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Wine Basics: How To Taste Wine You may have been to a wine tasting or restaurant and witnessed a "geek
scene". This is where a group of dorks are twirling their glasses,
shoving their noses to the bottom of their glasses, and commenting to each
other how the wine is so amazingly "tight" and "austere".
You may wonder just what the heck they're talking about, and wouldn’t the
wine taste a lot better in their mouth than in their nostrils? Hopefully
you'll never reach the bottom of geekdom, nor the height of snobbery, but by
applying and training your senses, you could find yourself somewhere in
between, and enjoying a whole new experience. The first
step to wine enjoyment is to realize that you know nothing about wine, and
you shouldn't be intimidated by it. Why not? Because 99.9% of the geeks know
only a teeny-weeny bit more than you, and if they know any more than that,
they probably have no life at all. Even the most studious, lifelong
connoisseurs of wine don't know even one-tenth of all there is to know, so
loosen up, and enjoy. OK, the
intimidation factor is removed (just play along). Now it's time to plunge
into the glass. But wait---full appreciation of wine is going to take some
training, and some understanding. Luckily, you
already have the skills necessary to be a full-fledged snob. The likely
difficulty is that you rarely apply these skills. Most people
eat because they're hungry, and drink because they're thirsty. This habit
evolves at a very young age called "infancy". Too often, however,
people drink when they're really thirsty, and eat when they're really hungry.
Therefore the goal is to get items into their bellies so quickly that they
can't remember what it tasted like (sound familiar). This is just a natural
process you've been going through since birth---your stomach is empty, you
cry, someone feeds you, your tummy feels better, you feel good. The trick is
to evolve beyond this primal consumption cycle and actually taste what goes
past your teeth. All right,
I'm exaggerating; but not by much. The point is that most of the time, most
people taste some of what they're consuming, but not all of it. Delicate
flavors, textures, spices, and other nuances are often unnoticed in the rush
to get sustenance from lips to belly. As a result, only the strong
survive---strong flavors, that is. Salty, spicy, and sweet are the most
dominant qualities that overpower a meal, and therefore most noticed by your
palate. Think about it; what's everyone's favorite snack? Salty potato chips?
Nachos? Salted nuts? Pretzels? The most popular condiments? Salt, pepper, and
salsa, in that order. The most popular canned soup? Sea-worthy Campbell's, of
course. And how do you prefer your chocolate, sweet or bitter? Take a peek at
any juice or soda, and I guarantee the first ingredient is corn syrup. Would
you rather eat a Twinkie or a brussel sprout? You get the idea. As you enter
the world of wine, you'll find that the majority of fine wines are not salty,
sweet, nor spicy---at least not in the concentrations you're used to. For
example, a Gewurztraminer is spicy, but not hot and spicy like Szechuan
chicken. And some Pinot Noirs have a "sweet" fruit element, but nothing
like the sugar-enhanced "wine coolers" you enjoyed in college. Most
of the wonderful characteristics of fine wine are more tempered, or subtle,
and it takes one more patience, concentration, and detective work to realize
these complex yet delicate elements. The geeks
will tell you that the first step in tasting wine is to look at it. I say,
"bullshit". Yes, you can often tell quite a bit about a wine by
observing its color intensity, but the color has little or nothing to do with
your enjoyment of the wine. The only real reason geeks pay so much attention
to the color of wine is because they like to show off and "guess"
the vintage of the wine, and they like saying things like, "ooh, look at
those legs", or "wow, what a great hue".
Note that
white wines should always be swirled clockwise, red wines are always swirled
counterclockwise – others use a blender...just kidding. If you swirl
too vigorously and splatter yourself, don't worry---white wine takes out red
wine stains. To be on the safe side, you may want to practice with white
wines until you get the hang of it. (FYI, I think red wine will completely
cover a white wine stain.) Before you know it, you'll be swirling like a pro,
and find yourself unconsciously swirling your cocktails, coffee, orange
juice, and Fruit Loops- Don’t try with Oatmeal. Once you've
swirled a bit (it's not a can of paint; just 10-20 seconds of swirling is
more than sufficient), stick your nose inside the glass and take a big whiff.
See if you can touch the tip of your nose to the bottom of the glass---it's a
neat party trick, and it may land you on David Letterman someday. Smell, smell,
smell the wine, then swirl it again and smell it some more. Alternate between
short, quick sniffs and long, huge whiffs. Decide which technique is best for
you, and which won't make you fall down. Take note of what you're smelling.
