Wine And Dine Easier With These Great Tips!

The wine aisle can be intimidating, with a seemingly endless array of choices. There are so many different kinds of wine that it is often hard to match a bottle to your tastes. The following tips will help you choose the best wine for any meal.

Know your wine shop. Not every shop is the same. The prices will be different, as well as the bottles that are offered. If you’re just starting to get into wine, filling your collection with expensive labels isn’t the best way to start. Shop around until you find a place that carries the selection that interests you most.

Don’t let others decide which wines you should try. Try new types of wine whenever you have the chance, and ask about wines your really enjoy. The only result is you spending money on something that you already knew you would probably not enjoy.

Properly store your wine to keep the flavor fresh. You do not want your wine to be too hot or too cold; it can hurt the flavor. The flavor can develop much better when storage temperatures range between 50 and 55 degrees. Try a wine refrigerator or just keep your wines in your basement.

For the best flavor, be sure to serve wine at the proper temperature. It is best to serve a red wine at 60 degrees. Begin serving your wine when the temperature registers at 58 degrees since it will warm a bit in the glass. White wines should be served at 47° for the best flavor. Too much warmth can give white wines a dull taste.

Don’t pay that much attention to color if you are seeking a light wine. Both white and red wines have the same amount of alcohol. However, if you want a smoother wine, white wine is a better option. If you want a light wine, choose a Pinot Grigio or a Sauvignon Blanc.

Online discussion boards are an excellent starting point for the uninitiated. Forums are a great place to share information and learn from other wine lovers. A member of the forum could even give you advice that leads you to discover your new favorite wine.

If you are serving your wine, you need to have good wine glasses. You must use stemware that’s clean and crisp, because it really can make the wine experience more pleasurable. Cheap stemware gives off a very bad impression to your guests.

Avoid building a collection of wines that you know that you already enjoy. Stocking up is tempting but your preferences will change as you discover new wines. You may love a label now, but might hate it tomorrow. Consequently, you may find yourself saddled down with bottle after bottle of ruined or otherwise unpalatable wines.

A lot of wines make great complements to desserts. Typically, dessert wines have a sweeter taste than the wines served during the meal. Port wines are a great category to take advantage of with your dessert. For the best flavor, they should be served at around 55 degrees.

The wine’s vintage is the year the grapes were harvested. That means that a 2009 wine has grapes that were harvested that year. After the grapes were harvested, they were fermented and aged and then the bottling occurred. They won’t show up in stores for a year or two after that.

Do not allow the opinion of others to dictate your preferences. Any wine you like must be a wine that tastes good. This should be your general rule. Opt for wines that you enjoy instead of ones that others enjoy. Your friends may not be thrilled with your selection, but at least you will have more left over for your own enjoyment as a consolation.

As you read in the above article, finding the right wine for each occasion can be a difficult chore with so many kinds of bottles to choose from. Hopefully now you feel a little more comfortable when picking the perfect wine. Use the advice shared here with you the next time you’re at the wine store, and you’ll be able to make purchases more easily.