As Wine Folly put it, “Etiquette is one of those things that, on the surface, seems unnecessary but it is a powerful tool. It is the outward way of showing that you are, indeed, not a monster.”

 

Let’s jump right in:

 

1. Hold your wine glass by the stem or base.
This keeps the temperature of the wine cool and constant esp. for white, sparkling and rose wines. Holding the glass by the bowl will increase the temperature of the wine in the glass as our body temperature is relatively warm.

 

2. Smell your wine. Sniff it, think about it, taste it. What comes to mind?
This is useful in allowing you to use your aroma/flavour memory to associate the aromas/flavours in the wine to familiar aromas/flavours around you. Doing this consistently improves your wine tasting abilities over time.

 

3. Try drinking from the same position on your wine glass to avoid unsightly mouth marks.

 

4. When opening a bottle, try to do it quietly like a ninja.
When opening a bottle that is sealed by a cork, use any corkscrew at hand. Do not use a cork screw to open sparkling wine (It’s a very bad idea!) .

 

5. When clinking, clink the glasses bell to bell (it reduces breakage) and look your clinking-buddy in the eye.

 

6. Pouring wine? Hold the bottle towards the base.
Holding the bottle closer towards the base will help you avoid dripping. Remember to tilt the bottle slightly away from you as you deliberately stop the pour to avoid spilling. A little practice will go a log way! Also, the more wine you get to drink!

 

7. Fill your glass less than halfway to give your wine room to breathe.
Wine is complex and allowing some air to come into contact with it will allow it to open up and give off more pronounced aromas. This improves your overall wine experience. Wine breathing is also important for softening harsh tannin’s in bold red wines.

 

8. Try to keep your portion of drinking equal to others around you.

 

9. Don’t judge a wine by its closure.
We’ve all seen Uncorked where the sommelier removes the cork from a bottle of wine and hands it to a diner who takes a whiff before giving the go-ahead to pour. While it certainly looks glamorous, smelling that cork will not tell you anything about the wine. Even if a cork breaks and crumbles into the bottle, always sample the wine before rendering judgment. It would be a shame to miss out on a perfectly good bottle based on the condition of its closure.

 

10. Always serve wines in the correct order.
In order to appreciate the nuances of the wines you’re serving, always go in order of lightest to heaviest, and driest to sweetest. Bubbles come first, followed by light whites (e.g. Sauvignon Blanc, dry Riesling), heavy whites (i.e. chardonnay, viognier), rosés, light reds (i.e. Pinot Noir, Barbera), heavy reds (i.e. Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec) and then dessert wine.

 

Photo by Mohau Mannathoko on Unsplash.

 

Melissa Mwende

Brand Ambassador – De Vries Africa Ventures