Apples, grapefruit, peaches, pears, flowers, and general citrus are common in
white wines. Red wines might smell of raspberries, cherries, prunes, and
other red fruits. Also note how powerful the aromas are---are they
faint or "in your face"? Why such a
fuss over sniffing? Consider this: the tongue can only perceive four
flavors---sweet, sour, bitter, and salt (c'mon, you learned that in grammar
school). However, the nose can detect over 2,000 scents. You don't realize
it, but 90% of what you taste is really a perception derived from your nose. Try
tasting Bud and Coors or Old Milwaukee, side by side, with a clothespin on
your nose. You'll never tell the difference. Once you've
taken a few sniffs and possibly identified a few elements (don't feel bad if
you can't distinguish specific aromas---it takes time before you can
ascertain the identity of particular components), you can go ahead and take a
sip. But try not to swalllow right away. Instead, swoosh the wine around your
mouth for awhile. If you really want to be a geek, try sucking in some air
with the wine in your mouth (if you're doing it right, you'll make a
disgusting sound similar to a sponge stuck in a vacuum cleaner). Similar to
when you were swirling, you're aerating the wine, and adding air somehow
brings out the flavors. After you've held the wine in your mouth a good 20-30
seconds (or long enough so that it's tiring), swallow or spit. Then take note
of how long the wine "stays" in your mouth---this is the
"finish", and perhaps the one characteristic that can tell you
about the wine's quality. Notice what you taste and feel in your mouth during
the finish; is there much fruit? acidity? is the fruit fading? are
tannins coming on stronger? is your mouth drying out? are the basic
components---acid, alcohol, fruit, and tannin---all in harmony? Acid will
have a "bite" on your tongue, and it will make your cheeks pucker.
Alcohol will feel hot in your mouth (as in burning), and may even taste like,
well, alcohol – funny how that happens. Tannin will dry the middle and back
of your tongue out---if you're not sure of how to percept tannin, drink a sip
of tea without any milk, honey or sugar added; that dried-out feeling is
tannin. What's all
this about feeling? Doesn't wine have any taste? Well of course it does, but
you need also to take the time to notice everything you FEEL in a wine as
well. In addition to the acid, alcohol, and tannin, you should also notice a
texture in the wine. It can be unnoticeable, harsh, fizzy, smooth, buttery,
or even silky. Really good Pinot Noir has an unmistakable silkiness in
texture; some Chianti has an almost fizziness to it. These are all
characteristics that are involved in the matching of wine with food. Finally, pay
attention to what you're tasting. Do you taste a lot of fruit? Is it sweet
fruit? What types of fruits are you tasting? Even though all wines (real
wines, anyway) are made from grapes, the wine can exhibit flavors of other
fruits. For example, Chardonnay can taste like apples; Moscato like peaches;
Syrah like cassis; and Sangiovese like cherries. Often you'll taste a
combination of different fruits, and sometimes vegetables, and often other
elements like minerals or herbs. It's fun to try to describe what fruits
you're tasting (or really frustrating!), especially when you're tasting with
others. More importantly, though, is to notice the power of the fruit in the
wine; that is, how concentrated it is, and how well it stands up to the other
elements (acid, alcohol, and tannin). A great wine
will have a harmonious balance of the components staying in your mouth for
minutes after you've swallowed (or spat) the wine. Some wines will show a
long length of sweet fruit through the finish, but not much acid or alcohol.
Some wines may be all acid and tannin, drying out your mouth for minutes on
end, but not have any fruit. Many Chardonnays from California and Australia
will leave a strong flavor of oak in your mouth for five minutes----but none
of these are examples of a truly great wine. Great wines have a balance of
all elements in the finish. Don't worry if you feel you haven't experienced a
great wine; they're very rare and very expensive. But when you have one in
your mouth, you'll know it, and appreciate it. This does not mean you can't enjoy less than great wines. The key is to understand what makes a great wine, and to learn what elements YOU enjoy most in a wine, as well as what elements match well with particular foods. For example, a fresh, young Sauvignon Blanc will have herbal, grassy flavors and a searing acidity that cuts through the buttery white sauce of, say, a seafood Newburg. On the other hand, that same wine may be awful with cheesecake---a wine with more sweetness, like a Passito or Port---would be much better. Likewise, a big, bold, tannic California Cabernet may be perfect to drink with a blackened london broil steak, but those same characteristics (tannin, alcohol) make it too overpowering and unenjoyable with a simple spaghetti with marinara dish (try an acidic, less tannic red wine like Chianti or Barbera). Once you learn to perceive the different characteristics in wine, you're on your way to further enjoyment of not only wine, but your food as well. It all begins with learning how to taste, and smell, and feel wine. Enjoy! |
