Did you know to become a sommelier you have to do blind taste tests? This means you don’t see the bottle, so you know nothing about the wine before you taste it. A sommelier will be able to tell you the type of grape the wine is made from if it is from an Old World country or a New World country, the region in the country and possibly the name of the winery or chateau where it comes from. And don’t forget the year it was made!
It takes a lot of training to do this and a vast knowledge of wine.
Tasting comprises of all your senses,
Look
Smell
Taste
Think
Look at the wine and its colour. For white wine, it may help you discover what varietal or type of wine it is depending on how dark it is. For red wine, it can also help you discover the age of the wine. Some brown tinges to red wine will indicate that it is older.
Smell will help you determine the type of grape it is. Each type of grape has distinctive characteristics of smell.
Taste it and see if you like it. It is important to let the wine stay in your mouth so that it coats all of your taste buds, which are on and under your tongue, in your cheeks, on the roof of your mouth and on your gums. Don’t be afraid to move that sip of wine around your mouth to make sure you hit all the taste buds, then after about 5-10 seconds, swallow.
Think about the taste you have just experienced. After you swallow your sip of wine, take about 10 seconds to think about what you have just tasted. Was it high in alcohol? Did it dry out your mouth – this could indicate a high level of tannins? Did it make your mouth water – this could indicate some good acidity? Did you taste the fruit that you found on the smell? So many things to think about.
At the end of this, what did you really think about this wine? Did you enjoy it? Would you drink it again? Do you want to share it with your friends? Of course, all of your answers are correct because it is a matter of taste! And the taste is very personal.
Want to learn more about wine tasting? Contact SommEvents to arrange an evening of wine tasting with one of our consultants. We suggest you bring some friends together and we will bring 5 wines for you to taste, complete with all the food pairings and all the tools you will need to have a fun experience. We love to share our wine knowledge with you!