Cultural Lesson # 6: French Wine- Tasting it
Method for wine tasting:
1) How does the wine look? Hold the wine up to the light or to a white background and observe its true color. Color is our first indication of how the wine will taste (red, white, rosée, etc.).
2) How does the wine smell? Stick your whole nose into the glass (don't feel silly!). One wine guide once told our group that you may have a certain nostrile more sensitive than the other. You want to try to discern the different scents that make up the wine (ex. floral, wood, fruit, or spices). Everyone has the capacity to identify scents and flavors, it is just a matter of what your mental catalogue is. Ever since my first vineyard tour, I have taken every opportunity to eat a new type of fruit and to really memorize the scent and flavor.
3) Swirl like a snob. It's not pretentious, it's necessary! Performing this motion for 10-20 seconds aerates the wine and releases the vapors allowing you to better perform step 4.
4) Smell it again! In addition to discerning the different scents, note whether or not it smells good to you. Is it making you salivate (I know this sounds weird, but just be mature about it)? Is it a wine you want to drink?
5) Finally the tasting! Only after using all of your other senses are you ready to use your taste buds! It is best to sip the wine and get as much oxygen in your mouth as you can (by sort of sucking air in through your teeth as the wine is in your mouth). Make sure you roll the wine through all parts of your mouth before you swallow (or spit it out, if you're classy like me and don't want to get tipsy at a wine tasting). Different parts of our mouth detect different types of tastes.
6) Wait for it! The aftertaste is also very important when assessing a wine.
Basically, I'm a wine snob now.
Stay tuned for part two where I talk about French vineyards and the wine making process!
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