Wine Tasting - Discover What The Excitement Is All About!Does the thought of being invited to a wine tasting party have youtrembling in fear? Relax, there's nothing to it. Some of the snobbyelite might try to make you think that you've got to be born with asilver spoon in your mouth in order to survive a wine tasting event buttake it from me, someone whose spoon was molded plastic, you can looklike a pro if you follow these simple directions... Step 1 Enjoy the View Across the room is the most gorgeous... Sorry I forgot we aretalking about wine tasting... Sorry... Pick up the glass, hold it up eye-level and far enough away from yourface so that it doesn't look like you're trying to suck it up with youreyelids. Act like you're studying the color. Wines come in a variety ofbeautiful hues and a good wine taster takes a moment to appreciate them. By the way, if it's a chilled wine then pick the glass up by the stem.This avoids transferring heat from your hands to the wine. If it's awine that's served at room temperature then pick the glass up by itsbowl and cradle it in the cupped palm of your hand. Step 2 Enjoy the bouquet (that means smell the wine) I didn't know they called it a bouquet... I always thought it wasjust chemistry - raw or otherwise - who cares... Sorry I forgotagain... But if you could see how gorgeous... ok ok I amsorry... Back to the wine tasting... Give the wine glass a bit of a swirl by rotating your wrist. Practicethis at home so you don't end up sloshing the wine all over yourclothes and moving your wrist like a washing machine agitator. Thetrick here is moving your wrist slightly to the left and the right (orthe right and the left) while keeping your arm still. Look at the winewhile you are doing this. After a few moments the movement will bringthe wine's aroma to the top of the glass. Move your glass to your nose and not your nose to your glass. Positionyour nose slightly over the edge of the glass and take a deep (butsoundless) sniff. Pause a few moments and do it again. Make someappropriate "mmmm, delightful and fruity" comment if you want. Ofcourse, if it isn't fruity then use some other word. "Robust" is alwaysa good one. Move the glass away from your nose when you are through. If you have a bad cold and a runny nose, stay home! Step 3 Taste the Wine Ok, I remember we are talking aboutwine tasting... but... No, sorry I can't go there... notyet any way... Now it's time to do what you really came for! But don't get carriedaway. This is not the time to call a toast and slug down a shot ofwine. No, you are here to TASTE the wine not suck it down like adrunken college student. Take a small sip, close your mouth (important) and roll the wine aroundon your tongue for a few seconds. Then exhale slowly through your noseas you swallow the wine. You really should practice this at home aswell because having wine shoot out your nose and all over your host'sfine white linen, is a good way to get uninvited from future parties! Good news! You can take a second sip! This time you should swish thewine around in the mouth (mouth closed please) but not with the samevigor that you use with a bottle of mouthwash. Just a gentle swish willdo. Swallow gently. You're through with that glass and can move on tothe next while you murmer words like "delightful". You will usually find plates of sherbet or cheese in between each winecourse. These are known as "palette cleansers" and are to be used toclean the taste of the last wine out of your mouth before you move onto the next glass. Nibble, don't grab a handful of cheese and toss theminto your mouth like peanuts. Don't look for cones to fill up with thatsherbet either. You won't find any! There you go! That's all there is to it. Now you just need to findsomething to wear that doesn't have a picture of a rock group on thefront and tour dates on the back and you're ready to party! If you're thinking about hosting awine tasting party then I recommend either of the two Calgary Bona Romalocations. They have a fine selection of authentic Italian andinternational wines and their assortment of Italian appetizers willmake cheese and sherbet look like dog food!
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