Category: Wine and Spirits

The Art Of Wine Tasting

Even though many just assume that wine tasting is sipping, swishing, and swallowing – many are amazed to find that its actually a bit more. Wine tasting is more of an art, an art that is used to distinguish the taste of fine wines. Wine can be a tasty and refreshing drink – if the bottle was stored correctly and aged properly.

Wine tasting begins with the swishing. The reason why wine tasters swish the wine around in their mouths is to get the taste. Both the front and the back areas of the tongue contain taste buds, although neither one has any distinct sensation in taste. Taste buds can detect food and liquid that is bitter, salty or sweet, without a problem. To get the proper taste from wine however, you need to swish it around in your mouth and allow your taste buds and sense of smell to bring out the unique and fine flavors in the wine.

When you have a cold however, the wine can taste very different. When tasting your wine, your sense of smell has a major impact on the taste. What many fail to realize, is that over 75% of our taste is due to our sense of smell. When we have a cold, our sense of smell is affected. Therefore, when eating or tasting wine with a cold, the taste will appear different. Wine tasters all over the world will tell you that tasting wine is more about a sense of smell than the actual taste buds.

The art of wine tasting is indeed an art. Wine tasters do however, follow some general guidelines and rules that judge how great a wine is. These techniques can help you bring the most out of your wine, providing you follow them and know how to bring out the taste.

The first thing to do with wine is to look. With wine, you can tell quite a bit about it by looking at it. You should always start by pouring the wine into a clear glass, then taking a few minutes to look at the color. As far as the color goes, white whines arent white, but actually yellow, green, or brown. Red wines on the other hand are normally a pale red or dark brown color. Red wine gets better with age, while white whines get more stale with age.

Next, is the smell of the wine, which you should do in two steps. You should start with a brief smell to get a general idea of the wine, then take a deep, long smell. This deeper smell should allow you take the flavor of the wine in. The more experienced wine tasters prefer to sit back a bit and think about the smell before they actually taste the wine.

Last but not least, is to taste the wine. To properly taste the wine, you should first take a sip, swish it around in your mouth, and then swallow. Once you swish the wine around in your mouth, youll bring out the rich and bold flavors of the wine. After swallowing, youll be able to distinguish the after taste of the wine, and the overall flavor.

Storing And Caring For Wine

Over the years, wine consumption has become more and more popular. With more and more money going into wine both as an investment and for later consumption, the history of the wine will always be in question. With this in mind, many people often wonder how they can properly store their wine and take care of it at the same time.

How you store your wine is extremely important. If you store it right it can lead to euphoria, while if you store it wrong it can lead to depression. When you tear into a bottle of wine that has properly been stored, it can be glorious indeed, while tearing into bottle of poorly stored wine can be quite the letdown. Often times, drinking a bottle of wine that was poorly stored is much like drinking vinegar.

To properly store wine, youll need to meet several factors, such as humidity, temperature, lighting, the cleanliness of your storage area, the angle of the bottle while it is stored, and the vibration of the bottle on the rack. The temperature is the most important, as you should keep it around 50 degrees at all times. This way, the lower temperature can help to age the wine. If there are any fluctuations in the temperature, you should make sure that it happens slowly. As long as the temperature doesnt go to high and it fluctuates slowly, your wine should be ok.

The proper level of humidity for storing wine should be around 70%, although it is perfectly accepted to keep it 10% above or below the 70% level. If you have too high of a humidity temperature, the labels can easily rot or mold, which can affect the wines value. On the other hand, if the humidity gets too low, around 50%, the cork could shrink and bring air into the wine, which would ruin it in little to no time at all.

The angle that wine is stored is important as well. If the wine stays in contact with the cork during storage, the cork wont dry out. If the wine doesnt stay in contact with the cork, the cork could dry out and allow air into the wine. You should also strive to keep the wine out of the light, as light can ruin any type of wine. Light causes the wine to age prematurely, making it in your best interest to store wine in a dark location.

To prevent damage to the wine from sediment, you should also store wine in a location that is free of vibration. If you store wine in places that are free from vibration, it will give the sediment in the bottle ample time to settle. Vibrations are never a good thing for wine, as the sediment becomes unsettled and can ruin the wine or shake it to the point where it tastes horrible.

To protect the quality and investment of your wine, storage and care is very important. Storing it in a proper location will also bring the best taste.

Making Red Wine

Among the many types of wine available, red wine is among the best. There are many types of red wine available, although most are made using the same methods. This very exhilarating type of wine is made from black grapes, drawing their color from the skins of the grapes.

During the beginning stages of making red wine, the grapes that have been picked are put into a crusher. Here, the crusher will gently break the skins of the grapes. Depending on what type of wine is being made and the tannin thats required, the stalks will either be used or discarded at this point. Next, the grapes are put into a fermentation vat with the skins. This can be a long process, taking several weeks to complete. If a higher temperature is used, more tannin and color will be extracted from the grapes.

