Etiquette and Technique 

Knowing correct wine etiquette and what to expect at a tasting room makes the experience much more enjoyable. Here are a few tips and guidelines.

Tasting Room Etiquette

• Be sure to eat before starting your day of tasting. Food will help you absorb the alcohol and sustain your energy levels throughout the trip.

• Please refrain from wearing perfume and cologne. The smells may make it difficult for you—and those around you—to enjoy all the aromas and tastes of the wine.

• Likewise, you’ll want to avoid smoking, gum, and breath mints, as they will alter the taste of wine.

• Please do not bring children to a tasting room.

• In a winery's tasting room, white wines are generally tasted first, followed by reds, and then dessert wines. Within these categories, lighter-bodied wines precede fuller-bodied ones. Water and crackers may be offered to cleanse the palate between each wine.

• The proper way to hold any style of wine glass is by the stem. This keeps your hand from heating the wine.

• You do not need to finish every glass. Winery tasting rooms provide buckets to dispose of excess wine. Likewise, you don’t have to sample every wine offered—taste what appeals to you.

• Feel free to ask questions about the wine—that’s what the hosts are there for and they are usually happy to share their knowledge.

• If you ask for a second tasting of a particular wine, it is in good taste to buy a bottle. Still, it is not mandatory that you buy wine—purchase only what you desire.

How to Taste Wine:

Tasting wine isn’t nearly as complicated and it looks. The most important things are to slow down, pay attention, and enjoy yourself.

1. See. Notice the color, hue, and clarity of the wine.

2. Swirl. Yes, there is a reason people do this. It aerates the wine to bring out the aromas more fully. But, be careful of spilling—don’t swirl a glass that is more than half full.

3. Sniff. Stick your nose in the glass and smell the wine. You can take short sniffs or breath deep, whichever your prefer. Think about what the aromas remind you of—is it earthy or fruity, floral or grassy. Let your mind wander.

Sip, Swish, and Swallow. Take a sip of wine and let it swish around your mouth a bit before you swallow. This allows the wine to hit all your taste buds and gives you the time to think about what you taste. Think about how the wine feels in your mouth—heavy, light, smooth, effervescent—and about what flavors come out.