These wine tips will help you understand some of the jargon and etiquette wine connoisseurs use.
There are many quirks in the world of wine.
Have you ever seen a group of sophisticated wine drinkers pour out hundreds of dollars of wine? This is very common at professional tastings!
Here are 10 wine tips to help you pretend it’s possible.
Try “Interesting” if you aren’t sure what to say
This is the year’s non-committal adjective! Do not panic! Just swirl your wine and then mutter “Interesting …” to yourself. This will give you time to try and remember what a peach is, or if you have to decide if you really hate the wine in your mouth.
Keep your glass at the stem or base
Although it might sound like something to be worried about, it is actually very practical. Wine professionals are very concerned about wine temperature.
Did you know that wine drinkers tend to sip wine at lower temperatures than ideal? It is true. Most wine drinkers are drinking their reds and whites at too high temperatures. White wines should be chilled, but if they are not, it can cause them to become too cold. This can mask the flavors, aromas, and nuances in the juice. It is best to remove white or rose wine from the fridge/ice bucket and let it sit for a while before pouring.
Red wines, on the other hand, are often served too warm. Wine drinkers tend to follow the “room temperature”, even though this was before central heating and air conditioning. This means that the room temperature is closer to the cellar temperature which hovers between 55-60 degrees Fahrenheit. Pro tip: Most red wines will taste better when chilled. The more you learn, the better!
Wired for Wine is passionate about drinking wine that you love and eating food that you love. However, there is a science behind food and wine pairing. Certain components of food and wine interact at a molecular level, which means that certain foods and wines can be enjoyed together.
This is a prime example of it would be fat and tannins. A juicy steak or burger will be a favorite choice. You’ll enjoy it with red wine. The tannins in the juice and the fat from the meat will work together to bring out the flavor. A complementary food and wine pairing is another example, such as salt and acid. For example, take briny, saline-tinged oysters. Red wine tannins will make sea-inspired flavors taste metallic and unpleasant. An acid-laden white, however, promises to let the brine shine.
It might be “closed” if you cannot smell the wine
Most people should be able to smell any wine, regardless of how subtle it may seem (unless you have anosmia). Some wines can be difficult to discern aromas.
Why? There are many reasons. Wines can sit in a wine bottle for up to a year without oxygen. This state is where chemical reactions that age wine use other elements, besides an “O”, to accomplish their task. This is why decanting wine (especially reds) is so crucial!
The expression “expressive” is a winner
Are the aromas of wine too aromatic to be considered perfume? Are the aromas as talkative and flamboyant as your aunt who was drunk at a wedding?
It’s a bit like describing a friend as being “expressive”, but it sounds more natural to use the word “expressive” rather than “they won’t shut up.” We don’t think so! You might also like: exuberant, flashy, vibrant, and animated.
If you’re interested in learning more, we pulled 40 wine descriptions.
Spitting, contrary to common logic, is considered classy
This is one of the most bizarre wine tips. You don’t have to spit all the time. Spitting is great if you have to go through a lot of bottles. It helps you stay sober and focuses on the “taste” of your food, rather than “drinking”.
Practice your spitting skills.
Strangely, the term “spicy” doesn’t even belong to a wine
“Spicy” in wine is not a term. This is confusing when you consider the actual spices that appear in tasting notes: anise and cloves, black pepper, cinnamon, and so on.
High-alcohol wines are referred to as “hot.”
Consider alcohol as burning your throat and emitting fumes like boiling water. That’s what we mean when we say “hot”.
Wine can be made with a wide range of alcohol levels, starting at 5% up to 24%.
Clanking is a great practice!
There are many theories about the origins of the practice of clinking glasses. It is not clear that the tradition started with paranoid leaders mixing wine to avoid poisons.
One thing is certain: The bowl is the most powerful part of the glass,. It also helps to make the wonderful bell sound that has become the national anthem for wine drinkers around the globe. It’s good manners to look at your toasting partner in the eyes. It would be rude to slow dance with someone while looking over their shoulder. On second thought, you might not answer that question…
Fruit-forward vs. earthy: know your preference!
Although there is no scientific evidence to support this, wine tends to be divided into two types: wines with fruitier flavors and wines that have more earthy, savory, or “terroir-driven” notes. You can see the difference between a bold, bold red wine with lots of berry flavors and a more lean, bracing red that has complex flavors that hint to the earth from which it sprung.
Both are welcome at any tasting. However, knowing your taste will help you avoid spending too much on wine that you don’t enjoy.
Do you need some words to describe these wines? These wine terms are very popular.
If all else fails, blame the Terroir
Terroir may be the most overused and misused word in wine.
Terroir is a combination of all factors that contribute to uniqueness. It includes the soil, weather, culture, geography, and other factors. (And a lot more depending on who you ask). It is the reason why a Sauvignon Blanc from France tastes different to a Sauvignon Blanc made here in New Zealand. Science has very little insight into what’s happening.
For now, however, if you are unable to explain why wine tastes the way they do, it could be the region.
Learning about wine has many fun side effects, including looking like a badass around your peers. But honestly, there is more to know than just these 10 wine tips.
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