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5 tips that will make you look like a: n wine connoisseur: even if you have no idea
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Does the world of wines sometimes seem like a labyrinth to you? Doesn’t matter. With our tips you will still look like a: e wine connoisseur: in.
For many people, a good wine is part of a festive meal. But over the centuries people have been so deeply immersed in the fermented grape juice and its production that the choice of the drop for newbies does not seem so easy. The main thing is that it tastes good? It’s not that simple in the world of wine.
I noticed that as a child, when my grandmother happily ordered a Lambrusco from the Italian restaurant – and that made the waiter laugh when he served her the – in his words “Italian Coke”. My grandma deeply offended, my family amused. I’m confused: there is obviously a secret dress code in the world of wine, which is not only reflected in the selection of the glass, but also in the preference for the content.
To this day, I still take the view that everyone should drink the wine that they like, regardless of whether it is red, white, fizzy, dry or sweet like Grandma’s Italia-Cola. But in the meantime I’ve learned that it doesn’t hurt to be familiar with the world of wine anyway. It starts with small details – for example, not describing the drop as sweet but rather sweet or slightly dry.
If you are a wine connoisseur at Christmas this year: want to shine in (or at least pretend) because there are just such guests among the guests, you don’t have to roll over labels first. We have already done this for you, talked to “real” wine professionals in our area and put together tips. Have fun with the Christmas wine guide!
5 wine connoisseur rules for the whole evening
The preparation
Take a deep breath
This not only applies to hosts: inside, but also to the wine. A red wine can use a little oxygen before it is eaten and – be careful – not only be opened, but also decanted. If only the cork is removed, only a small amount of air comes into the wine through the narrow opening. In a carafe or, for example, by pouring it vigorously into bulbous wine glasses, the wine comes into contact with a lot of oxygen, which changes the taste.
Small problem: Before we fill it up wildly and breathe, take a look at the age. Very old wines should not be decanted as they are more sensitive. The fresh air is good for young red wines and those that have matured in wooden barrels.
The temperature
Basically we know: white wine is served cold, red wine warm. But it can also be more specific:
- Sparkling wine and sparkling wine like it coolest, namely at 6 to 8 degrees.
- Light white and rosé wines (up to 10%) like a temperature of 8 to 10 degrees, i.e. a refrigerator climate.
- Sweet wines taste best at 10 to 12 degrees.
- More substantial white wines with a little more alcohol can be served at 12 to 14 degrees.
- When it comes to red wines, things are slowly getting choppy: light ones feel good at around 15 degrees.
- In the case of heavier red wines, it can be even warmer, they develop their fine aroma at 16 to 18 degrees.
To get a feel for the temperature and its effect on the wine, it is worth doing the thermometer test beforehand. Cools the wines down to the appropriate number of degrees and see what changes. Over time you get a feel for it.
Two little things that wine connoisseurs still think of inside: The wine naturally gets warmer in the glass. So really only pour directly before enjoying. And so that not only the first glass tastes good, don’t forget to cool the bottle again afterwards.
The pouring
Better not mean too well
Rule number 1 in wine: less is more. And that has nothing to do with greed, but enjoyment, because a glass should only be filled to a third at most for aroma and custom. So, even if you mean it well, it is better not to overfill the glass and refill it more often. Speaking of which: different glasses are sufficient for red and white wines.
The chronological order
We are often used to simply serving the wine that most people like. But above all, it becomes fun when you start to adapt the wines specifically to the food served. The wine should either be based on the main flavor note of a course or represent the complete contrast of it. That is why a new wine can be served with each course. In general, there is a very good polonaise that you can remember as a cheat sheet: light wines before heavy ones, young ones before old ones, dry ones before sweet ones, white before reds.
The label 1×1
Admittedly: I very, very much like to choose wine by the label and no, I don’t mean the small letters on the back. In order to look like a: e wine connoisseur: in, please pay more attention to the small print. Because even if it doesn’t say much there are some terms that we can pay attention to when choosing a wine:
- Better quality than table wine: Quality wines must meet certain legal criteria in order to be able to be called that. The predicate wines are still one quality class higher.
- Origin: It should be clear from which wine-growing region the wine comes.
- Vintage: If the vintage is mentioned, you know when the grapes came from – otherwise it may be that they were mixed together from several years.
- By the way: whether screw caps or corks shouldn’t have anything to say about quality these days, more and more winemakers are switching to screw caps.
And then, in the end, the only thing left to do is: let it taste good.