Most wine lovers have probably been taught to taste wine this way: look, smell, taste. Can these three simple words really open the door to the world of wine? Or is there more you need to know? We will now teach you how to truly enjoy a good glass of wine.
Look
Incorrect action: Tilt the wine glass at a 45-degree angle and hold it at eye level. This common mistake in public makes the wine's color appear deeper than the standard color charts.
Correct action: Find good lighting with a white background (preferably a white tablecloth for wine tasting, or a piece of white paper on the table). Tilt the wine glass at a 45-degree angle below your eyes and carefully examine its color.
What to look for: What does a wine's color tell you about its quality? In the film "The Big Night" starring Louis de Funès, a master chef who has lost his sense of taste can identify a wine's variety, winery, and vintage solely by its color, legs, and sediment. For an ordinary enthusiast, a purplish-red suggests a young wine, a ruby-red symbolizes vitality, and a brick-red represents age; a greenish hue indicates a simple, unripe white wine, while an amber color might suggest premature oxidation. However, none of this is absolute. Wine is too complex; its true character requires further confirmation from the nose and the tongue.
Smell
Correct action: First, touch the glass to ensure the wine isn't too cold, as this will trap the aromas. The ideal serving temperature for white wine is 10-14°C and for red wine is 15-18°C. Once the temperature is right, gently swirl the glass to release the aromas, then bring your nose to the rim and take a firm sniff.
What to smell for:
A, Smell for faults—check if there's any corkiness, sulfur dioxide smell, or the "foxiness" common in American wines? All beginners must memorize these unpleasant aromas. If you detect any, ask the sommelier to replace the bottle.
B, Discover the wine's aromas—wine experts often categorize a wine's main aromas using dozens of small bottles in a tool called a "Le Nez du Vin" (The Nose of Wine). A true tasting expert has this "nose" in their mind. With one sniff, they can tell if a white wine has notes of guava, apricot, or apple, or if a red wine has hints of coffee, blackcurrant, or hay. Identifying wine aromas is a battle of the senses and memory. A master can deduce the grape variety and origin from a wine's aroma alone. For example, a rich lychee and rose petal scent points to Gewürztraminer, and an expert can then determine, based on other subtle characteristics, whether it's from France, Germany, or Italy.
The relationship between aroma and quality: Aroma doesn't necessarily predict the taste, but the aroma is part of the wine's value itself. A wine with a pleasant aroma can sometimes be disappointing in taste. But this uncertainty is precisely what makes wine so charming.
Taste
Correct action: Take a 10ml sip of wine, swirl it in your mouth while sucking in air. Don't worry about making a "slurping" sound; this helps the wine's flavors spread as it warms up. If possible, swallow the wine to allow the taste buds at the back of your tongue to perceive its sharpness.
What to taste for:
A, Is the flavor balanced? When tasting wine, imagine a cross-shaped coordinate axis in your mind, with the four directions representing acidity, sweetness, alcohol, and tannins. As you drink, notice which of these four flavors is more prominent and whether they are balanced. A very unbalanced wine is not a good wine.
B, Is the body full-bodied? As the wine moves from your tongue to your throat, does it leave a lasting impression on your palate? If the sensation is fleeting, the body is too light. If the combination of acidity, sweetness, alcohol, and tannins creates a lingering flavor with a consistent texture in your mouth, then the body is full-bodied.
C, Is the texture smooth? A high-quality wine has a texture in the mouth like velvet, gliding over the taste buds. This is smoothness. Its opposite is coarse, which means it's not refined and leaves a bitter aftertaste.
Conclusion:
After you have observed a wine's color and aroma, and assessed whether its taste is balanced, its body is full, and its texture is smooth, use your own words to describe its characteristics and whether you like it. In the beginning, you can listen to what others say, but forming your own opinion is crucial for a wine taster.