, oak barrel aging, and exposure to light and UV rays can also contribute to these changes. The Maillard Reaction involves interactions between sugars and amino acids in the wine, resulting in darker hues.
- Rosé wine : For rosé wines, the color of the wine can indicate its profile. A pale pink hue may suggest a floral, fruity wine, while a deeper red color could indicate a more intensely fruity, flavorful wine due to the extraction of color compounds during maceration or slow pressing. Understand that a wine with lighter tones is likely to be lighter in flavor, while a wine with darker hues will often be more aromatic. This is not an exact science, as wine is always a complex and fascinating drink !
Observe whether the wine has any sediment, which may require decanting. I’ll explain that here as well: The Wine Decanter : Decant or Aerate ?
To summarize the first step, sight, focus on a few key points: the color of the wine, its color intensity, whether there are any sediments, and if the wine has special hues resulting from advanced aging.
2) How to Taste Wine - The nose, your first good impression (or not) :
Here, we will focus on several things. First, when you smell the wine, make sure to do so from the top part of the glass. This is a good practice, as the alcohol content in the wine, even if minimal, can “burn” your senses for a moment. Alcohol is volatile, and our sensory receptors are sensitive to it. This will help you avoid missing any aromas or scents that you might enjoy in the wine.
Don’t worry, the goal is not to identify every aromatic note in your wine, but simply to appreciate it ! Don’t overcomplicate things; vocabulary comes with time, and memories resurface—like that clafoutis your grandmother used to make, which you may rediscover in the wine. Can’t find the words ? That’s okay as long as you enjoy what you’re smelling ! This is the first step : you’ll be tasting wine with your nose !
How to Taste Wine – The first nose :
Avoid swirling, or swirl your glass very slowly, then bring it close to your nose and inhale slowly and deeply. The first aromas you detect are often the most volatile and delicate. Try to identify fruits, flowers, or spices, or, most importantly, see if you like the smell. Check for any negative odors—such as musty cork, egg, a strong animal scent, or, of course, vinegar.
How to Taste Wine – The second nose :
Swirl the glass again, letting your wine interact with oxygen, and inhale once more. This time, you may detect more complex aromas, usually related to the fermentation or aging of the wine, such as notes of toasted bread, vanilla, or hazelnut. The fruit aromas will be more pronounced, and the scents will be stronger as oxidation awakens them ! A decanter can help reveal beautiful wines if it has had very limited exposure to oxygen.
In summary, for the nose, take several things into account : Once you’ve observed the wine, smell your glass without swirling it too much. First, determine if you like the wine, if you detect any specific aromas, and if there are no defects such as vinegar smells, musty cork, animal leather, etc !
3) The mouth (I understand this is what interests you the most) :
How to Taste Wine – The First Sip :
Take a small sip and let the wine coat your mouth. Try to distinguish the basic tastes : sweet, sour, bitter, salty. Your first step is to determine whether you like the wine, and then to understand what you’re feeling. But most importantly, whether you enjoy it ! Taste the wine with your heart, don’t overcomplicate things !
Pay attention to whether the wine feels intense in your mouth, if the tannins (the sensations of roughness or dryness in your mouth) are pleasant, and if you salivate properly afterward. If it’s not too acidic, too cold, or too bitter, then your personal enjoyment is what really matters.
Mouth Aeration : Why taste wine this way and how to “slurp” the wine :
“Slurping” the wine means gently inhaling some air while keeping the wine in your mouth. This helps aerate the wine and release even more aromas. Here’s how to do it :
- Take a small sip of wine.
- Tilt your head slightly forward.
- Gently inhale a bit of air through your mouth, as if you’re slurping spaghetti.
- Let the air mix with the wine in your mouth for a few seconds before swallowing or spitting it out.
The goal is to maximize the wine’s exposure to oxygen, which helps reveal deeper layers of aromas and flavors. Even though you might only catch a few additional aromas, and the noise can be distracting, it doesn’t serve much purpose. This method isn’t one I necessarily recommend—”slurping” the wine and inhaling forcefully doesn’t add much other than auditory discomfort! (But perhaps I’m lacking impartiality here.)
Mastication : Why taste wine this way and how to chew the wine :
Chewing the wine means moving it around in your mouth, as if you were chewing food. This helps you better perceive its texture and structure. You’ll activate all your sensory receptors in your mouth and feel many more things ! This is the method I recommend over not knowing how to “slurp” properly. Here’s how to do it :
- Take a sip of wine.
- Move the wine around your mouth, using your tongue to touch all the internal surfaces.
- Gently chew the wine to feel its different textures and flavors.
Chewing the wine stimulates the taste buds throughout your mouth—tongue, palate—offering, in my opinion, a more complete, simpler, and detailed experience of the wine. I’ll leave you with a short video from Mr. Emmanuel Delmas, an excellent sommelier, who will explain this very easily: Here’s how to chew the wine ! (In French)
The Finish
The finish refers to the persistence of flavors after swallowing or spitting out the wine. A great wine is often said to have a long finish, where the flavors evolve and linger. Sommeliers express this in “caudalies,” which are simply seconds of persistence. You count in your head how long the aromas last (be careful, it’s the aromas, not the texture effects of the wine, the fragrance !).
Conclusion of the article How to Taste Wine :
Tasting wine is a sensory journey that requires practice and patience. By following these steps and tips, you’ll be able to better appreciate and understand the nuances of each wine you taste. Cheers !
Check out my other articles by following the link to my Blog, or return to the Homepage to discover how to create wonderful food and wine pairings !
