Savoring.
Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.
~ Ps. 34:8
There are a handful of wines whose aromas are so powerful, so delicious and tantalizing, that I am almost as content to smell them as to taste them. Almost.
I’m sure you’ve run across the basics of tasting: See. Swirl. Smell. Sip. We might add in “savor” at the end. It really is more than being a wine snob; it’s part of experiencing the wine in its full glory. It’s full potential. To skip all the steps and launch straight into drinking the wine is to miss its sacred character. And sadly, there are far too many times we drink…and eat…and live our lives unconsciously, oblivious to the miracles all around. The miracle of sand and sun, vine and vintner, time and space. It’s not for nothing that Jesus’ first miracle was the making of wine! Seriously.
So next time you open a bottle for dinner (or lunch…or breakfast… no judgment ;), transform your experience into a spiritual practice. Try these steps:
Pour the bottle into a carafe. If you don’t have an official wine carafe, just use a pitcher. The interaction between wine and air as you pour it oxygenates the wine and unlocks its flavor potential. This is often true even with inexpensive wines.
Pour a small amount from the carafe into your glass. Use a wine glass with a large bowl that allows you to swirl without sloshing. Hold the glass up to a bright background and look at the colors. Is it dense and opaque…or light and translucent? Is it bright red…or deep purple…or a bit brownish around the edges (typical of an aged wine)? These are all clues to its provenance, varietal, and flavor profile.
Smell the glass while it’s still…and then swirl the wine and smell again. How does the aroma change? Do you smell more earth or fruit? Is the earth aroma more wet, musty, forest floor…or dry, leathery, and smoky? Is the fruit more reminiscent of raspberries, cherries, blueberries, or blackberries? Do you get any baking spices on the nose? Vanilla? Cedar? Chocolate? Licorice?
Draw in a large mouthful and hold it there while your senses revel in the multitude of flavors. Move the wine around in your mouth with a “chewing” motion to get every taste bud in on the action. Create a small opening with your lips to draw in some air across the wine. Now…what do you taste? What does it remind you of? Candy apples? Lemon sorbet? Blueberry pie? Does it taste the same as it smelled, or does one element really jump to the fore on the palate? Is it complex or simple? Does the taste linger or drop off? More dry or sweet? Do you get any tingling sensation from the tannins (from a Cabernet) or buttery flavors from the malolactic acid (from a Chardonnay)?
And finally, what do you like about it? What do you not like so much? What food do you think it might pair well with (and we’ll talk more about that great topic later!)?
I hope this inspires you to enter or deepen your experience with the mystery that is wine… and, even more, deepen your experience with the mystery that is life.
L’Chaim! To life!