Looking for a beginner guide to wine? The world of wine is vast – and can seem intimidating to many people.
You see the critics on TV taking hours to taste and rate different wines. You read about pairing the right foods with the right wines. You may even feel overwhelmed when trying to order a glass in a restaurant.
If you’re new to the world of wine, this beginners guide will give you a simple easy overview with some facts you should know, to get you started on your journey.
First of all what is it?
Wine is an alcoholic beverage made mainly from fermented grapes. Many people separate it into two basic categories – red and white. However it’s not really as simple as that.
The way a wine tastes depends on several factors like the type of grape used, to the climate where the grapes were grown and when they were harvested, to the type and length of fermentation process – and more.
Another way people categorize wines is by “New World” and “Old World” wines. Old World means that the grapes were grown in Europe like France, Italy, Germany, Spain and Portugal. New World means that the grapes were grown anywhere outside of Europe like California, New Zealand, Canada or Argentina.
Old World wines tend to use the name of the region where the wine was grown (for example, a red Bordeaux or a white Burgundy). New World wines tend to use the main grape used in the making of the wine (for example Cabernet Sauvignon or Pinot Noir).
What’s the best way to learn?
Well – to do your own tasting of course!
When you do a tasting, you’ll want to notice certain features. For example, the first thing you’ll do after looking at the color is to is smell the wine. You’ll want to observe the aromas as you sniff the glass.
For example does it smell fruity? Maybe like cherries or strawberries? Or maybe there’s a slight smell of grass or a mineral tone to it. Does it have vanilla undertones or maybe butterscotch?
Once you’ve sniffed the wine, you’ll want to take a little in your mouth and really savor it. You’ll notice if it’s sweet or dry (dry is the absence of sweetness). Maybe you taste a little acidity in it (like lemon). Maybe it will taste strong and tannic (tannins are what gives tea it’s strong mouth-puckering sensation).
After you’ve tasted the wine, notice how it finishes on your tongue – does it finish smoothly? Does it pretty much disappear right away? All of these things are different depending on the quality and type of wine.
A good wine will be what experts call “balanced”. This means that the alcohol, acidity, sweetness and tannins are all in balance – one does not overpower another.
Food Pairings
While many people prefer to have a glass on its own after a hard days work, where wine really shines is when you pair it with the right meal.
Most beginners prefer to stick to the well-known rule – red wine with beef, white wine with chicken or fish. And this can serve you well. However as you get more tasting experience under your belt you may want to be a little more adventurous. There are plenty of food pairings that will really enhance both the taste of the wine – and the meal!
So those are a few of the basics. The great thing about wine is that it is very subjective.
You can learn as much or as little as you want. You can enjoy the journey – you don’t have to know it all. And you don’t have to get it all “right” (if there is such a thing!) But if you take your time and find out what you really like, you’re already on your way to being a connoisseur!
Kate Fox writes for Beginner Guide To Wine a site offering you easy tips on wine basics, food pairings, tasting, storage tips and more.
For a list of the best places to buy wine online visit Purchase Wine Online
Kate Fox writes for http://www.BeginnersWineGuide.net – a site offering you easy tips on wine basics, food pairings, tasting, storage tips and more.
For a list of the best places to buy wine online visit http://www.BeginnersWineGuide.net/purchase-wine-online.html
Author Bio: Kate Fox writes for Beginner Guide To Wine a site offering you easy tips on wine basics, food pairings, tasting, storage tips and more.
For a list of the best places to buy wine online visit Purchase Wine Online
Category: Food and Drinks
Keywords: beginner guide to wine,wine for beginners,wines,tasting,pairing,red,white,types
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What Wine Should I Buy For My Wife For Christmas? My wife is starting to get into wine, but hasn’t bought anything other than $10 and under bottles. I’ve bought her a wine journal and a wine tasting “beginner’s” guide for Christmas, and now, I would like to buy a couple of nicer bottles to start her off. Now, mind you, I would like to buy a couple of bottles that are readily available, and in the $20 – $45 range. Does anybody have suggestions? She is a fan of reds, specifically cabs and shiraz, sometimes merlot, and rarely pinots or zin. Any suggestions would be most helpful.
View CommentI love wine myself and make my own. 2003 was a good year for wine so here are some good reds that are all under $35.00.
Paringa Shiraz 2001 – Australia
Bodegas Castano Solanera 2000 Yecla -Spain
Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2001 Marlborough – New Zealand
Peju 2003 Merlot – Callifornia
Gopfrich 2004 Syrah – California
Santa Lucia 2003 Uva de Trioa – Italy
Raymond 2003 Reserve Cabernet – California
View CommentI’m Starting To Develop A Taste For Wine. How Do I Select A Quality Wine And What Are The Differences Between Wines grown in France, compared to California, New Zeland, and Chile?
View CommentI would suggest going to a winery for a ”tasting”. More important than a wines origin is it’s taste (to you).
I don’t know where you are but:
http://www.napavalley.com/wineries/
http://www.virginiawines.org/
http://www.sonoma.com/wineries/
http://wine.about.com/od/wineries/A_Beginners_Guide_to_the_Best_Wineries_by_Region.htm
View CommentHow Long Can An Open Bottle Of Wine Last In The Fridge Before It Goes Off? Does wine go sour or stale?…i have no idea this is my first ever bottle and i opend it a week ago, but havnt finished it…however today i fancied some…is it ok to drink?..and for how long?
thanks for answering!
View CommentI read a beginner’s guide to wine and it said:
1 day old – still ok to serve to guests. Just taste it to make sure.
