"Good wine is a good familiar creature if it be well used" – William Shakespeare, Othello
Unless it's can be intimidating as compared to other alcoholic drinks such as beer or cocktails. Most of the time, it is associated with fine dining, fancy restaurants, high-class social events. True enough, wine has collected for itself this elevated status since the complexities of wine don't stop at the process of making the wine – it ends at the last drop of wine from the bottle.
It is a known fact that winemaking process is complicated, slow, and long; besides, wine only gets better with age, so they say. Other than its production, the art of serving and tasting has fascinated individuals. Unknown to many, there are peculiarities in wine-drinking. People don't sniff their glasses just out of habit; yes, there are reasons behind it.
Wines must be stored in a cool and dry place. You don't want your wines flawed or corked – the term of the experts for bad wines. Incorrect storage may also make the wine taste like vinegar, or remove the color and flavor altogether.
The temperature also has a significant impact on the taste and it varies depending on the kind of wine. In general, it is 2 degrees lower than room temperature. But for one to maximize the wine-drinking experience it is useful to note that red wines are best served at 59-61° F (14-17 ° C), rose and white wines at 50-54°F (8-12°C), and sparkling and white wines at 43-48°F (6-9°C). When this pointer on temperature slips from your mind and you forget to chill the wine, note that wine cools to 4°F for around 9-11 minutes in the refrigerator (not in a freezer though!) and warms up at the same rate outside of it.
Yes, wine-drinking is ceremonious and the ceremony includes the tasting. The waiter usually hands over the cork to the customer. Why? Because before tasting the cork needs to be examined. The cork plays a very important role in the preservation of the wine – it should neither be too moist (it may mean that the wine has leaked) nor too dry and cracked (the bottle is not air-tight which causes the wine's exposure).
When opening the wine, make sure that the foil doesn't touch the wine when it is poured out to the center of the glass. The glass should never be full, usually only up to the widest level. Remember that wines are swirled to allow the release of the aroma. While swirling, one may smell the aroma of the wine which is part of the inspection of its quality and taste. After all, the adventure of wine drinking involves the nose, tongue, and throat.
The glass, which contributes to the pleasure of wine-drinking, should be clear so one could revere the wine's color and stemmed so one could swirl the wine to bring out its best flavors and keep the heat from the hands away from the wine. Like temperature, glasses depend on the kind of wine – red wine glasses are wider likes bowls because red wines require stirring for it to come in contact with oxygen, white wine glasses are tulip-shaped which prevents the wine from warming, sparkling wine glasses are also narrow but widens at the brim like a flute which also keeps it from warming at the same time creates bubbles. Now, how to end the pour? Tilt the bottle upwards while slowly rotating it. This prevents the wine from dripping.
Wine drinking may be taxing for it to be truly appreciated but it is an interesting adventure for the senses. For wine enthusiasts, wine drinking in itself is the event. However, for most, the wine adds life to the party. So regardless of how intricate this art of wine-drinking, never take for granted the event surrounding wine drinking. In the end, it is the company that matters.
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