True story: My friend and I were in New York City and we went to a very expensive, fancy restaurant. The type of place where a man with a little broom comes around to wipe the crumbs off your table between every course. It was kind of a #treatyoself situation. We sat down and took a look at the wine list (cause that's what you do at fancy places) and everything seemed like gibberish. It may have well been in French or German. Well, actually it was all in French and German and that just added to the confusion. When the sommelier came around to ask if we had any questions, we put on our very best 'fancy gentleman' faces and said 'yes, we'll take the riesling' as if we had a clue what that was.


In actuality, we just chose the second least expensive wine on the list as to appear not too cheap and hopefully gave off a vibe that we actually knew what the heck a riesling was. 

Now that I am a little older, I thought it was time I learned a thing or two about wine. As to avoid another embarrassing fancy restaurant situation. So, I took that same friend and we ventured out to iYellow Wine Club. We decided to take a class on rose wines, since my palette resembles that of a five year old's. 


The intro class gives you the perfect five steps to wine tasting that will fool anyone into thinking you're a total pro. I'm about to drop some serious wisdom on you. Next time you're out, follow these steps and impress everyone at your table. 

Ready?

1. Sight 

Look at your wine glass. What's the colour like? Is it darker, lighter? Comment on the shade using words from Ralph Lauren's paint line. 

2. Swirl 

Tip your glass to the side and swirl the wine around, almost so that it spills out but DO NOT spill it (never spill wine). Tip your glass back up. This is called painting the glass. Now, watch as the wine falls from the edge down, those streaks are the legs. The legs show how high in sugar the wine is and therefore, how alcoholic it is. Long, thick legs = More sugar = made in warmer climate. 

3. Smell 

Sniff your wine. What does it smell like? Don't be afraid to throw random things out there. Smell rain? Smell metal? That's actually totally a thing. It's called minerality. It means the wine was produced in a rainy climate and the grape soaked up that scent. 

4. Sip 

You're supposed to sip when wine tasting. However, I prefer to gulp. How does the wine taste to you? It is sweeter or drier? What are the after tastes?

5. Savour  
 
Never drink on an empty stomach. I learned that the hard way. Savour your wine by pairing with cheeses. Sommelier, Taylor Thompson suggests pairing a sparkling wine with a soft brie. We also tried a heavily garlic aioli with chips. 

Are you a wine fan?