Ten tips to enjoy wine at its fullest

Setting foot into the wine world is appealing, but it can be scary too. So many myths and formality have made the topic seem mysterious and set aside for the privileged. Wine is actually easy to appreciate, and to get you started, here are ten tips for buying, serving and drinking wine like a seasoned pro.

1. Know your wines
Wine is not a standard drink; it comes in all colours and styles. The first thing you need to do is getting familiarized with different types of wine. Knowing what you like and what you don’t is the first step to become a wine connoisseur and a perfect host.
Do you like light-bodied reds? Or bold ones with a strong character? Do you enjoy light and crisp whites or creamier, richer examples? It’s time to hit the wine shops, let’s find out!

2.Bring the right wine
Your favourite wine is not always the right wine. When choosing a bottle, think about others expertise, the occasion, the food, and the setting. You’ll feel awkward bringing a Gran Reserva to a casual Open House party, and you’ll be out of place taking a sweet fizz to a Grand Gala dinner.

3. Value over price
Expensive is not always better. With wine, like with most things we buy, we often pay extra for a brand’s reputation, for well-known producers and mainstream labels. Value and price are completely different things, and in wine, it really shows. You can get fantastic value from lesser-known wine regions and unfamiliar grape varieties. With practice, you’ll source premium wines at a great price. Look for value and skip the overpriced.

4. Keep it cool
Now that you have the right wine learn to serve it properly. The biggest mistake we all make is serving wine at the wrong temperature. Light-bodied whites and bubbles are best appreciated at around 4°C (fridge temp), while richer, oaked whites shine better a little warmer, up to 10°C.
We wrongfully serve reds at room temperature. You can serve light reds, think Pinot Noir, slightly chilled (10°C) and fuller wines up to 16°C, which is nowhere close to modern room temperatures. Chill your wine, remember it warms up a bit on the glass.

5. To decant or not to decant
Decanting is pouring the wine from its bottle into another vessel. Strictly, this is only done to separate wine from deposits and solids that have precipitated to the bottom of the bottle with age. In reality, you’ll find few of these wines today.
Decanting to “open up” a bottle of wine is more common. We’re making the wine’s aromatic compounds volatilize with movement and contact with air. Some wines are so concentrated that need decanting, and some time to show their best. Sometimes even young, simple wines gain from decanting, and decanting sparkling wine is a thing now too. Understanding which wines improve with this technique takes practice, but it’s the kind of training we definitely like.

6. Stop over-pouring
Even if you’re using 21oz wine glasses, you shouldn’t pour more than a few ounces at a time. Wine must be enjoyed sip by sip. An over-poured wineglass is heavy and hard to handle; you want to be able to swirl the wine without distress. You can always pour again, as necessary. The wine will also keep its temperature longer.

7. Swirl away
Yes, swirling your glass of wine releases aromatic compounds, and wakes up the wine during dinner. You can’t over-swirl a wine, but you shouldn’t exaggerate it either. You want to smell your wine un-swirled too, especially for your first pour. It’s when the wine is still, that it discretely lets out its most intimate secrets.

8. Then there’s food
Wine and foods were born to be enjoyed together. And learning to pair them takes discipline. To keep thing short, pair light-bodied wines with light dishes, and this works with both white and red. Rich, intense wines will work better with hearty meals and explosive flavours. And it’s not all about the ingredients, the way you cook your food drastically changes its perceived weight. Is a seared chicken breast as heavy as roasted BBQ chicken?

9. First things first
When serving many wines, like in a wine pairing dinner, order the wine by style and weight. Fist the whites, then the rosé, silky reds before gritty ones. Serve the wines in a crescendo, and you’ll compose a delightful symphony.

10.The right glass for the right wine
It all comes down to the pouring. A perfect wine selection, at the right temperature, builds up to this moment. The wrong glass will keep you from enjoying the precious liquid to its fullest potential. Big, expressive wines, either white or red, show themselves better in big bowls, and discrete, subtle wines do better in smaller wine glasses. Invest in thin, crystal glasses and always favour stemware over stemless glassware. Nice glasses elevate any occasion.

Wine is delightful, but it’s also complicated. It can daunt you, but as you see, it’s all about common sense, and good habits. Keep these tips in mind the next time you pop one open and enjoy wine at its fullest.

Sip and Savour Mindfully!

What am I drinking? In my wine glass, Below and Above Merlot 2014. Click to check my wine notes.