2 days old – invite a friend round and polish it off, quick!
3 days old – don’t think about serving it to anyone except yourself.
I guess that’s the official point of view, but if you don’t mind the taste after more than 3 days, go for it! It won’t hurt you.
View CommentHow Can I Go About Becoming Wicca? I have just met some wiccan people and they noticed me becuase of my gift. I apparently have a very strong empathy gift. How can I learn to stop projecting and how can I put a sheild up? Also the man I knows spirit guide is very strong, a fallen named micheal. Should I be careful becuase of his angel.
I am asking a serious question for those in this spirituality.
Worthless christians please do not bother answearing.
View CommentMerry Meet,
If a person really wishes to practice Wicca they must first understand that we don't have a central leadership. Though many Witches and Wiccans tried to create an advisory group called the Council of American Witches to unify those within the Craft. This group is still around and still helping the greater community in its own way.
Also, though there are many Traditions in Wicca, including Eclectic Wicca, we follow some basic precepts.
01. Wicca is an oath-bound mystery religion, each Wiccan should either be Dedicated or Initiated as a Wiccan to be considered a Wiccan by their peers and/or the general Wiccan community.
02. Wiccan's are polytheistic, honoring a variety of gods and goddesses.
03. Wiccan's are also dualistic, seeing individual deities, at least to some extent, as aspects of one God and one Goddess.
04. Wiccans are also pantheistic do some degree or another, viewing divinity as immanent within the natural world.
05. Wicca encompasses the practice of magick even though many Wiccans don't practice magick.
06. Wiccan's show religious devotion to the Goddess and/or God (depending upon Tradition).
07. Wicca's ethical basis is expressed in the Wiccan Rede (“An it harm none, do as ye will”), and the Threefold Law (“What ye send returns three times over”).
08. Wiccan Ritual usually involves casting a circle as the basic setting for spiritual and magical work, as well as emphasizes the Platonic four elements of earth, air, fire and water and some form of gender polarity, be that theologically in the image of the God and Goddess, and/or mundanely in the physical gender of participants as well.
09. Wiccan's more often than not incorporate some form of the “Great Rite” (union of the God and Goddess), frequently symbolized in the blessing of the ritual wine by the conjoining of the athame (ritual knife) and chalice (ritual wine cup).
Now if you are new to Wicca and still are interested about learning Wicca and/or Witchcraft here are a few legitimate sources to glean knowledge from. One being Witchvox at http://www.witchvox.com/. Here you will gain knowledge through fellowship with other of like mind and knowledge through the countless articles posted. If this is not enough one could look into getting online training through the Sacred Mists at http://www.workingwitches.com/wicca/cour… or OZ Wicca at http://www.ozwicca.com/ , both are pretty decent for learning the Craft on the Web.
Also if you are close enough to a group that specializes in education and development like the SCWF try and join them even if it's on a limited capacity. Ultimately, study, study and then study some more. Find all you can and definitely cross reference whenever possible, this way you can get the best out of all you learn.
We also suggest that you get your hands on Wicca for Beginners by Thea Sabin and/or The Circle Within by Dianne Sylvan. Both of these books are very good reading and both will give you some deeper insight to the Craft and how it relates to you. I hope that this little blurp has helped you out some.
If you have teens in your home that's interested in Wicca and/or Witchcraft we suggest Teen Witch by Silver Ravenwolf and Elements of Witchcraft: Natural Magick for Teens by Ellen Dugan. For early Teens and Pre-Teens we suggest SpellCraft for Teens: A Magickal Guide to Writing & Casting Spells by Gwinevere Rain
Blessed Be
Nyjh
View CommentHow Can I Become A Better Chess Player? I seem to always play on the defensive. I need some tips on becomeing more of an offensive player. Someone told me that the object is to set up the defense first. How?
View CommentThanks everyone. It’s a shame that my kids ages 10,12,and 14 beat me everytime! I am going to try everyones suggestions and try to beat at least one of the kids this weekend!
A couple of good books to start with are Susan Polgar’s “A World Champion’s Guide to Chess” and “Chess Tactics for Champions”.
You can get them online of course, but they’re usually available at a decent book store, like a Barnes and Noble or Books a Million.
Yasser Seirawan has a great series of books out as well, but they’ll take longer to go through than Polgar’s two books… Seirawan’s books, if you decided to check them out, should be studied in the following order:
1) Play Winning Chess (a beginner’s book, you might be able to skip this one if you’re familiar with the stuff it covers).
2) Wining Chess Endgames
3) Winning Chess Tactics
4) Winning Chess Strategies
5) Winning Chess Openings
6) Winning Chess Combinations
7) Winning Chess Brilliancies
But I’d recommend Polgar’s two books first. Very easy to follow the action, and she does a great job of explaining things.
View CommentHow Much Sugar Do I Add To 2 QT Of Juice To Make Wine?
View Commenti have one pack of yest, and two QT of juice. how much sugar do i add?
You can make wine from juice concentrates, they need to be 100% juice with no additives. the additives can stop the yeast from working. With 2 qts of juice you might just go ahead and buy a bottle of wine. Realistically, the least amount of wine to make is 1 gallon. with that being said, you would use about 46 to 48 oz of juice concentrate and add about 1/2 to 3/4 lb of sugar. But you will need additional additives and water to bring it to one gallon.
If you are serious about making wine, I have a complete beginner course that will take you through the basics. http://homemade-wine-making-guide.com
Good Luck and hope you make some wine you like!
View CommentChrys