It’s not the typical Friday night of a 21 year old; tonight I am sitting at the dining room table writing an essay about the media’s influence on Canadian foreign policy while sipping a glass of wine. Who needs dinner and a movie when you’ve got this wonderful combination? Desperate times call for desperate measures so my time for the next month or so will probably consist of these sorts of activities as I inch closer and closer towards finishing my fourth year of university.
I must admit, the wine is not a common occurrence; I have started drinking it again for health reasons. Did you know that a glass of red wine per day can reduce your chances of having heart problems or getting cancer? If not, give Google a workout, you’ll find some pretty interesting info on this. I tried doing the glass-of-wine-a-day thing before but just couldn’t stick to it because I didn’t like the taste. So, this time I’m attacking it from a different angle.
To find reasons not to do my essay, I decided I would take some wine-tasting lessons in hopes that it would help ease me into appreciating the drink a little more. I hopped onto the great thing that is YouTube and started to learn. Here are a few tips to get you started. Wine tasting consists of 5 Ss:
- See–look at the wine; make sure it is a nice, pure colour. Any hint of brown means oxidation–a bad thing
- Swirl–two purposes: i) it brings out the smell by giving oxygen to the wine ii) it lets you view the “legs” to test for viscosity
- Smell–get your nose right in there and take a nice whiff. This is really just to get an idea of the aromas in the wine and adds to the sensory experience
- Sip–put a small amount in your mouth and start to feel the effect
- Savour–chew or swirl the wine in your mouth for up to 20 seconds, allowing the wine to reach all parts of your tongue so you taste every flavour
Below is a great video explaining these steps in a little more detail. If you want to learn more, Google and YouTube are great sources. Now, back to that essay!
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4 Comments
Thanks for the tips and ideas on how to taste wines. Being a wine lover I could not have asked more.
Hey patrick
Reading your post has made me go and open a bottle of red myself
Keep on drinking you will eventually get a taste for the red wine.I used to hate it but now it’s my fav drink
Rich
Thanks for the wine testing tips. I love to drink a lot. these are some great tips for me. Thanks once again.
I don’t have the appreciation for wine that many do, but if ever in a situation where I need to fake it… thanks for the tips