I

TASTING

Tasting is an art that awakens all your SENSES

I

TASTING

Tasting is an art that awakens all your SENSES

Eyesight

We examine the color, or the “robe” of the wine. Hold your glass in the direction of a bright light on a white background. Lower it afterwards to observe the nuances of the robe against the glass edges. The nuances of red wines vary depending on the origin and the age of the wine : purplish, reddish purple, ruby red, red cherry, garnet for the youngest, tile-red, orange, or dark brown for the oldest wines. Dry white wines go from transparent to straw yellow, to golden yellow.

The mellow and syrupy wines offer colors marked by pale gold to amber. We also talk about the intensity of the robe which reflects the density of the wine (dark, deep, full-bodied, pale, light), its clarity (absence of cloudiness) and its brightness (shiny, luminous, mat, dull)

Start by smelling the wine in a still glass, then try again after shaking the fluid in circular motions to amplify the perception of aromas and their intensity.
There are nine types of aromas : fruity, floral, mineral (flint, limestone), vegetal (herb, hay, vegetation, mushroom), empyreumatic (smoked, grilled, roasted, caramel, cacao, tobacco, burned), wooded, animal (game, leather, fur, musk), balsamic (resin), chemical (oxidized, rancio, iodine, sulfur)

Smell

Taste

Take a sip of wine, make it move inside your mouth and draw in a bit of air. You will also observe the velvety character, silky or rough, of tannins on your tongue, the strength and the finesse of the taste, and most of all, the sense of balance. Don’t hesitate to chew the wine.
When you swallow it, evaluate the time the aromas spent in your mouth.

conservation

II

Temperature is one of the prime factors to take into account for wine ageing. It is crucial to keep the bottle at a moderate and even temperature. It does not have to go from 28°C to -2°C. These temperature variations risk to have a negative impact on the taste.

Think of storing it in a place that is not too hot or too cold. The bottles need to be protected from light. The wine needs a constant temperature, but when the climate is dry, you will need to air the space where it is located.

Each bottle needs to be placed in a horizontal position which is important to have a well-aged wine.
The cork can be damaged and affect the taste of the drink. In that case, it will have to be opened and leveled before placing the new cap. When storage conditions are not optimal, some of the wine may evaporate, causing the level to drop slightly.

III - SERVE & FOOD PAIRING

A successful food pairing consists of associating flavors and tastes to obtain a harmony between the food and the wines. If you combine a dish with wine, it is to create a balance. And to achieve this, intensities need to be respected. In other words, the dish should not overtake the wine, and the wine should not step on the dish.

Successful food pairing is shared, made of the alliance between food and wine where wine should sublimate the dish. It complements the magic of the moment. It opens the door to discussions and exchange. Don’t over-focus on popular beliefs, let your ideas flow, take risks, surprise yourself and experiment.

Respect the balance of forces and protect your taste buds

Start with sparkling wines, in order to tease the taste buds, white wine will follow, or rosé wine, then red wine, and finally finish with mellow wine.

In summary, here are the rules:

  • – Serve wine from the youngest to the oldest, lightest to the most well-structured
  • – Serve wine from the driest to the most mellow; dry white wines before red wines
  • – Serve from the freshest wine to the most tempered

WHICH WINES SHOULD WE DECANT?

HOW TO DECANT A WINE ?

Decanting wines can have two distinct functions. Decanting a young wine allows to oxygenate it, which will consequently lead to the liberation of aromas.
We will then choose a large decanter, so that a large surface of the wine can be in contact with the air. We can do this in advance, even in some cases, many hours before the service.

By contrast, decanting an old wine is way more delicate, as it risks – if it is particularly fragile – to spoil it in an irreversible manner. Before this procedure, which aims to eliminate the deposits that form at the bottom of the bottle, you need to make sure that the wine will withstand it. We will then choose a narrow-bodied decanter where we will decant the wine before serving it. We advise you to decant white wines and champagnes as well.