The scent of a wine is referred to as its nose. Aroma is used to describe the scent of a young, undeveloped wine. The term bouquet is used to describe a more complex wine. Inhale the fragrance of the wine. Is it complex? weak? acidic? Does it smell like tar? truffles? roasted? baked? piney? Some wine smells are just plain strange. Others indicate that the wine has gone bad or has a microbial contamination. Don't drink it if it smells like rotten eggs, vinegar, rancid corn chips (from a microbe called Dekkara), skunk, or mold.
After examining and admiring the fragrance of the wine, take a sizable sip. Roll the wine over your tongue and palate to get the feel or the body of the wine. Purse your lips and draw air into your mouth, slightly gurgling the wine. If you dribble the wine down your chin while trying this, then you had too much wine in your mouth. Take another sip (smaller this time) and try again. Gurgling the wine in this manner allows one to taste and smell at the same time. There should be no conflict between the taste and the smell; the flavor in your mouth should confirm your initial olfactory experience.
Now tell me - was the body "flabby" (lacking in acidity), "heavy" (from residual sugar), "velvety", "smooth", or "creamy"? Did you taste strawberries, peaches, chocolate, oak, prune, pain grille, truffles, black pepper, smoke, licorice, cassis, roasted herbs? No?? It just tasted like wine, huh? Well...I think you need to try again.
For my first serious taste of wine, I purchased was a red called Les Amandiers, a simple vin du pays from the Provence area of France. The little tag hanging from the shelf claimed that although this was an inexpensive table wine, the aromas and flavors were magnificent. So I bought it. And I tasted it, the standard way. Nothing. What was so magnificent about it? I tasted it again, sniffing and gurgling. Wait - there was a flavor of strawberries, and I could determine that the body was moderate. As I let the wine breathe in my glass, the flavors grew more intense and it made a nice accompaniment to the rich pasta with pesto that was our main course.
On my wine shopping trip, I also purchased a 1996 Bookwalter Riesling (Washington State), and a 1996 Blackstone Merlot (California), both recommended by the wine shop. The Riesling was crisp and sweet, with plummy peachy flavors; the Merlot was also a good choice - it was berrylike and spicy. Awaiting tasting are a Washington State Muscat Canelli and a Johannisberg Riesling. I plan to add a Zinfandel (not a White Zinfandel - I like "real" wine, thank you.) and perhaps a burgundy. Now all I need is a dining companion who can appreciate my new-found connoisseurship.
Red Wine With Red Meat, White Wine With Fish?
A good rule of thumb, but not a law. Red meat is heavier, so it makes sense to drink a more full-bodied wine - a red. A light, acidic white wine might be similar to the lemon juice we would squeeze on fish. There is a logic to it! But what to serve with Chicken Marsala? A lighter red wine would do, because the chicken has a brown sauce, wheras Chicken Florentine might be better with a white.
Other Food/Wine Pairing Ideas:
Acidic wines work with acidic or salty foods; an acidic food can overpower a low-acid wine.
Sweet wines go well with salty foods and sweet foods.
Choose a high-acid wine, white or red, for fish, but avoid red wines with oily fish as the tannins in the wine will leave an unpleasant metallic finish.
To Your Health
Drinking wine with a meal may counteract the effect of the fats you ingest. Moderate drinking tends to decrease the level of bad cholesterol and raise the level of good cholesterol in the blood. Alcohol also acts as a vasodilator, enhancing blood flow by relaxing the muscle tissue of the arteries.
Drinking in moderation may be good for you. But what exactly is moderation? In general, moderate consumption is usually defined as 25 grams of alcohol per day, the equivalent of 2 1/2 glasses of wine, or about 10 ounces. 50 grams a day (5 glasses) is generally considered heavy drinking.