Professional wine taster: How do you get this job?
How can you not be jealous – tasting wine for a living? How do you get that job? Seems easy – tilt glass, taste, swallow…repeat. Or do you really need to be able to taste all those flavors you read in the wine reviews: “eucalyptus”…“burnished leather”…“chunky black berry”…? Well, if you want to taste wine more discriminately, you need to step up and put on your own tasting. The “tools of the trade” are all there, you just need to develop them. Practice will help develop your skills, enhancing your enjoyment and appreciation for wine.
But, you say, you already enjoy wine…why bother? Look at it this way: you loan a friend your favorite book, one that you found full of drama and life, nuance and style. They return it and say “it was a good story”, not understanding any deeper elements that you appreciated. They enjoyed it, but didn’t look beyond the narrative. Like a great book, wine also presents different levels of appreciation and distinctions. It’s OK to simply enjoy a good glass of wine but if you want more, dig a little deeper yourself. Here are some basic tasting steps:
- Color: Look at the wine in the glass against a white background. Good clarity? Cloudy? Deep rich color? Washed out? The color and clarity of a wine are clues to the varietal, the wine’s age, storage history, and even how it was produced.
- Swirl: Swirl the wine in your glass, introducing more oxygen to the wine, bringing out flavors and subtleties. Only pour a couple ounces for tasting so you can swirl.
- Smell: Aroma is a very important single element of tasting, as your taste abilities largely depends on your olfactory sensibilities. Be sure to put your nose right in to the glass, and remember step #2.
- Taste: Swish the wine in your mouth so it coats all the areas of your tongue. Don’t be afraid to look a little funny when tasting! Make notes on flavors and nuances…impressions come and go quickly, so get them written down.
- Savor: This final look at the wine is about reflection…what reactions or feelings does the wine generate? Is it complex or simple – harsh or inviting? Well balanced, too fruity or too dry? It’s important to document.
Bottom line: The way to gain wine expertise is to taste. You need experience – stretch your legs and dig deeper to gain a greater understanding and appreciation of wine.