Wine tasting and drinking is somewhat a complex universe to understand that even some wine experts make mistakes about it sometimes.
One of these mistakes is believing that for you to appreciate wine, you need to be knowledgeable about liquor. While we don’t disregard the fact that extra having information about wines could help you, they will not upgrade the taste experience for themselves. Still, there are a host of things you need to do right when pouring a glass of your favorite wine.
With that said, here are some of the common mistakes to avoid when drinking wine.
Pairing Your Wine With Cheese
Most of us think that a bottle of wine with a piece of cheese in the table is romantic, and it makes the night perfect. In fact, for most ladies, it’s a romantic fit for Valentine’s Day. But it actually does not give justice to the wine.
Technically, some cheese variety, like goats’ and sheeps’, have high acidity, which can ruin the flavor of the wine when paired with them. Therefore when you pair it with a glass of wine with the same acidity and contains tannin, the flavors will clash. It will also spike up the alcohol, acidity, and tannin levels of wine, which can spoil its taste.
If you can’t resist the idea of drinking and eating cheese, it’s best to go for lighter-bodied red wines Pinot and Gamay. These two varieties have mild acidity, which works well with hard and semi-hard cheeses.
Serving the Wine at the Wrong Temperature
Most of our pet peeve when it comes to drinking a glass of wine is it should be served to our desired temperature.
For example, white wines should be too cold, and red wines like the best Dom Perignon wines are served too warm. But doing so can greatly affect the taste of wine.
If it is too cold, then it freezes the aroma and its full flavor. These must be expressed so that you can taste its fruit and smell the aroma. What you should do, for both white and red wine, is take it out of the fridge, open the bottle, and let it sit for about five minutes.
If you let it rest in a wine glass for a few minutes, then it will be fruitier and fresher. Sit down and allow yourself to enjoy watching the wine while it evolves in your glass.
Using the Wrong Storage
Sometimes like us, the wine just needs to breathe before you can enjoy its full flavor potential. If you have a very alcoholic, young, muscular red wine, you will need to let it breathe. For this reason, the best you should do is to open it up and pour it out in any wine glass you want where it can release its flavor compounds.
However, if you don’t have any plans yet to drink your bottle of wine, then properly store it in a wine fridge, rack, or cellar. Take note that a cellar must be dark and cool (at the right temperature.) It should not be exposed to sunlight.
If you have plans to create a cellar on your own, then do not put it in your attic where intense sunlight is likely to penetrate as it can accelerate the aging process of the wine. It will affect the flavor, leaving you with poor quality vinos. Thus, make it a point to always measure the temperature of the room for around 55 degrees to secure and retain the taste of your favorite wine.
Using Wrong Wine Glasses
People can get really stressed out over wine glassware. Which is sad, if you’ve got a great wine and you only have a mug or a regular glass. But, if you really want to enjoy the complexities of your wine, use a wine glass. It can make a difference.
You want to enjoy the bubbles in your sparkling wine. When you have a flute shaped glass, carbon dioxide will move up the glass to prevent the formation of bubbles. And you always want to keep it down, because you don’t wish your sparkling wine to heat up.
If you want to warm up your red wine, then you can put your palm below the glass while slowly shaking it. It is very useful, especially when you are at a party and the wine served is cold. Because, again, if it is too cold, you cannot taste anything.
Takeaway
These are all common four mistakes that we usually make when drinking wine that has significant impacts on the taste of our favorite liquor. Surely, there are more of them. However, we can always make them right by being aware of the proper ways of drinking your wine. So be ready for your next wine tasting and be mindful of avoiding these mistakes.
