It is customary to serve women before men during wine tasting events. In some events bottled water are served between samplings, to clean your mouth out and to be ready to taste the next wine served. When taking the wine, always handle the glass by its stem, to avoid warming it with your hands. Normally, crackers and other delicacies are served as well, to help you clear your mouth and as an additional enjoyment to the palate in between wine tastings.
It is easy to recognize the wine typically by the color. When you attend a wine tasting party for the first time, you’ll observe that the glasses are crystal clear. This helps you to see the wine better. It is also a standard that a white tablecloth is used on the table, too. This also helps you see the wine’s color more distinctly. You should never judge a wine by the name alone, for it may easily fool you.
You will also observe the more experienced wine tasters slightly swirl the wine in the glass before they sample it. The slight swirling actually helps bring out the true flavor. Most wines are aged in bottles for long time periods, some for many years. The swirling releases the flavors in the wine and brings them out as the wine is tasted.
In wine tasting events, you will need to look at the wine, smell it, then after swirling it in the glass - taste it. The aromas play an important part of the process, because you’ll enjoy the wine better by smelling it first. The intriguing aroma of the wine stimulates you to enjoy the taste that wine is known for. After smelling the wine, you should allow a few moments to absorb the aroma and to think about the wine that you have smelled.
Finally you will need to know how to taste the wine properly. Your tongue has taste buds all over to help you to recognize flavors. Because wine bursts with flavors, the way you taste it makes the greatest impact. When the wine reaches your mouth, swish it around in your mouth for a couple of seconds, and give the flavors enough time to play on your palate. Once your taste buds begin to discover the wine, you may think about what you are sampling. After the wine is swallowed, the aftertaste that stays in your mouth familiarizes you even more to the kind of and flavor of the wine.
Prior to attending a wine tasting event, try to learn as much as you can about the many flavors and types of wines. By doing this, you’ll have a broader understanding of what you should look for in both aroma and flavor. Even though you may be a novice at wine tasting, you need not pass up an opportunity when it arises. You’ll get to experience the exciting world of wine tasting and get to know wines and flavors that you may have never even heard of before.
© 2010 Athena Goodlight
