Wine tasting in Napa is a great way to learn proper wine tasting etiquette. Applying proper wine tasting etiquette requires you to know and to apply the techniques of wine tasting appropriately. There are three steps that must be followed in wine tasting, smell, look, and tasting.
First, it is important to remember that you should never smoke cigarettes prior to wine tasting or during your tasting experience or it will ruin the flavor of the wine. Others people’s experience will be ruined as well if you are smoking around them. Remember to not wear strong scented perfumes or colognes because these fragrances can ruin the sense of smell you need for your wine tour.
When you look at wine, you should hold your glass in front of a white background like a napkin or a tablecloth to examine the color. White wines are actually greenish to yellow-brown. The more vibrant color of a white wine indicates that there is more flavor in the wine. A brown wine might indicate that the wine has gone bad. Red wines range from a pale red to a deep brown red. They become lighter as they age and time is known to improve most red wine.
Look at the rim color by tilting your glass. A purple tint will tell you the wine is young, but an orange to brown shows you its maturity. When you swirl the wine in the glass, you can observe the body of the wine. Commonly, it is called "good legs", which indicates a higher alcohol content and sweetness level.
The swirling of your wine first releases molecules in the wine which allow you to smell it. The two appropriate ways of smelling the wine include one deep whiff of the wine, or take a quick whiff of the wine and formulate an initial impression and then you should take a deeper whiff of the wine. Always take a moment to contemplate the aroma.
The wineries you visit during wine tasting tours also want you to taste the wine properly. Your first impression is important to the sale of their wine. Take time to taste the wine correctly. This includes assessing the initial taste of the wine, the taste of the wine by swishing it throughout your mouth, and the aftertaste of the wine. Swishing allows you to determine if the wine is smooth or harsh. Aftertaste determines how long the taste lasted and was it pleasant? These techniques are known as proper wine tasting etiquette.
