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All About Entertaining With Food And Wine
The holidays are almost here and this is the time of year when it is the most important to learn how to entertain well with a great selection of food and wine. Both food and wine play a huge part in our society, in every society really and if we...
Edith's Cake That Thrilled the French
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From Prix Fixe to Cold Tea: A Glossary of Popular (and Obscure) Restaurant Terms
An Offbeat Glossary of Restaurant Terms Everyone knows what a bistro is...right? And a la carte is a term that even a fifth grader knows...well, maybe not. And what exactly does smart casual mean? There are so many words and terms in the English...
Gourmet Coffee Beans - a Brief Overview
The coffee plant has two main species. There is the Coffea Arabica, which is the more traditional coffee and considered to be superior in flavor, and the Coffea Canephora known more commonly as Robusta. Robusta tends to be higher in caffeine and can...
Wine and Onion Bisque Spring Mix Salad with Worcestershire-Parsley Dressing
Soup and Salad is a common summer lunch menu. Try something new serve soup and salad for as a winter lunch or brunch. Here is a bisque and salad combination that make a good choice for a winter soup and salad. Wine and Onion Bisque 5...
 
An Idiot's Guide To Wine Tasting

Have you ever seen those stiff upper-lipped types doing a spot of the old wine tasting malarkey? You know the form – sip, swill, spit. Yuck! Well this information has been written to help you understand the form should you ever find yourself in a situation where you need to know what to do. And don't go thinking "I'll never have to do any wine-tasting" because you just don't know that for sure and the last thing you want is to be caught unaware.

So, on with the tasting...


Study The Wine

Pick up your glass as elegantly as possible. There are two ways this can be done.

a) For chilled wines – hold the glass by the stem and don't even touch the bowl.

b) For wine served at room temperature – pick up the glass by the bowl and hold it cupped in your palm, the stem between your middle two fingers.

Now that you have the glass comfortably in your hand, hold it at a slight angle against something white. If your hostess is worth her salt, she'll have covered the table in white linen specifically for this purpose (although it does look nice, too).

Be careful not to tip the glass too far – unless you're willing to replace an expensive linen tablecloth, that is. You may also need to adjust the distance from your eyes that the glass is held at. Most find that holding it at almost arm's length is a good starting point although the very short sighted who are also absent minded enough to have left their eye glasses at home may find themselves having to hold the glass almost in front of their noses.

Once you've found the correct position, study the colour and clarity of the wine. Now you may well believe that wine's either red, pink, or white but I'm afraid, if that's the case, you're very much mistaken. Wines can be green, yellow, gold, pink, purple, or even black. Evidently, the colour of the wine will indicate the type of grape it was made from – like me, you, and Jack on the street are likely to know that!

Clarity indicates age. Young wines are more see through and cloudiness can mean there's something wrong. If that's the case, I'd suggest putting it back on the table and giving your hostess once of those 'down your nose' type looks.

The reason why you're studying the colour and clarity looks has absolutely no bearing on how the wine will taste but a proper connoisseur enjoys the beauty of wine as well as its taste and ...


The Bouquet

No, we're not talking about the bunch of flowers a bride carries with her down the aisle, we're talking the smell of wine. Sometimes, if the people at the wine tasting are really posh, they might call it 'The Nose'.

Still holding your glass in the correct manner, lower your hand somewhat whilst bring your glass to a level position and rotate your wrist so that the wine swirls gently within the bowl. You might want to leave these instructions at this point to go to the kitchen and practise this step with a wineglass half filled with water. After all, it's just as well to know for sure that you aren't going to spill expensive red wine over your hostess's spanking new Axminster.

To swill wine properly, very little wrist movement is actually needed. Just very slight circular movements combined with a right-left movement should do the trick.

The idea behind all this swilling is to bring the wine's aroma out of the


wine itself and into the empty part of the bowl thus allowing it to be smelled and savoured. This is why wine glasses are bulbous. The wide bowl has ample room for swilling while the narrow edge 'captures' the bouquet. Clever, eh?

