To truly enjoy a wine, of course, we need to start by tasting it.
Tasting is what will make you a real wine taster, and with my tips, you’ll learn how to do it by following the same steps sommeliers use.
Wine tasting is based on examining three key aspects: the visual exam, the olfactory exam, and the gustatory-olfactory exam — or in simpler terms: using your eyes, nose, and then your mouth.
The visual exam is extremely important, but people often skip it because they think: “Well, it’s just looking at the color.” But no — the visual examination can tell us so much more: the age of the wine, whether it’s been aged in wood, and sometimes even the grape varieties used to make it. The key is learning how to read the clues.
Let’s break it down step by step.
The first thing to observe, quite simply: when you pour the wine into the glass, does it have bubbles or not? That alone tells you whether you’re dealing with a sparkling wine or a still wine.
Second, check if the wine is clear — meaning transparent — or if it looks cloudy or has floating particles.
Particles suspended in the wine aren’t necessarily a flaw — they can be perfectly natural. What’s more problematic is when the wine looks dull or hazy, as if it’s lost its shine.
Third, we have the color — but we’ll dedicate an entire article to this later, because it’s a rich and nuanced topic all on its own.
Fourth comes consistency. Here, you’ll want to gently swirl the wine in your glass and see whether it feels thick or fluid, and how it clings to the glass.
Pay attention to the small lines (known as legs or tears) that slowly run down the inside of the glass — the speed and shape of these legs can also reveal something about the wine’s character.
And finally, if you’re tasting a sparkling wine, take a moment to observe the perlage — that is, the size, amount, and persistence of the bubbles.
Check out the video!