Many consumers stand in front of a grocery shelf full of wine bottles and wonder, "How do I choose?"
The next thought tends to follow, "Oooo, that label looks nice," and they buy the wine. But an attractive label has nothing to do with a wine's quality.
Instructions
Select a Wine
1. First and foremost, don't fall victim to advice that takes you into a wine that you know you won't like. If you absolutely know you don't like dark red wine, don't buy it. Don't drink it. Instead, figure out what you enjoy in a wine.
2. Select wine based on the "weight" and texture of your meal.
The basic rule when choosing a wine with these criteria is this: the heavier the meal, the bigger your wine needs to be to stand up to the food. So red meats and foods with heavy sauces generally need big red wines such as cabernet sauvignon, merlot or syrah. Big reds and buttery California chardonnays also go well with sauces and pastas that are heavily-buttered or creamy.
Lighter meals take lighter and more subtle flavors of wines. Thus, chicken or turkey will often be paired with white wines such as riesling or gewurtztraminer. But should you wish to eat red with a lighter meal, think about choosing a pinot noir or an Italian red like a chianti.
3. There are times when a special bottle of wine is wanted. To find out great information on wines, there are numerous online resources, as well as magazines and other media columnists that provide it.
By reading about wines and wine in general, certain flavors and characteristics likely will start to stand out. By doing this kind of homework, it will be easier to find a special bottle for that special occasion.
4. The best way to remember a wine you like is to write things down about that wine. In this way, you can keep track of good wines you drink. By keeping track of these wines, you also have something to use when you want to try a new wine. Most wine shops have knowledgeable owners or employees who can take a description from one wine and make suggestions on other wines that a consumer also will like.
So be sure to write down the name of the winery, varietal, and even the region of wines you buy and like. When tasting at a winery, get the descriptions of those wines you like.
5. There are several rating systems for wines. Probably the most well-known is from Wine Spectator, which rates wines with points from 100 and down. The higher a point total, supposedly the better the wine.
These ratings actually can help when choosing the correct wine because the people doing the rating taste hundreds of wines every year. In the case of Wine Spectator, the columnist in charge of each region heads the tasting group that creates the ratings for the wines from his region. Therefore, the people rating the wines know those wines well.
Tags: know like, Select Wine, special bottle, those wines, when choosing, Wine Spectator