[Wine sampling]Maybe you’re trying to impress a table full of clients or your new boss. Or you have a meet-the-parents dinner planned with your significant other at a classy wine bar. But while the rest of the table carefully reviews the menu — weighing the pros and cons of different regionals — your knowledge doesn’t go much further than white and red. Luckily for you, it’s easy to pass undetected as an impostor oenophile. All it takes is knowing a few of the expert tricks for selecting, drinking and pairing your vino. KNOW WHAT NOT TO ORDER You don’t want to order the least expensive wine on the menu and look cheap, so you pick the next one up on the menu. Still affordable, but slightly better, right? Wrong. “NEVER order the second cheapest wine on the menu,” said Mark Aselstine, founder of Uncorked Ventures. “Restaurants know that people don’t want to appear cheap, so they jack the profit margins up on the second cheapest wines … and never order a Chardonnay.” Chris Jackson-Pool/Getty Images HOLD THE GLASS RIGHT Grabbing the glass by the globe is the first tipoff that you don’t know shit about wine. “Always hold a glass of red wine by the stem, the heat from your hand will drastically increase the temperature of the wine,” said Ryan Scott, head winemaker at Witch Creek Winery and Sleeping Tiger Winery. “Ideally your reds should be served between 60-70°F to express themselves properly. This is even more import for more alcohol driven wines which can lose a lot of their character as they warm up.” When it comes to white wine, “it is okay to ‘palm’ the globe of your glass, but this is just to find the ideal temperature to enjoy it at,” said Scott. “Whites are often served too cold in restaurants. Once it tastes good to you, back to the stem! Your friends will see you doing this and you can explain all about how you heated the wine to the proper temperature to be enjoyed.” Impressive. SWIRL AND SMELL FIRST We know, you need a little liquid lubrication to get the conversation with your co-workers flowing. But once the wine is poured, a oenophile’s first instinct is to swirl and smell. “Swirl and remember: eyes, nose, mouth,” said Evee Anastasopoulou, founder of the The Wine God, a wine subscription box that delivers wine from Greek wineries to your doorstep. ”Eyes: look for the color and ‘wine tears’ on the glass sides. Are they rich? Do they go down quickly? Nose: smell and take in the aroma and then rest your glass.” As for the smell, hopefully you can pick out some flavors to comment on. “Berry and jam are good for big reds. Stone and citrus are good for most whites,” said Regina von Gootkin, author of the blog Wine Esquire. And don’t go crazy with the swirl (accidentally sloshing wine over the sides of the glass is never a good look). “I’ve always had trouble swirling wine without putting the base of the glass on a tabletop,” wrote Tim Ferriss. “Jean Charles, owner of Deloach winery, made a simple suggestion that works like a charm with a few minutes of practice: trace small circles in the air with your elbow instead of moving at the wrist. This will open the bouquet of the wine for smelling.” SEE THE REST OF THE STORY AT BUSINESS INSIDER
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