Legend has it that Cleopatra once promised Marc Anthony she would "drink the value of a province" in one cup of wine, after which she drank an expensive pearl with a cup of wine. Marilyn Monroe is rumored to have bathed in a bathtub of champagne. The lure of wine is cross-cultural and going strong. Enjoying wine, once surrounded by pomp and circumstance, is now something that many of us do on a daily basis to enjoy food, friends, and family. There is no reason each experience shouldn’t be as exceptional as taking a bath in Champagne. Knowing a few simple tips about tasting wine can enhance your wine experience by leaps and bounds and easily transition you from a wine lover to a wine expert.
STEP 1 - LOOKING
Fill the glass about one-third full, never more than half-full. Pick it up by the stem. This may feel awkward at first, but there are good reasons: Holding the glass by its bowl hides the liquid from view; fingerprints blur its color; the heat of your hand alters the wine's temperature. Wine experts can usually tell right away how much a person knows about wine by looking at the way they hold their glass.
Focus on the hue, intensity and clarity of the wine color. The true color, or hue, of the wine is best judged by tilting the glass and looking at the wine through the rim, to see the variation from the deepest part of the liquid to its edges. Intensity can best be gauged looking straight down through the wine from above. Clarity—whether the wine is brilliant, or cloudy with particles—is most evident when light is shining sideways through the glass.
STEP 2 - SWIRLING
Next comes the swirling. This too can feel unnatural, even dangerous if your glass it too full and your carpet or clothing is new. But besides stirring up the full range of colors, it lets the wine breathe a little and releases some of the aroma for examination. The easiest way to swirl is to rest the base of the glass on a table, hold the stem between thumb and forefinger, and gently rotate the wrist. Right-handers will find a counter-clockwise motion easiest, left-handers the reverse.
Move the glass until the wine is dancing, climbing nearly to the rim. Then stop. As the liquid settles back into the bottom of the glass, a transparent film will appear on the inside of the bowl, known as the wine's "tears" or "legs." You will often hear people pondering about the legs or showing them off, "Hey look at the legs on this wine!", but in truth they're simply an indication of the amount of alcohol in the wine: the more alcohol, the more tears or legs.
STEP 3 - SMELLING
When you stop swirling, and the legs are falling, it's time to take the next step: smelling. Swirling the wine vaporizes it, and the thin sheet of liquid on the sides of the glass evaporates rapidly; the result is an intensification of the aromas. I’m sure you’ve seen wine snobs do this and you have laughed at them, but stick your nose right into the bowl and inhale.
There's no consensus about the proper sniffing technique. Some advocate two or three quick inhalations; others prefer one deep, sharp sniff. I've seen tasters close one nostril, sniff, then close the other and sniff again. It really doesn’t matter how you do it as long as you get a good sniff in. With practice, and keen attention, you'll learn how to maximize your perception of aromas, and then how to decipher them.
The world of smell is vast and bewildering. First of all, our olfactory equipment is incredibly sensitive; we can distinguish aromas in quantities so small that laboratory equipment can scarcely measure them. Second, our analytic capacity is extraordinary; estimates of the number of different smells humans can identify range up to 10,000!
As with color, wine's aromas offer insights into character, origin and history. Because our actual sense of taste is limited to four simple categories (the well-known sweet, sour, bitter and salt), aroma is the most revealing aspect of our examination. But don't simply sniff for clues. Revel in the sensation. Scientists say smells have direct access to the brain, connecting immediately to memory and emotion. Like a lover's perfume, or the scent of cookies from childhood, wine's aromas can evoke a specific place and time with uncanny power.
STEP 4 - TASTING
With the aromas still reverberating through your senses, put the glass to your lips and take some liquid in. How much? You need to have enough volume to work it all around your tasting apparatus, but not so much that you're forced to swallow right away.
Because you don't want to swallow, not just yet. It takes time and effort to force the wine to divulge its secrets. I keep a pleasant wine in my mouth for 10 to 15 seconds, sometimes more.
Roll the wine all around your mouth, bringing it into contact with every part, because each decodes a different aspect of the liquid. Wine provokes sensations, too: The astringency of tannins is most perceptible on the inner cheeks; the heat of the alcohol burns in the back of the throat.
First, as you hold the wine in your mouth, purse your lips and inhale gently through them. This creates a bubbling noise children find immensely amusing. It also accelerates vaporization, intensifying the aromas. Second, chew the wine vigorously, sloshing it around in your mouth, to draw every last nuance of flavor from the wine.
Don't forget the finish. After you swallow, exhale gently and slowly through both your nose and mouth. The retro-nasal passage, which connects the throat and the nose, is another avenue for aromas, which can linger long after the wine is finally swallowed. You'll find that the better the wine, the more complex, profound and long-lasting these residual aromas can be. With great wines, sensitive tasters and minimal distractions, the finish can last a minute or more. It's a moment of meditation and communion that no other beverage can create.
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Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Everything You Wanted to Know About Wine Glasses But Were Afraid to Ask
A Brief History of the Wine Glass
Wine glasses have been used since ancient times.
