Practice the Proper Technique If you hold it next to the bowl, the heat of your hand can alter the flavor and stain the glass. Hold the glass by the stem and mix the wine before drinking. This increases the oxygen content in the glass and helps the wine to “breathe”, which will give it the best flavor. If there are no obvious scents, look for fruity scents.
Wine is made from grapes, so it should smell like fresh fruit, unless it's very old, very sweet, or too cold. You can swear that you will remember the name of that fantastic red wine from Italy, but even if you constantly spit, a couple dozen wines and a day later, you will have a hard time remembering if you preferred the Chianti Classico or the Brunello in the cabin next door. A fully ripe wine can offer an explosion of aromas that are very nuanced, beautifully blended and practically impossible to name. To override this behavior, some wineries have implemented minimum requirements for wine club memberships, which generally range from two shipping commitments to one-year requirements.
A little “Brett” gives red wines an earthy and chewy component; but too much of it erases all the flavors of the fruit. Yes, you will taste good wines, and yes, no one likes to “waste wine”, but those tasting spills really add up and quickly. Wineries are wineries, not bars, so drink lots of water, don't drink on an empty stomach, watch how much you consume and keep the conversation at a reasonable level. Your ability to detect and appreciate the complexity of wine will become a good indicator of your overall progress in learning how to taste wine.
It is quite possible, especially in young wines, that all the components are present in the wine in good proportion, but they stand out. A full-bodied red wine tends to have a higher alcohol content than a white wine or a light-bodied red wine, and more alcohol will naturally make you feel buzzed faster. Usually, the body is directly related to alcohol, but think of the body as the way wine “rests on your palate.” If there's a crowd around the spit bucket, you might want to wait for a sip of wine until you can get close. Sommeliers practice the following wine tasting tips to refine their palates and improve their ability to remember wines.
Often, your perception of wine (and how much you enjoy it) will change in the second or third sip. If you're on a budget, plan to research rates ahead of time, so as not to surprise the person serving you the wine.
