Tasting Room Basics
Byron, The Bay Area Critic
www.BayAreaCritic.com
Think of Wine Tasting as like being on a cruise. Going from Port to Port (no pun intended) instead of selecting a single vacation spot or bottle of wine. The cruiser enjoys the journey (tasting), as well as the destination (bottle). When you wine taste, you get to sample many different varieties of wine, from a few different wineries, and most take home a souvenir bottle to enjoy.
You can also do some wine tasting at wine bars all over the Bay Area. They offer “Flights” of wine. A “Flight” is a series of wines that take your taste buds on a journey. Sometimes it’s a flight around the globe with wines from Napa, France, Italy and New Zealand, other times it’s a flight of Pinots Noirs and even a flight of the staff’s favorites. No matter where they take you, they start with lightest wine (whites) and progressively take your pallet to the more bold wines (reds) to finish the flight, just like the wineries do. Flights give you the ability to try several different wineries at one location. When you don’t have the luxury of tasting the wine before you buy, how do you select a wine that you will enjoy? Some wine labels give descriptors, some stores post their findings on the wines flavors, otherwise we need to rely on what we already know, a friends recommendation, a reputable winery, price, and sometimes even a creative or colorful label can entice us. Now you can also go to the Bay Area Critic to view our friends recommendations on bay area wines.
Here are my basic guidelines on wine tasting:
When tasting wine, you’re checking three basic elements. Color – Aroma – Taste (Just remember “cat”)
Before drinking, always check the actual color of the wine. Hold white wines up to a natural light source, and reds against a white piece of paper.
Check out the aroma or bouquet of all wines. This will enhanced the flavor. Make sure to when you are tasting red wine to swirl the glass to aerate the wine, then bury your nose deep into the glass (okay not too deep) and take a sip. Keep the wine in your mouth for a few seconds to allow your taste buds to relish the flavor.
Rinse your glass between the transition from white wine to red wine and then before a port wine. Only use enough water to get the job done.
Have a "pallet cleanser" between all pours. Don’t think of the crackers as a snack!
If a new bottle is opened, it's proper etiquette for the person pouring to sample (not drink) the bottle before pouring you a taste. Not all bottles are created equally and some do get tainted.
If you don’t like a wine that’s poured, it’s okay to not drinkit. You can simply dump it into one of the buckets on the counter.
If the person pouring for you doesn’t tell you at least a brief rundown on what you’re being poured… ask!
If the tasting room is busy, only two people from your party should be sitting or standing at the wine bar. It’s polite to have one person designated to hand a glass of wine to the others. Therefore, allowing others to be helped as well by the person pouring wine.
Ask if chocolate is available when tasting a port or dessert wine.
Once you have a more sophisticated pallet, you might just go straight to the reserve wines flight they’re pouring.
If there is a charge to tasting, ask if that cost can be waived if you purchase a bottle of wine. If you’re torn between a couple of favorites, ask to sample them again. (It never hurts to ask)
If there isn’t a charge to tasting, it’s good form to purchase a bottle of the wine that you enjoyed. However, if you didn’t particularly like any of the wines or if the price is out of your budget do not feel pressure to buy.
Take notes regarding your wine tasting experiences. Typically, you can utilize the paper that the pouring list is printed on. If you’re curious regarding how to evaluate a wine, please click here.
For those really into wine, you can request what’s called a “vertical tasting”. A “Vertical Tasting” is a comparison between vintage years. For example, the 2001 Release of Chardonnay versus the 2002 Release. If it’s being poured, you can always ask for a “vertical tasting”.
Wine tasting isn’t about following the rules, it’s about having fun. I’ve just set out some of my personal guidelines that might make tasting a little bit more enjoyable for everyone. Please write me at Byron@BayAreaCritic.com if you have additional suggestions.