When making soft wines, the whole grapes are fermented using sealed vats. The carbon dioxide that becomes trapped in the sealed vats ferment the grapes under pressure, which is normally a quick process, taking only a few days. Keep in mind, the color and tannin content of the wine is based on how long the fermenting process takes. If the fermenting process takes a long time, the wine will generally hold more flavor and color.

The remaining bulk of the grapes will go through a press, being crushed to create a tannic wine. Sometimes, this tannic wine is added with a free run wine in order to add a bit more structure to the wine blend. Both the press and vat wine are then mixed and transferred to either tanks or barrels for a second fermentation. The second fermentation will take the longest, although it brings out the quality and taste from the wine.

All types of fine red wine will spend a minimum of a year in the barrels. Some types of red wine will spend a lot more time in the barrels, possibly several years. Red wine is also fine tuned with egg whites, which will suspend the yeast and other solids found in the wine downwards, before the wine is racked, filtered, and eventually bottled. Once the wine has been bottled, it is then shipped off and sold. Some wine however, will be stored for a period of time in the bottle before it is offered for sale.

The time a wine spends in the bottle is very important, although not every wine needs to spend a lot of time in the bottle. The more complex and more expensive types of red wine will benefit the most from aging in the bottle, to preserve flavor and color. The simple types of red wine however, dont need to spend much time at all in the bottle.

Information About Wine Cellar Racks

A wine cellar rack allows any wine enthusiast to achieve a professional wine cellar in the comfort of their own home. Normally, wine cellar racks are wall mounted, although they can be stacked as well. They range in size, and can hold anywhere from 10 – 300 bottles of wine. Depending on your needs and how many bottles you have to store, youll want to choose accordingly.

One of the best things about wine cellar racks is the fact that are customizable. You can fit them to your liking, or what looks best in your cellar. Wine cellar racks will allow you to convert practically any space of your home or your cellar into a storage area for your wine in little to no time at all. All you have to do is set the racks up – then store your wine.

All wine bottles, no know matter what brand, needs to have the proper storage in order to maintain their original flavor. Those who know wine, know that the easiest and best way to store wine in bottles is put the bottles on their sides. When using a wine cellar rack, youll have the choice of individually storing the bottles, or grouping them together. Cellar racks are the ideal way to store wine bottles, especially if you have a large amount.

Wine cellar racks and the way they store wine are essential for many reasons. With the wine being stored on its side, the sediments that will eventually settle over time are evenly distributed throughout the wine, which helps keep more of the original flavor. Along with helping to preserve the original flavor of the wine, the corks and labels are also preserved.

Unlike other forms of wine storage, wine cellar racks will work in any home, and they are very affordable as well. They come with detailed instructions, they are easy to assemble, and include everything you need to begin using your new rack immediately. You can also find a variety of sizes, colors, styles, and materials. Contrary to what you may think, wine cellar racks dont take up a lot of space in your home. If you use them on their sides, they will take up even less space than if you were to stand them upright.

These days, wine cellar racks arent just for commercial use. Even though they are geared more towards large consumers, individual wine enthusiasts have a lot to gain with a wine cellar rack. You can find these racks at your local department store, or online. They dont cost a lot of money either, yet they will give you the storage you need. No matter how much space you have to spare in your home – wine cellar racks will give you everything you need to store and preserve your wine.

Information About French Wine

Whenever wine comes up in a conversation or a thought, we often find ourselves thinking of where the wine came from. If you study the name of the wine, such as Burgundy or Champagne, youll find a log about the origin of the wine. Burgundy for instance, we all known comes from France, same as Burgundy. There are many wines out there – several of which come from France.

In the times of the old, wine in France was made by peasants, who drank it themselves. Wine is very old in France, which is really no surprise as French wine is some of the best in the world. New world wines have the ingredients that were used in the label, while French old world wine is labeled with the location. In doing so, the French have left a bit of a romantic message when you purchase any of their wine.

A lot of wine enthusiasts all over the world consider French wine to be the best. Wine lovers from all over the world prefer French wine over any other. There are several different kinds of French wine available, giving you plenty to choose from. This way, you can experience and compare wine based on aroma, taste, and even the texture.

There are thirteen different regions in France with literally thousands of vineyards that produce wine, making the possibilities for French wine endless. French is also known for having the ideal location for growing grapes, including the perfect soil conditions and vineyards that are very close to the water. The climate in France is always good, making it one of the best locations in the world for wine.

French wine varies from the most common types that you can find virtually everywhere that sells wine, to the rare variants, which can be very difficult to come across. If you are looking for one of the more rare types of French wine, your best bet would be to use the Internet. You can find hundreds of thousands of different types of wine, including rare French wine. Rare vintage French wine can be extremely hard to find, even sometimes so online. You can always look at wine forums as well, including the many different wine websites.

All in all, French wine is a cut above the rest. Although other wines may use the same ingredients and methods in production, they dont taste the same as those made in France. When you taste a wine that was made in France – youll know it. Even though other wines may be preferred by some, French wine has a taste and aroma like no other. Wine that comes from France is all about quality – and a taste youll never forget.