Move your glass to your nose as elegantly as you're able and bring it in slightly beneath the tip. Inhale deeply. Savour for a few moments and then inhale again. It's a good idea to exhale between those two inhalations or you might find yourself going dizzy. Do it too often and you'll faint.

You may now move your glass away from your nose.

At this point, it's appropriate to make some kind of comment. Don't imagine you'll fool anybody into believing you're an expert but at least you can make it sound as if you've actually drunk a glass of decent wine before. Why should the other guests need to know that most of your wine costs £3.99 at the Co-Op?

Something like "mmmm, rich and fruity" or "oooh, lovely and light" will probably do the trick. When talking about red wine, 'rich' is usually a good word to use - if the wine's white, go for 'light'.



The Actual Tasting

You've probably been looking forward to this bit but whatever you do, remember that wine tasting is about taking small sips and not guzzle it down like there's no tomorrow.

This bit's actually trickier than you'd expect so you might want to do some more practising.

Bring your glass to your lips, open them slightly and take a small sip. Now close you mouth and roll the wine around on your tongue for a few seconds before allowing it to slide slowly down your throat AND AT THE SAME TIME EXHALE!

The trouble with exhaling whilst swallowing is that some of the liquid might come shooting through your nostrils. Not a pretty sight and, again, think of the Axminster!

If you fancy, you can always take a second sip at this point but never a third. No matter how good that one particular wine is, it's time to move on to the next.


Other Stuff Worth Knowing

Apart from bottles and glasses, the table will probably hold plates of cheese or, occasionally, sherbet. They're not there to snack on; they're used between wines to clean out the taste of the last wine you tasted. Just a little at a time is all that's needed. Do like a mouse and nibble!

Wear something comfortable and preferably something that doesn't carry a designer label. After all, if you spill red wine down the front of your best frock, you're not going to be happy, are you?


That's it. You're now clued up enough to pop along to your very first wine tasting party without making a complete idiot of yourself.

Enjoy!


~~+~~+~~

Sharon Jacobsen is a freelance writing living in South Cheshire, England. She's knocked back a good few bottles of wine in her time as well as participated in the odd wine tasting party. To contact Sharon, please visit her website at www.sharon-jacobsen.co.uk

~~+~~+~~

PLEASE NOTE: My byline and resource box MUST be kept intact with the link to my website made 'live' otherwise this will be considered a breach of usage.


Copyright Sharon Jacobsen - www.sharon-jacobsen.co.uk

 

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Content Menu
  • 10 great wine tasting tips

