Detroit Wine Organization – Tasting Tips

Wine FAQs

Q: What are people doing when they swirl their wine around before drinking it?
A: People are volatizing the esters. The smell components lie just beneath the surface of the wine. When we swirl, we are allowing these esters to come floating out of the glass to create aromas.

Q: When people sniff wine, what do they smell for?
A: We first and foremost smell for flaws. Nail polish remover, vinegar, sherry, burnt matches, cork and wet newspaper are all the tip-off aromas indicating the wine is spoiled or bad. After we have ruled these out, we then smell for the bouquet of the wine. Certain smells can indicate specific varietals or regions and give us a hint about the level of complexity. Remember, 80% of what we taste is based on what we smell, so this is a very important step in the process of evaluating wine and food.

Q: I'm going out to dinner with five friends to a seafood restaurant and we want to order a bottle of wine. What kind should we order?
A: First of all, drink what you like! If you are a red wine fan, you are not bound to white wine here just because it is the classic pairing with seafood. Simply choose a lighter red.
Secondly, food pairing is mostly about contrast or complement.
If the fish will be covered in a butter sauce, then try a slightly oaked chardonnay to complement, because it will often have a buttery quality. If your fish is spicy, contrast it with something slightly sweet. Food pairing is an art and difficult to apply in many settings. Just beware of the very bad combinations like oily fish and cabernet or sauvignon blanc and steak. Light foods, light wines. Heavy foods, heavy wines. Other tips: Consider sauces as much as the base of the dish because this is usually where the predominant flavor is.

Q: Why should I pay more for expensive wine when I can't tell the difference?
A: Most people can tell the difference, but they are simply not exposed to great wine. In every tasting I do, both the novices and the experts can find the most expensive or well-made wine in the room when tasting blind. You can drive a Pinto your whole life and feel good about it, but the day you sit in a BMW, you know that you were missing out on quality.