Pliny (23–79 A.D.) wrote about gold and silver drinking vessels being abandoned in favor of glass, and they were frequently priced as high as the precious metal versions. Bonifacio Veronese’s sixteenth-century ‘Last Supper’ includes modern style wine glasses with a stem and foot.
The oldest surviving European wine glasses with a stem and foot are fifteenth-century enameled goblets (a goblet is a glass holding more than four ounces of liquid).
Near the end of the sixteenth-century in Germany sophisticated engraved decoration was applied to covered wine glasses.
The earliest surviving English wine glasses are diamond-engraved glasses that were produced near the end of the sixteenth-century by Verzelini. Plain straight stems gained popularity around 1740, with air twist stems being introduced about the same time. Ten years later a twist incised on the exterior of the stem became popular.
Quality crystal wine glasses were being produced in France near the end of the eighteenth-century.
Cordial glasses in the eighteenth-century had bowls of the same shapes that were typical for wine glasses, but they were much smaller, holding about one ounce.
Toast masters glasses were made with a thicker bottom and walls so that they would hold less. A toast master had to drain every glass and still be able to remain standing till all toasts were completed.
Wine glasses during the nineteenth-century were often produced in sets — with a dozen each of port and sherry, burgundy and claret, champagne glasses and liqueur glasses.
More recently, in the 1950s, Riedel Crystal and other stemware manufacturers have refined wine glass design to the point of having a unique size and shape for almost every wine variation.
Wine glasses are made for drinking wine, of course, but people are creative and have found other uses ranging from combining several wine glasses to construct a glass harp to using stemware in a similar manner to provide sound education.
Choosing Wine Glasses
There really is no right or wrong glass for wine tasting - or for drinking wine for that matter. However, there are some glasses that are better than others for evaluating wines. First of all, we like to suggest using glasses that you are comfortable using. Aesthetics aside, there are really only two things to remember when considering a wine tasting glass: the size of the glass and the overall shape of the glass.
The more universally used tasting glass is called a chimney shape. Broader on the bottom of the bowl, it tapers upward to a smaller opening. The broader bottom will enable you to hold enough wine and give you plenty of room to swirl the wine, while the smaller opening at the top will help to trap and focus the aromas, allowing you enough of a scent to assess the wine.
Size Doesn't Matter
For the most part, if your glass is of this shape, the actual size of the glass is not important other than it needs to be big enough and have a big enough opening for you to be able to get your nose inside to really smell the wine. Some people swear by large "Burgundy" style glasses that allow as much of the wine to come in contact with the air as possible, therefore releasing as many of the aromas and flavors as possible. Others like the convenience and ease of use of a smaller glass. Other considerations that will enhance your tasting experience include glassware that is clear (no colors) and free of cuts or engravings within the glass.
Many glass manufacturers have designed specific glasses for specific wine types or varietals, taking in to account different aspects of the individual wine type. While this is wonderful, it is not a necessary purchase for a complete wine tasting. The top producer of these specialized wine glasses is an Austrian crystal company named Riedel (pronounced REE-dle). They are exquisite and expensive.
Cleaning Wine Glasses
When it comes time to clean your glassware, try to avoid using soap. Instead use hot water and rinse thoroughly. Soap can become trapped within the glass release soapy odors the next time you use it. Although you may become quite proficient at identifying various brands of dish soap, this ability and the soapy glasses that taught you will not add to the enjoyment of a good glass of wine.
To summarize, it's important that you find good glassware for your wine tasting experiences, but "good" does not necessarily mean "expensive." Find glassware that you are comfortable with and adequately serves its purpose: presenting wine for your evaluation and enjoyment.
Tips For Serving Wine
You've probably heard many conflicting and complicated instructions throughout the years on the proper way to get wine from the store to your glass. It doesn't have to be that hard. Here are the basics of serving wine, which are all you really need.
Many customs have accompanied wine drinking through the years. None of them are meant to be intimidating or stuffy. They are just practices intended to enhance the enjoyment of wine.
On the subject of temperature — you may have heard that red wine should be served at room temperature and that white wine should be slightly chilled before serving. These recommendations originated at a time when "room temperature" was lower than is typical today.
Full-bodied and tannic red wines are best enjoyed at not more than 64°F (18°C) and clarets, Pinot Noirs (including burgundies), and then the modern reds — soft, light, fruity and relatively tannin-free for drinking young, at progressively cooler temperatures — down to about 54°F (12°C).
White wines are ideally served between 43°F (6°C) to 52°F (11°C). Red wine or white wine, err on the cool side as they will warm quickly on the table and in the glass.
_______________________________
Learn Wine Tasting
Wine glasses have been used since ancient times.
Pliny (23–79 A.D.) wrote about gold and silver drinking vessels being abandoned in favor of glass, and they were frequently priced as high as the precious metal versions. Bonifacio Veronese’s sixteenth-century ‘Last Supper’ includes modern style wine glasses with a stem and foot.
The oldest surviving European wine glasses with a stem and foot are fifteenth-century enameled goblets (a goblet is a glass holding more than four ounces of liquid).
