How to Taste Wine

A complete guide

Unit 12 Brookside Business Park, Rustington, West Sussex, BN16 3LP - +44 (0)1903 786148

Why taste wine?• Enjoying a wide range of wines• Discovering what you like / don’t like• Makes ordering wine easier• Fun as a social activity• Can be educational / professional• Great for appreciating local wine events /

producers

Unit 12 Brookside Business Park, Rustington, West Sussex, BN16 3LP - +44 (0)1903 786148

Wine tasting conditions• A quiet room free from distractions• Room with no overpowering smells• Good lighting for recording visual observations• Temperature control

Unit 12 Brookside Business Park, Rustington, West Sussex, BN16 3LP - +44 (0)1903 786148

Wine tasting essentials• Glassware, spittoons and wine should be provided.

Refreshments to cleanse the palate will often be offered

• Take some pens and a notebook• A wine checklist may be helpful• For non-blind wine tastings, you may want to

capture preferred wines with a camera/smartphone

Unit 12 Brookside Business Park, Rustington, West Sussex, BN16 3LP - +44 (0)1903 786148

What to expect• Every tasting is different – listen and observe what

the protocol is• Some will expect you to spit out a mouthful of wine

into a spittoon after you have noted its characteristics• Others will encourage you to swallow a small

mouthful• A small amount will be provided so you can ‘swirl’ the

wine to aerate and smell it properly• Remember – even if you spit out the wine you still

absorb alcohol from the tasting

Unit 12 Brookside Business Park, Rustington, West Sussex, BN16 3LP - +44 (0)1903 786148

What to look for - Visuals• Inspecting a wine identifies faults such as bad

storage or a failed cork seal

Unit 12 Brookside Business Park, Rustington, West Sussex, BN16 3LP - +44 (0)1903 786148

1. View the glass straight on and note your observations of the colour. These may change after you have completed the visual inspection

What to look for - Visuals

Unit 12 Brookside Business Park, Rustington, West Sussex, BN16 3LP - +44 (0)1903 786148

2. View the glass from the side to check the transparency of the wine

What to look for - Visuals

Unit 12 Brookside Business Park, Rustington, West Sussex, BN16 3LP - +44 (0)1903 786148

3. Tilt the glass about 45 degrees and hold against a white backdrop – this will give a better idea of the depth of colour and transparency

What to look for - Visuals

Unit 12 Brookside Business Park, Rustington, West Sussex, BN16 3LP - +44 (0)1903 786148

4. Swirl the glass – this allows the wine to mix and settle for a final eye-level observation. Record if there is any froth.

What to look for - Visuals• For reds – orange, amber and brown colours

denote age’ purple indicates youth• For whites – orange and brown indicate age;

green shows youth• Rose – orange and brown indicate age; purply-

pink shows youth• Red wines tend to get lighter and white wines

darker with age (but this varies by wine variety)

Unit 12 Brookside Business Park, Rustington, West Sussex, BN16 3LP - +44 (0)1903 786148

What to look for - Smell

Unit 12 Brookside Business Park, Rustington, West Sussex, BN16 3LP - +44 (0)1903 786148

Swirl the glass for 10-12 seconds to break the surface and release the wine’s aroma

Put your nose into the glass and inhale deeply

Remove your nose, note observations and repeat

What to look for - Smell• Smelling the wine usually detects cork taint

defects• Try and separate the distinctive smells• Young wines tend to smell more of fruit, older

wines tend to be more spicy or savoury (again, this varies by grape variety)

• Try and be specific in your observations to get an accurate picture of the wine

Unit 12 Brookside Business Park, Rustington, West Sussex, BN16 3LP - +44 (0)1903 786148

What to look for - Taste

Unit 12 Brookside Business Park, Rustington, West Sussex, BN16 3LP - +44 (0)1903 786148

Take a small amount in your mouth and swish it around – this reveals texture as well as taste

Try sucking some air through your lips for a few seconds – this releases more flavour

Think how the wine tastes when it hits different parts of the tongue

Record the aftertaste and how long it lasts

What to look for - Taste• Acidity (side of the tongue) – low acidity can

make some wines over-sweet• Tannins (back of tongue) – bitter (dry), rich

tannins make wine more viscose• Alcohol – low alcohol wines tend to be sweeter• Body – the weight of the wine: heavy, soft, firm,

sweet or dry?

Unit 12 Brookside Business Park, Rustington, West Sussex, BN16 3LP - +44 (0)1903 786148

Extras• Wineware tasting notes:http://www.wineware.co.uk/Content/Images/uploaded/pdfs/wine-tasting-notes.pdf• Useful tasting terms:http://www.wineware.co.uk/Content/Images/uploaded/pdfs/Basic-wine-tasting-terms.pdf

• Wineware tasting products and equipment:http://www.wineware.co.uk/wine-education

Unit 12 Brookside Business Park, Rustington, West Sussex, BN16 3LP - +44 (0)1903 786148

Cheers!

www.wineware.co.uk

Unit 12 Brookside Business Park, Rustington, West Sussex, BN16 3LP - +44 (0)1903 786148