Consider
"taste" as a verb. There are forces in the world that
have tried (with considerable success) to render this word obsolete.
We tend to think of taste more and more as a noun, a bit of something
to be eaten, the sensation of a thing in the mouth. Worse yet
we speak of good taste, and even seem to try to codify what is
good. Worst of all, we give numerical scores to the taste of things
(notably wine). Try to think of taste as a verb, an action verb
no less. To taste can be one of life’s grandest pleasures. It
can be the best way to broaden knowledge of food and drink. Tasting
can be enjoyable and liberating. The wine drinker who is not afraid
to taste is freed from the boredom of drinking the same wine all
of the time "just to be safe". Even more importantly,
anyone who dares to taste for himself is no longer a slave to
the wine writers, gurus, magazine publishers, and retailers. Learning
to judge independently and to enjoy the process opens up the huge
universe of good wine for the independent thinker.
Consider
the parameters of the joy of tasting. To taste something requires
that you give it your attention. Tasting a great many wines without
careful exercise of sensory skills is mere consumption. Fun as
it may be to casually drink great wines, without an effort to
taste, much of the lasting effect of tasting is lost. It is possible
to drink wine regularly and to experiment broadly and never get
the full joy of tasting or any of the benefits of experience.
There are a few simple steps to remember, a few simple steps that
enable or augment the experience of tasting.
First,
observe the name of a wine. Most good wine provides a lot of information
on the label. The producer or bottler is very important. Whether
the wine is the latest thing from New Zealand or a traditional
regional wine from France, see who made the wine. It always matters!
Not all California Chardonnays are alike, nor are all Italian
Chiantis. Who made the wine is the most important fact. A close
second in importance is place of origin. Wine labels will at least
list a country of origin (although recently some try to hide this
fact). Better wines often cite a specific district such as "Sonoma
County" or more specifically "Russian River". Some
of the world’s top wines will name a specific vineyard. Wine is
a product of place. You want to know where a wine was grown. Other
facts such as vintage, grape type, and special attributes may
also be named. If you don’t observe the label and note its information,
you are hardly able to assess the wine or compare it to its peers,
much less find it again when you are shopping.
Look
at the wine. Note its color. Tilt the glass and look through the
center for depth of color and through the "edges" for
hints of complexity. White wines may turn more golden with age.
Red wines may go from purple in youth to brick-orange in maturity.
Swirl the wine and note how it coats the glass. Water would run
down the sides leaving a few spots behind. Honey would coat the
sides and hang there in sheets. Wine should be somewhere in-between
the two.
Smell
the wine. Do this right away. Put your nose in the glass and take
light sniffs to avoid overwhelming the most delicate sense. Smell
the "Aroma" or smell of the fruit itself. Then look
for the "Bouquet" which is everything else: yeast, oak,
must, bottle-age, etc. Smell is key. It is the best way to mark
one wine from another and the best way to judge wines of a class.
Smell is the best tool for tasting.
Finally,
taste the wine. We often fail to truly taste our food and drink.
To really taste, hold the wine in your mouth, move it around to
the various taste buds, "chew" it a bit, and finally,
aerate it a bit while holding it on your tongue. Yes, really,
hold the wine in your slightly open mouth while sucking in air.
You have seen infants do this and they have the right idea about
how to taste things. It is just fine to continue to drink the
wine casually, but at first, savor it carefully.
All
of takes only a moment. It is possible to taste attentively and
carefully without drawing attention in a crowded restaurant. If
you take a moment for this you will begin to enjoy the endless
variety of basic tastes, styles, and qualities of wine. You should
enjoy wine more, and you should be freed from the "Taste"
of others.
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Originally published in "The Greenville Journal", August 17 -
24, 2001 in "From The Vine" column, author, Richard deBondt.