With so many wines to choose from, choosing your favorite taste is a very important and very enjoyable task. Wine tasting is actually not complicated - just pay attention to three points: the color of the wine; the smell; and the taste.

1. Visual perspective

When tasting wine, the color of the wine is naturally the first element that is felt. The color of a wine can reveal the age of the wine, its sweetness, the type of grapes—and even the craftsmanship of the wine.

Pick up the wine glass and observe the color of the wine against the white background. Observe the purity. A cloudy color indicates there is something wrong with the wine.

Evaluate the color of the wine. White wine may be pale yellow, lemon yellow, or golden in color. A greenish color means the wine is relatively recent and very young. Dark yellow or golden yellow indicates that the wine has reached a certain age and is relatively mature.

For red wine, the purple-red color is characteristic of young wine, while the brown color is characteristic of mature wine. The color of each wine represents the specificity of the wine—try using descriptive words to describe the color of the wine.

2. Smell perspective

The human sense of smell has better judgment than the human sense of taste. The smell of the wine will bring enough information before you taste the wine. Not only does a wine's "aroma" change based on its age and grape variety, but also factors such as the weather in the area where the wine is grown, soil texture, and the vinification process (in oak barrels or stainless steel vessels).

Put your nose close to the wine glass and focus on the smell - is it strong and complex, or light and simple? Does the scent last or does it disappear immediately? Use your own words to describe the smell of the wine. Many Chinese people are not very familiar with blackcurrants and black plums. It would be better to use words they are familiar with to describe them, such as using related words (such as bayberry), which is more accurate.

There’s no right or wrong way to describe a wine—it’s just about knowing how to convey helpful information to others. The aroma of the wine testifies to its age. Older white wines are usually sweeter and more mellow, while young white wines are often described as having fresh aromas of flowers, fruit and grass.

3. Taste Perspective

Finally, taste the winemaker’s masterpiece! Good wine has a balance of flavor elements: for example, sourness and sweetness in white wine, and sweetness, acidity, and tannins in red wine.

Take a sip of wine and use the tip of your tongue to judge the sweetness of the wine. The base of your tongue will tell you the acidity of the wine. The root of the front teeth can help you judge the tannins of the wine. Finally, turn the wine around in your mouth and swallow it. The most important thing is the "mouthfeel" - whether it is "soft and smooth" or "thin and rough" ?

After swallowing, pay attention to the change in taste and how quickly the taste dissipates. This is called the "aftertaste time" of the wine, and it can make a big difference in the quality of the wine. In good wine, the "aftertaste time" of the wine can exceed 1 minute or more, creating a space of reverie that other wines cannot bring.