Finding a wine that you enjoy does not always have to be an overwhelming experience. Whether you are walking into a tasting room, a wine bar, or a simple restaurant, you can follow these steps on how to taste wine and feel confident in your experience. The most important thing to remember is that you should enjoy the wine that your palate enjoys while also being curious to try new things. Below we will go into the 5 steps you should state when wine tasting!
The 5 S’s of Wine Tasting
Sight – What do you see?
Hold the glass by the stem and hold it in front of your eye level. Just look at it – you are looking for things like whether it’s clear or cloudy; if it is light strawberry colored or a darker ruby; and if there are any particles floating in the wine. If you are a professional wine taster, you would look for more characteristics to determine the age of the wine and the quality as well. Older wines will change color over the years – red wines show darker, brown tones, and the younger wines present more violet-like. For whites, they will turn darker and present more amber the older they are. That is ideally what you are looking for when it comes to sight.
Nose – Swirl and Sniff
After examining the wine, you will then keep a firm hold on the stem and give it a good swirl – you’ve probably seen this infamous swirl in restaurants or on TV. Be careful to spill, you’d be surprised how easy it is. Giving it a swirl will release the aromas of the wine. This is one of the best and most important parts of wine tasting because you will get a true sense of the thousands of characteristics simply by sniffing it.
Give it a strong whiff right. What do you smell? It takes some time to actually pick up a scent other than wine, and that’s okay. Just try your hardest to pick out specifics, for example, green apple, pear, cherry, cedar, etc. If you can’t figure it out, look at the wine guide and see if you can find the scent after knowing the type of wine.
Palate – Sip the wine!
This is the moment we’ve been waiting for. After giving it a good swirl and sniff, allow a small amount into your mouth and swish it around. Don’t swallow it right away, this is a chance to focus on how it changes and what stands out in your mouth. Is the wine sweet? Is it dry? Does the flavor the smell or is it different?
Savor – Finish the glass!
Savoring the glass refers to how long the flavor lasts after you swallow the wine. Does the flavor linger after you have swallowed it, or did it go away? Typically, the longer the finish the better quality. During this step, you will also determine if this is a wine that you would like to drink a full glass of, or even purchase a bottle of. Don’t look at what other people think of the wine – this is your palate and you are the only one who can determine how you feel about it. If you don’t like it, politely tell them and perhaps they can introduce you to something you might enjoy better.
Visit Krasi in Boston, MA
Interested in putting your wine tasting steps to the test? Visit us in Boston, MA to try our variety of Greek, Spanish, French, Australian, and many more wines! See what you like best, and figure out what matches your palate. We can help you! Make reservations online or come on in.
