Wine tastings can be pretty intimidating for first-timers, but with a couple of tips, you’ll be swirling and sipping like a pro. Whether you want to become a connoisseur or impress a date, here’s how to taste wine and not look completely clueless.

Swirl Before You Taste

Swirling might seem pretentious, but there are a couple of reasons why connoisseurs do this. Similar to decanting or allowing the wine to ‘breathe’ before drinking it, swirling aerates the wine and allows the aromas to be released, making it easier to detect texture, taste notes, smell aromas and even determine the alcohol content.

The only time swirling is a no-no is when you’re dealing with sparkling wine or Champagne; because they are naturally carbonated, they could easily foam over the top of the glass while swirling. There’s also the risk of the bubbles fizzing out, and no one likes flat bubbly.

To swirl, gently swish the wine in a swivel motion.

You want to avoid creating a messy spill. To swirl, gently swish the wine in a swivel motion. For beginners, it’s perfectly acceptable to do this on a clean, steady and smooth surface; sticky tables might hinder smooth movements and result in a spill.

For advanced tasters, hold the glass in the air while slowly moving your wrist. You will notice ‘legs’/steams run along the side of the glass when swirling; this might hint at the alcohol content. As a rule of thumb, the more ‘legs’ you notice a wine has, the higher the alcohol content, and vice versa.

Colour Me Curious

You’d be surprised how many different shades of colour wine can be identified by and what it might reveal about the quality, age and amount of tannins. You don’t need to study the Pantone colour chart, but discerning the colour of the wine could give you a couple of clues about the wine you’re tasting. In some cases, deeper colours might be due to the winemaker allowing grape skins to have longer contact with the juice.

Tilt the glass at a 45-degree angle and hold it to the light, making sure to not spill the contents of the glass.

As for opacity, red wines such as Shiraz, Merlot, Pinotage and Cabernet Sauvignon, can easily provide information about whether they are younger/older wines. Tilt the glass at a 45-degree angle and hold it to the light, making sure to not spill the contents of the glass. The centre of the wine glass is the true colour of the wine.

More opaque/rich-coloured red wines (violet/maroon-red) are generally younger, with higher tannins and acidity. Some might also have a cloudy appearance; this could be due to the fact that the winemaker has purposely decided to not filter the wine. Certain red wines that are older tend to have a more pale/dull colour (red-orange/brown-ish); they usually have lower tannins and acidity with time.

Smell the Aromas, Then Smell Again

Ever wondered how some people can taste nuanced flavours like peach or raspberries? Well, some people are like bloodhounds and others are nose blind. When it comes to sniffing wine, the best way to get an accurate sense of the aromas is to stick your nose in the glass to get a good interpretation.

Take a good whiff and note what you smell.

Start by placing your nose in the glass; there should be some space between your bridge and the glass rim. Take a good whiff and note what you smell. If fruity or spicy, remove your nose from the glass, and then take another whiff to determine if there are any spices or fruits you can single out – anything other than the obvious, grapes.

Younger red wines might have a more fruity taste, whereas older red wines might have stronger aromas and fragrant spices. As for younger white wines, they usually have a more saturated colour (yellow-green) and higher acidity/fresh taste, while older wines might have a more dull appearance (yellow-brown) with less acidity and stronger nutty aromas.

What Do You Taste?

Finally, tasting – this is where the actual fun begins. Swirling the wine brings out the different aromas, and the same goes for taste.

Tasting notes are usually impacted by the terroir.

Between tastings, try to eat a plain savoury cracker or even a bit of bread; this will absorb the flavours of the previous wine consumed and act as a palate cleanser. Strong aromas could impact the tasting experience and how the expression of the wine is interpreted.

Start with the basics. Ask yourself: does the wine taste dry, sweet or bitter? Try to interpret distinctive taste notes like tropical (pineapple, mango, etc.) or berry-forward flavours (raspberry, mulberry, wild strawberry or gooseberry) in certain wines. Tasting notes are usually impacted by the terroir.

To Spit or Not To Spit?

At social tastings, people are more likely to swallow to get the full wine-tasting experience, but in other settings, people might prefer to spit out samples into a spittoon – it really depends on the person and set-up.

If a handful of wines are sampled, you might decide to drink the wine, but if doing an extensive tasting, that’s another story.

If you’re not an experienced wine taster, spitting can feel pretty awkward and embarrassing if you end up dribbling wine all over your chin or staining your shirt. The key is knowing how to form a decent stream and not a dramatic spit-take. When tasting the wine, swish it from side to side in your mouth; as it coats your tongue, taste the flavours and notes. Once you’ve gained a ‘feel’ for the wine, it’s appropriate to spit.

Whatever you do, don’t purse your lips, the wine will spill everywhere – you might as well ask for a bib. Round your lips and expel the wine with a good force, not excessive though. Towards the end of spitting, as the last bit of wine leaves your mouth, protrude your tongue and quickly lick your lips to ensure residual wine doesn’t spill over your chin.

There’s no graceful way of spitting wine, but there is a way of doing it in a semi-dignified manner. If a handful of wines are sampled, you might decide to drink the wine, but if doing an extensive tasting, that’s another story.

Standard tasting portions are generally between 75-90 ml, but this ranges in different wine regions, and from estate to estate. In wine maths terms, you might end up drinking more than 750 ml (a bottle) if drinking 10 glasses or more – hello hangover! All things considered, spitting is not disgusting when tasting wine, it’s pretty normal.

Now that you know how to taste wine like a pro, try these lesser-known wine varietals.