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© 2007 Pascale Bernasse & Co. Inc., DBA
French Wine Explorers
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Wine Articles:
Get
the Most From Your Winery Visits
by Natalie
MacLean of
www.nataliemaclean.com
|
Plan
your visits: Visit wineries clustered together, and visit no
more than three to five a day: two in the morning, one that has
a restaurant attached for lunch and one or two in the afternoon.
That leaves you time to taste and talk. Go to both small and
large places to get a sense of the range of wines produced.
Designate a driver: If you refuse to spit, you need to
pick a designated driver who won't imbibe.
Take a cooler: Pack a picnic lunch in a cooler, and then
you'll have a place to store the wines that you buy, so they
don't cook in the trunk. But many wineries will ship to your
home—so think twice before lugging those bottles around: a
case of 12 weighs 37 pounds. If you do buy a bottle, get one
that's only available at the winery—and ask the vintner to
sign it.
Drive a comfy car: A car with reclining seats and clouded
glass is ideal for those between-winery naps in parking lots.
Even better, rent a stretch limo.
Avoid strong smells: Perfume, cologne and aftershave all
interfere with the wine aromas, so skip them when you're going
to taste.
Wear dark clothing: Even if you're an expert spitter, the
person next to you might not be. Avoid wearing t-shirts that
read "Gonna drink myself stupid!"
Call ahead: If your favorite winery isn't open to the
public, call to ask if you can drop by anyway. Many will welcome
fans by appointment.
Go early: Tasting rooms are much less crowded in the
mornings before lunch, and less packed on weekdays than weekends.
And even though cabernet at 10 a.m. may not sound appealing,
your palate is at its best in the morning.
Avoid tour buses: If you see a bus in the winery parking
lot, come back later. (Also avoid people in polyester suits
wearing stickers that say "Hi! My name is…")
Spit: Spitting is an acceptable part of tasting room
etiquette. In North America, we associate spitting with
crudeness and great gobs of wet tobacco. Europeans, however, are
completely uninhibited about spitting—as they are about nude
bathing and May-December sexual liaisons. The French call it recracher, and they have no qualms about doing it in the
vineyard, down drains, or even on the barrel room floor. (But
don't think it's a mark of European sophistication to spit on a
floor that's finished in bird's eye maple or Persian carpets.
Look for the spit buckets.)
The art of spitting (or expectorating, if you prefer) can be
comfortably mastered at home. Start in the shower, then move to
the bathroom sink, and finally, when you're ready to work
without a net, graduate to the dining room table. The technique
is simple: when you've finished tasting your wine, suck in your
cheeks, purse your lips into a slightly open O, lean forward and
expel a steady stream into the bucket. It's considered bad form
to dribble, spray or ricochet.
Taste and savor: Tasting several wines is not only fun,
it's instructive: you can compare different styles when you try
them side by side. (Of course, you can do this at home, but it's
expensive to open four bottles or more bottles at once.) Begin
with light, dry white wines; progress to full-bodied reds; and
finally, try sweet wines.
Experiment: Try wines you've never tasted before, widen
your range, surprise yourself. Ask the tasting room staff which
wine the vintner is best-known for.
Take a notebook: It doesn't make you a wine nerd to want
to remember the wines you've tasted.
Ask questions: Unless they're swamped with visitors, most
tasting room personnel love to chat about their wines and the
region. Start by asking how their wine differs from that of
nearby wineries, and which dishes it would go well with.
Eat: be sure to have breakfast before you go, and take a
snack for on the road—food helps to absorb the alcohol. Eating
bland crackers between sips will also keep your palate from
getting overloaded. Avoid eating garlic and spicy food at lunch;
wait until the tasting over.
Drink water: One effect of even just tasting alcohol is
that you get dehydrated. Pack several bottles of water in the
car, and take a swig often.
Take the kids: Most wineries are set in beautiful country
locations where children can play outdoors. And even if the kids
aren't drinking for a few more years, they can still be
fascinated by these grape farms, and the process of making wine.
Just keep them away from any breakables in the tasting room, and
from the farm equipment outside. Don't press any red buttons no
matter how tempting.
Ask to be added to the mailing list: Some wineries
produce such small quantities of wine that you need to be part
of their loyal customer base to buy any. A visit to the winery
is a great time to express your interest. (But avoid the
approach of taking out a thick wad of bills, fanning under the
owner's nose and asking, "Whaddaya got that's good and
pricey?")
Call it quits: How to tell when you should head back to
the hotel? Your teeth are stained dark purple or you find
yourself swimming in the landscaped fountain in front of the
winery.
©
2004 by Natalie MacLean. Reprinted with permission.
Natalie MacLean
was recently
named the World's Best Drink Writer at the World Food Media
Awards in Australia. Natalie offers a free
wine newsletter with wine picks, articles and humor.
There are no ads and all e-mail addresses are kept confidential.
To sign up, visit www.nataliemaclean.com.
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