Now that you’ve established that you’re the master of your wine domain (or at least know everything that’s been written on the back label of your purchased wine), it’s fair time to wow and impress the crowd at your general wine knowledge.
NOTE: the first thing to realize when you want to make statements about things in which you don’t have depth of knowledge BUT you still want to sound knowledgeable is that your statements must be firm and definitive YET never lead to follow up questions, like, “Why?” Or find friends who passively listen and tend to nod their heads to any verbal communication directed at them.
Let me give you a quick glossary of basic terms
Terrior: the dirt the wine was grown
Vintage: year the wine was made
Varietal: type of grape
Micro-climate: micro-climate
Okay, now you’re ready to talk wine with about 99% of the population in the world. Other than the wine maker’s (sorry, one more: vintner = winemaker) style, the factors that lead to a wine’s quality and taste are, you guessed it: terrior, vintage, varietal, and micro-climate. Leading to the first statement you can make about wine:
Other than the vintner’s (Oh, you don’t know what that is? It’s the winemaker.) style, the main factors that lead to a wine’s quality and taste are terrior, vintage, varietal, and micro-climate.
I suppose this is an obvious statement, but it sounds impressive, yeah? And really, it’s so innocuous and general, no one can argue with it.
Onto the second lesson for next time: we’re going to get into a little chemistry here, so put your lab goggles on.
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Sunday, June 21, 2009
How to Bring the Wine to the Party and Present It
Okay, so now you have your bottle in tow. You’re ready to bask in the glow of gratitude and awe from your hosts. But you need to give the wine deference as well and carry it with its due respect. Treat the bottle of wine like it was your baby. Would you carry your baby around by its neck? No, you would cradle your baby gently in your arm. So don’t grab and hold your wine bottles by the neck either. Show those child rearing skills and cradle that bottle of wine!
When you present the wine, do it with a flourish so the host knows that you made a serious decision in choosing this particular bottle of wine for them and this occasion. Indeed, this was not a flippant choice, so carry yourself and the wine accordingly.
Also, understand that wine is volatile. Try not to jostle it too much. Repeated and long-term jarring can affect the wine significantly. Sounds sissy but it’s true. So be gentle with the wine.
Know something about the wine that you’re buying. Basically, read the back of the label. You can get a lot of information from there to impress your friends. (And seriously, who reads the back of a wine bottle anyways?)
Things you can learn from the back of the wine bottle:
The different grapes in the wine
“Did you know that this blend is unique because it has 80% Caberet Sauvignon and 20% Syrah?”
The climate of that given year
“It was particularly cool in Napa in ’05 so they had to harvest earlier that year.”
Characteristics of the wine
“You should be able to immediately smell the strawberries and stewed plums on the nose.”
The winemaker’s history and style
“The winemaker studied in Burgundy for a few years and that affected how he makes his wines.”
You are starting to sound like you know something!
(On a side note, hold wine glasses properly. This is a pet peeve of mine, and hopefully it will anger you too when you see people hold wine glasses incorrectly. All you need to know now is that you hold the wine glass by the stem. That’s why it’s there. Don’t hold the bowl of the glass – that warms the wine. So please, if I haven’t taught you anything else here, in the very least, hold the wine glass correctly. Please.)
When you present the wine, do it with a flourish so the host knows that you made a serious decision in choosing this particular bottle of wine for them and this occasion. Indeed, this was not a flippant choice, so carry yourself and the wine accordingly.
Also, understand that wine is volatile. Try not to jostle it too much. Repeated and long-term jarring can affect the wine significantly. Sounds sissy but it’s true. So be gentle with the wine.
Know something about the wine that you’re buying. Basically, read the back of the label. You can get a lot of information from there to impress your friends. (And seriously, who reads the back of a wine bottle anyways?)
Things you can learn from the back of the wine bottle:
The different grapes in the wine
“Did you know that this blend is unique because it has 80% Caberet Sauvignon and 20% Syrah?”
The climate of that given year
“It was particularly cool in Napa in ’05 so they had to harvest earlier that year.”
Characteristics of the wine
“You should be able to immediately smell the strawberries and stewed plums on the nose.”
The winemaker’s history and style
“The winemaker studied in Burgundy for a few years and that affected how he makes his wines.”
You are starting to sound like you know something!
(On a side note, hold wine glasses properly. This is a pet peeve of mine, and hopefully it will anger you too when you see people hold wine glasses incorrectly. All you need to know now is that you hold the wine glass by the stem. That’s why it’s there. Don’t hold the bowl of the glass – that warms the wine. So please, if I haven’t taught you anything else here, in the very least, hold the wine glass correctly. Please.)
Friday, June 5, 2009
Wine Occasion: Thanksgiving
I love Thanksgiving. The whole family is around, with three football games on the tube, and a big fat turkey (hopefully either brined or deep fried). With stuffing. Lots of stuffing.
For any Thanksgiving dinner, there really is only one wine to choose. This wine is affordable, has a great story, pairs well with turkey, and is seasonably ready for Thanksgiving. This wine is… Beaujolais Nouveau.
Is it sacrosanct to suggest a French wine for an American institution like Thanksgiving? I don’t’ think so, considering that Thanksgiving was originally celebrated by British immigrants (by way of Netherlands) with Native Americans. But that’s another story for another time…
Beaujolais Nouveau is made with gamay grapes in Beaujolais, France (it’s north of Lyon and part of the Burgundy region). It’s released on the third Thursday of November, just in time for Turkey Day. It’s dry, fruit forward, and ready to drink immediately.
Wine Suggestion:
Georges Duboeuf Beaujolais Nouveau
For any Thanksgiving dinner, there really is only one wine to choose. This wine is affordable, has a great story, pairs well with turkey, and is seasonably ready for Thanksgiving. This wine is… Beaujolais Nouveau.
Is it sacrosanct to suggest a French wine for an American institution like Thanksgiving? I don’t’ think so, considering that Thanksgiving was originally celebrated by British immigrants (by way of Netherlands) with Native Americans. But that’s another story for another time…
Beaujolais Nouveau is made with gamay grapes in Beaujolais, France (it’s north of Lyon and part of the Burgundy region). It’s released on the third Thursday of November, just in time for Turkey Day. It’s dry, fruit forward, and ready to drink immediately.
Wine Suggestion:
Georges Duboeuf Beaujolais Nouveau
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