Introduction to Wine
Introduction to Wine will introduce you to some of the basics of wine. I hope to learn about wine with you. Chapter 3 discusses the four aspects of thinking about drinking wine: seeing, smelling, tasting, and thinking. In Chapter 14, we will talk about the order of wine tasting.
Grape variety, origin, year of harvest, sugar level, acidity, tannin content, storage age, and brightness of the wine all affect the taste and quality of the wine. Temperature, oxidation and food pairings also affect the taste of a wine. With the wide variety of wines available, which one should we start with?
The order in which a wine is consumed affects its quality and taste. Tasting a wine in the wrong order is like eating a sweet fruit like a lychee and then eating a lemon, which is only more acidic.
In order to minimize the disturbance of the first wine to the second, the order of wine consumption generally follows the order of white before red, dry before sweet, sparkling before still, and simple before complex.
1、White before red
Relatively speaking, white wines have lower tannin content and are lighter in body, while red wines have a stronger style, with richer and more complex aromas and flavors. Therefore, before drinking a tannin-rich, full-bodied red wine, you should drink it so as not to overshadow the freshness of the white wine.
2、Dry first, then sweet
When a dry wine meets a sweet wine, you should usually taste the dry wine first.
Because dry wines are lower in sugar, you can feel the sweetness change in a gradual order of dryness followed by sweetness. If you like sweet wines, it can be difficult to distinguish the flavor profile of a dry wine on a tongue that has just been washed with sweetness. In addition, if you drink a sweet wine first and then a dry wine, the aftertaste of the sweet wine will affect the taste of the latter and even make its acidity more prominent.
3. Bubbles first, then rest
Generally speaking, sparkling wine is lighter, crisper, fresher and more lively than still wine. Suitable for aperitifs, can decant the taste buds, not much impact on the taste.
For many different styles of sparkling wine, we should also follow the principle of first white, then red, first dry, then sweet.
4. Simplicity before complexity
Young wines are stored for a short period of time and their aromas are usually concentrated in fruit and fermented aromas, and the wines are lighter.
Most vintage wines are aged in oak barrels, and after a long period of cellaring, they develop a complex range of ageing aromas and flavors. The tannins also soften during the aging process, becoming softer. The wine becomes full-bodied and more suitable for future consumption.
This progression from simple to complex also creates a layering effect in the tasting process. If you drink a complex aromatic wine first and then a simple wine, the latter will seem too bland and boring.
Based on the above principles, the ideal wine tasting sequence would be sparkling wines, such as Champagne and Cava, need to be refrigerated before tasting.
2. light white wines such as Blanc de Blancs and Riesling’s Perpetual Acacia.
Heavy white wines, such as Chardonnay and some white wines fermented or aged in oak barrels.
4、Pink wines.
6、Red wines with heavy body and high alcohol content, such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz, need to be decanted in advance.
7、Sweet wines, such as ice wine, noble wine and port wine.