Near the end of the sixteenth-century in Germany sophisticated engraved decoration was applied to covered wine glasses.
The earliest surviving English wine glasses are diamond-engraved glasses that were produced near the end of the sixteenth-century by Verzelini. Plain straight stems gained popularity around 1740, with air twist stems being introduced about the same time. Ten years later a twist incised on the exterior of the stem became popular.
Quality crystal wine glasses were being produced in France near the end of the eighteenth-century.
Cordial glasses in the eighteenth-century had bowls of the same shapes that were typical for wine glasses, but they were much smaller, holding about one ounce.
Toast masters glasses were made with a thicker bottom and walls so that they would hold less. A toast master had to drain every glass and still be able to remain standing till all toasts were completed.
Wine glasses during the nineteenth-century were often produced in sets — with a dozen each of port and sherry, burgundy and claret, champagne glasses and liqueur glasses.
More recently, in the 1950s, Riedel Crystal and other stemware manufacturers have refined wine glass design to the point of having a unique size and shape for almost every wine variation.
Wine glasses are made for drinking wine, of course, but people are creative and have found other uses ranging from combining several wine glasses to construct a glass harp to using stemware in a similar manner to provide sound education.
Choosing Wine Glasses
There really is no right or wrong glass for wine tasting - or for drinking wine for that matter. However, there are some glasses that are better than others for evaluating wines. First of all, we like to suggest using glasses that you are comfortable using. Aesthetics aside, there are really only two things to remember when considering a wine tasting glass: the size of the glass and the overall shape of the glass.
The more universally used tasting glass is called a chimney shape. Broader on the bottom of the bowl, it tapers upward to a smaller opening. The broader bottom will enable you to hold enough wine and give you plenty of room to swirl the wine, while the smaller opening at the top will help to trap and focus the aromas, allowing you enough of a scent to assess the wine.
Size Doesn't Matter
For the most part, if your glass is of this shape, the actual size of the glass is not important other than it needs to be big enough and have a big enough opening for you to be able to get your nose inside to really smell the wine. Some people swear by large "Burgundy" style glasses that allow as much of the wine to come in contact with the air as possible, therefore releasing as many of the aromas and flavors as possible. Others like the convenience and ease of use of a smaller glass. Other considerations that will enhance your tasting experience include glassware that is clear (no colors) and free of cuts or engravings within the glass.
Many glass manufacturers have designed specific glasses for specific wine types or varietals, taking in to account different aspects of the individual wine type. While this is wonderful, it is not a necessary purchase for a complete wine tasting. The top producer of these specialized wine glasses is an Austrian crystal company named Riedel (pronounced REE-dle). They are exquisite and expensive.
Cleaning Wine Glasses
When it comes time to clean your glassware, try to avoid using soap. Instead use hot water and rinse thoroughly. Soap can become trapped within the glass release soapy odors the next time you use it. Although you may become quite proficient at identifying various brands of dish soap, this ability and the soapy glasses that taught you will not add to the enjoyment of a good glass of wine.
To summarize, it's important that you find good glassware for your wine tasting experiences, but "good" does not necessarily mean "expensive." Find glassware that you are comfortable with and adequately serves its purpose: presenting wine for your evaluation and enjoyment.
Tips For Serving Wine
You've probably heard many conflicting and complicated instructions throughout the years on the proper way to get wine from the store to your glass. It doesn't have to be that hard. Here are the basics of serving wine, which are all you really need.
Many customs have accompanied wine drinking through the years. None of them are meant to be intimidating or stuffy. They are just practices intended to enhance the enjoyment of wine.
- "White wine with fish and red wine with meat" is more customary than culinary.
- Red wines are served at room temperature, while white wines, roses, and champagnes are served chilled.
- The stronger the food, the stronger the wine. The lighter the food, the lighter the wine.
Wine loves air, which revives its sleeping flavors. It is recommended to open the bottle about an hour before consumption and let the wine "breathe". This ages it a year or so, and allows its flavors to mellow. - A bottle of wine has to be handled carefully, with the minimum movement possible. Remember, wine likes to sleep, only to awaken in your mouth.
- Red wine bottles do not need to be cleaned or dusted before opening. They are opened on a hard surface. White wines, rose, and Champagne bottles are opened in ice buckets.
- Red wines corks are sniffed to make sure the wine has not spoiled, which gives the cork an unpleasant smell. It is not necessary to smell white and rose wine corks since the wine was refrigerated and the cork will not smell.
On the subject of temperature — you may have heard that red wine should be served at room temperature and that white wine should be slightly chilled before serving. These recommendations originated at a time when "room temperature" was lower than is typical today.
Full-bodied and tannic red wines are best enjoyed at not more than 64°F (18°C) and clarets, Pinot Noirs (including burgundies), and then the modern reds — soft, light, fruity and relatively tannin-free for drinking young, at progressively cooler temperatures — down to about 54°F (12°C).
White wines are ideally served between 43°F (6°C) to 52°F (11°C). Red wine or white wine, err on the cool side as they will warm quickly on the table and in the glass.
_______________________________
Learn Wine Tasting
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