  • 16 quick tips for eating at restaurants or work

  • 4000 year old secrets of green tea

  • aging gracefully

  • all about entertaining with food and wine

  • american fast food restaurants

  • and you thought coffee was bad for you

  • an idiots guide to wine tasting

  • an introduction to wine

  • australian bbq recipes

  • australian wines

  • australia is more than jacobs creek

  • autumn cooking great fall recipes and tips

  • a beginners guide to chinese cookery

  • a guide to gourmet coffee

  • a guide to wine racks

  • a perfect cup of coffee

  • bakers racks add flair and style to your kitchen

  • barbeque grilling has reached a whole new dimension

  • barbequing a fun and convenient way to make dinner

  • basque cuisine

  • beer and food pairings

  • blended and varietal wines

  • blue cheese omnivorous

  • braised fish in soy sauce hong shao yu

  • braised garlic short ribs with a red wine tomato sauce

  • build your own wine rack in an afternoon

  • buying wine how to read a wine label

  • buy fine wine at great prices a strategy

  • champagne wine

  • change your diet and eat the mediterranean way

  • cheese explore a new taste

  • chicken breasts with spicy rub

  • chicken with white wine pasta

  • chilean wine history and style

  • chinese dumplings on chinese new year

  • chocolate is good for you

  • choosing a wine gift basket

  • choosing wine on a first date

  • choosing wine to match food

  • christmas recipes main dishes no 9 of 12 duck with cardamom sauce

  • class on glass

  • coffee characteristics and how it helps you choose the perfect coffee for you

  • coffee everything you need to know from arabica to zanzibar

  • coffee is it getting too complicated

  • coffee with class

  • come home to comfort food

  • corks for wine

  • creating the perfect foam

  • cuban thanksgiving from our latin table

  • cucumber pork soup

  • delicoious swordfish

  • determining if a wine is spoiled

  • do you know these little known facts about tuscany wines

  • easy summer salads lighter foods for a brighter summer

  • ediths cake that thrilled the french

  • emu the natural alternativee for the backyard grill

  • enjoy colorado wines

  • enjoy your favorite winebut with some rules

  • experience the joy of eating at a restaurant

  • fall for outdoor entertaining this autumn

  • family life or wine for christmas dy

  • fantastic fruit

  • fine dining at the ark of las vegas lutece and tsunami asian grill

  • fondue 101 how to make cheese fondue

  • foods to avoid that cause bad breath

  • food and drink what to expect in costa rica

  • food and wine choice advice from an expert wine taster

  • formula for successful wedding party

  • french wine

  • french wine laws

  • fresh fare from the food isle ireland

  • from prix fixe to cold tea a glossary of popular and obscure restaurant terms

  • german wine the new commodity on the american market

  • get to grips with your wines

  • gift of the month clubs the lazy mans guide to gift giving

  • give a fondue party

  • gourmet a defining moment

  • gourmet centerpieces

  • gourmet coffee beans a brief overview

  • gourmet goodies

  • gourmet sauces rubs and marinades give your bbq a gourmet kick

  • grigio or gris this is a great white wine

  • grilled scallops with ginger lime sauce

  • guide to buying wine glasses

  • guide to tasting wine

  • hans is author of steaks seafood and

  • have a wine and cheese shower or party

  • have you bought your first case of wine yet

  • healthy fondue a guide to making broth and hot oil fondues

  • healthy seafood recipe

  • health benefits of tea

  • helens homemade fishcakes recipe

  • helens pan fried seabass

  • history of hawaiian coffee

  • history of the mendocino county wine industry

  • holiday cookie exchange

  • homemade christmas gifts from the kitchen make your own holiday gift baskets

  • honey dijon glazed ribs

  • hosting a wine party

  • hosting a wine tasting party

  • hot fun in the summertime

  • how sparkling wine is made

  • how to begin wine collecting

  • how to be creative when you are cooking

  • how to brew your own beer

  • how to grow grapes for excellent wine

  • how to host a memorable july 4th barbecue and have fun too

  • how to host a wine party

  • how to make beer

  • how to order wine in a restaurant

  • how to store wine

  • how wine is made

  • index

  • introduction to italian wine

  • in grandmas kitchen part i

  • in praise of the humble salad

  • in time for summer blue danube wine company introduces refreshing new varietals from hungary the craftsmane series from hilltop neszmely winery

