Swirl, Sniff, Taste, Repeat !
Many of our loyal followers that visit Winetime have sent along positive comments regarding our new Winetime decal/stickers: Swirl, Sniff, Taste and Repeat. It is our motto to fully enjoy your favorite bottle of wine. As a thank you to our readers, if you would like one of our stickers to plaster anywhere you’d like, just send us a message along with your name and mailing address and we’ll be more than happy to pass them along.
Our mantra is sure to bring fun and enjoyment with these basic wine tasting techniques that are used by wine professionals all over the globe. What makes wine tasting so much fun is that it can be causal among friends or much more serious with those with enhanced knowledge.
Step #1….. SWIRL. Start by pouring 3 ounces of wine into your favorite wine glass. Hold your glass up to the light or look downward on a white sheet of paper or background and make the following observations. Notice the color and the weight of the wine (thick, thin, neutral). Next is the art of the swirl. Sloshing the wine back and forth a few times does practically nothing. Twirl the glass in a rotating motion until you start creating a vortex, a tornado in the glass so to speak. Doing so, the wine releases it’s fragrancy towards the center of the glass,
Step #2…… SNIFF. Get your nose well into the glass and breathe in the wonderful aroma’s that rise toward the top of the glass. The proper sniff is 4 shorts intake breaths simultaneously. As a prime example, think of an animal when they sniff their food. They don’t just take one giant sniff, rather, they use 4 short bursts of breath to fully experience the different nuances that are being released into the air. Same should go with us humans. For your senses to experience the vast aroma’s of fruit, herbs, earthiness, barrel wood and so much more, your sense of smell will tell you more about the wine you are about to taste better than your tastebuds can. As stated, don’t be afraid to get your nose into the glass. I’ve seen people slosh the wine around a few times, put their nose a few inches above the glass and think that they are actually smelling something. It’s virtually impossible. The created vortex of aroma is sitting in the glass, waiting for you to absorb its heavenly scent. You may want to try this a few times before moving on to you next experience.
Step #3…… TASTE. Now we’ve come to our favorite part. Once your senses have given you profile of what you are about to sample, take a small sip, and before swallowing, hold that wine on your palate and breathe in some air. This aerating technique will allow the wine to open up and give you maximum sensory notes pertaining to your wine. Try now to identify it’s structure consisting of tannin, acidity, alcohol, body, finish, length, and complexity. These 3 simple steps should assist you in becoming an expert in determining a wines various dimensions.
Step #4…… REPEAT. This may also be another one of your favorite parts. Now that you have the proper technique and rhythm in which to fully enjoy a glass of wine, don’t let us stop you, drink up and enjoy.