Do's and Dont's of Wine tasting..


Breathe it in deeply.. lol

Port, deep red or a dry white.  
I thought that I was quite savvy with wine selection. You have the body of the wine, swirl it around in the wine glass then take a strong inhale of it before consumption and you should be good.  Umm.. nope.  There is more.  Allow me to share with you, what I learned recently at a wine tasting etiquette class. 

Here are the DOs

Look, swirl, smell and sip

  1. Do find out the format: Wine tasting can be casual or formal with seating and it helps to find out which one you are attending, you may have to dress the part. 
  2. Do take notes: a small note book is invaluable at these shingdings because after a few sips (at least for me) everything becomes fuzzy or pretty funny.  By giving each sample out of a score of 10, you can keep track of the ones that really left a good or bad impression.  I found out that I wasn't suppose to swallow, but then, where is the fun in that?
  3. Do swallow (if you want to):  This is the only time that spitting in public into a 'spit bucket' is acceptable.  Ohh, if you are the designated driver, ummm, you will be walking around for that bucket to stay sober.
  4. Do cleanse your palate: At the event, there will be stations of crackers or finger food to cleanse as the wine looses its essence and it helps with scoring the gorgeous liquor in your hand.
Here are the DONTs
  1. It is not a Tequila shot, don't knock it back: This is where you are supposed to savour the wine it all of its glory. Appreciate the aging process, rich colour and flavour.  One of my good friends would caution me, 'Alicia, this isn't not juice!' God Bless her.♥
  2. Hold the glass by the stem and not by the bowl: Proper etiquette requires that stem holding is best as your prints shows up on the bowl and your body temperature affects the quality of the wine.
  3. Pretty please, do not go on an empty stomach: Those crackers are NOT enough.
  4. Take it slow: Free wine, yes it sounds good but don't go overboard on your intake.

Well there you have it.

What are your thoughts? I would love to hear them.




Salud!

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