  • is your italian olive oil really italian

  • italian cuisine in the heart of tuscany

  • italian cuisine more than pasta

  • kitchen pantry

  • knowledge and creativity

  • la minita coffee its in the green beans

  • learn about chardonnay wine

  • learn about the benefits of green tea

  • learn to deal with the wine steward in restaurants

  • left over wine

  • love wine join a wine club

  • low fat salmon recipes

  • make your own gourmet gift baskets

  • making red wine

  • making wine like a pro

  • maple flavored smoked turkey

  • marketing wine on the internet

  • more mead mlord irelands medieval banquets

  • murder by heat

  • not your orthodox way of learning about wine

  • oakville wine country

  • olive varieties

  • paella recipe secret

  • paella the most famous spanish dish

  • parmesan crusted sole with lemon beurre blanc

  • pinot gris or grigio this grape makes great wine

  • planning a fondue party

  • planning wine for your party

  • provence a wine lovers dream come true

  • quick reference buying and storage guide for cheese

  • raise a glass to the best wine of the month gifts

  • rare varietals cure wine boredom

  • reading an italian wine label

  • recipes from around the world right in your kitchen

  • reductions proving less is more

  • regional cuisine new england clam chowder

  • roasted vegetable and goat cheese salad

  • roast rack of pork with grain mustard sauce

  • rotator

  • rowan jelly mountain ash pyrus aucuparia

  • rubs to cook with

  • rutherford wine country

  • sangria blanca

  • sangria recipe

  • satisfy your wine desires join a wine club

  • sauces for quick gourmet cooking

  • sauces used in asian cooking

  • sauted family bean curd

  • seafood and corn beach barbecue

  • seafood fettuccine alfredo

  • selection of seafood recipes compliments of cafe hobson

  • serving wine

  • share a gourmet food basket with your lover

  • sherry a wine of tradition

  • sicilys great eggplant tomato stew

  • smell nothing taste nothing

  • southern mama

  • spanish food how to prepare boquerones

  • spanish food the tasty tortilla

  • specialty gourmet coffee

  • special ingredients shark fins birds nest

  • start your wine cellar the right way

  • storing your fine wine

  • substitutions for commonly used ingredients

  • sweet sour fish

  • sweet sour pork gu lao rou

  • sweet surprises

  • take a california wine country tour

  • tasteful gift giving

  • tasting wine

  • tasting wine the basics for beginners

  • tayberry jam

  • tayberry raspberry and strawberry jam

  • tea at sea

  • tempranillos role as a new varietal wine in australia

  • tempranillo a new red wine star in australia

  • ten foods with special powers

  • the 1976 paris wine tasting

  • the best of the boutiques

  • the curious history of wine consumption in america

  • the excellent french wine

  • the first rule of wine drinking

  • the french paradox

  • the fundamentals

  • the gentle art of poaching

  • the habanero chile

  • the harmony between food and wine

  • the harmony between wine and food

  • the history of italian coffee

  • the history of the acai berry

  • the history of wine country in the sierra foothills and the delta

  • the ideal temperature to store your wine

  • the latest craze on gourmet coffee

  • the major flavor components in wine

  • the mystery of decanting

  • the mystery of sparkling wine

  • the next shiraz varietal wines for australia

  • the perfect complement

  • the rise of rioja wines

  • the stuff of poetry mead

  • the sucessful dinner party

  • the true hystory of tiramisu

  • the wine and green mushroom caper

  • three rules for choosing the right dinner wine

  • tips to buying food online

  • to air is divine

  • twelve wines of christmas

  • understanding the basics of wine tasting

  • understanding wine grapes

  • understand wine and your health

  • unique gifts send food gifts for something delicious and different

  • using bargain wines to your advantage

  • vegan chocolate feeds the sweet tooth

  • water into wine

  • weight loss recipe veal mango

  • what is corked wine

  • what puts the sparkle in sparkling wine

  • what wine really is just in case you thought you knew

  • what wise guys eat

  • what you need in a gourmet kitchen

  • when punt is about packaging not football

  • which is for you blended or varietal wines

  • who made the first wine anyway

  • who needs a cookie jar

  • why red wine is red and other isnt

  • winezap launches new website to help wine consumers find price and compare wines subscribers to winezaps free newsletter offered 10 off any wine regardless of quantity purchased

  • wine accessories the things you need

  • wine and beer are good for us yes second in a series

  • wine and dine them

  • wine and onion bisque spring mix salad with worcestershire parsley dressing

  • wine a worthy teammate for football

  • wine etiquette with ease

  • wine e learning campus in malta

  • wine grapes white varieties

  • wine is in the moment

  • wine making and home brewing whats the deal

  • wine making for beginners

  • wine openers 6 styles reviewed

  • wine racks are great for all your bottle storage needs

  • wine rack storage simple guides on choosing

  • wine rack storage simple guides on choosing the right rack for your wines

  • wine storage hints and tips

  • wine storage is the key to preserving and aging your wine

  • wine tasting

  • wine tasting four easy steps to hosting a great wine tasting party

  • wine tasting in carneros

  • wine tasting in yountville

  • wine tasting the taditional way

  • wine tasting the traditional way

  • wooden wine rack vs metal wine rack