5) You can open a bottle of wine with your shoe
If you don’t have corkscrew opener and you really want to have that bottle of wine, here is what to do. Grab a shoe. Get rid of the metallic wrapping that covers the cork and place the bottle into your footwear the side should be snug against the back (don’t use a shoe with any kind of heel or one without some cushioning). Place the bottom of the shoe against a brick wall or tree to create a 90-degree angle then, while carefully holding the bottle in place, start banging gently. After a few knocks, the cork should have risen up enough for you to twist it out with your hands.
4) Not all wines with screw caps are inexpensive
Contrary to popular belief, screw caps don’t indicate the price level of a bottle. Almost all New Zealand wineries, which are considered the best producers of sauvignon blanc in the world, use screw caps. With the exception of some traditional wines, which require natural cork, almost all wines can have screw tops. The technology for screw tops on wine bottles is referred to as “Stelvin”, the inert plastic seal in the cap prevents oxidation.
3) White wines can also be made from red grape variety
Keeping the juice in contact with the grape skins of a black grape variety helps produce red wine. So, if there is no contact the juice or the wine produced from it in the end will be white wine only. The best example of this is champagne which is made of three grape varieties-pinot noir and pinot meunier both black grapes and chardonnay, a white grape.
2) The red wine headache is because of the Histamines
As much as we love the health aspect of drinking wine, many complaint of headache the day after having a glass or more. Especially true in case of red wines. It’s not just the sulfur in wine, which is to be blamed. The wines made in improper conditions, cheap, more adulteration such as residual sugar, sulfur, fining agents or higher alcohol etc. can cause headache. Foods that have been fermented or aged have higher levels of histamines such as tofu, tempeh, champagne, red wine, ketchup and aged meats. Taking anti-histamine prior to drinking may help solve the problem.
1) Five wine lingos to get you through a wine tasting
You walk into a wine tasting and feel totally out of place, these five wine terms will help you survive the session effectively. Know the 4S’s of tasting- See, Swirl, Smell and Sip. And if the tasting consists of way more than the number of glasses that you can handle, add another ‘S’ to that ‘Spit’. Pick up words such as ‘Acidity’ and ‘Tannin’. Talk about the ‘Nose’ and the ‘Palate’. End it with the ‘Finish’ and voila you have successfully finished your wine journey. Besides these it’s a good idea to learn a bit about the wine producer, the grape varieties and the region that the wine comes from.
And NOW that you have mastered the basics, it is safe to move on to ‘Vintages’.
Rojita Tiwari is an independent writer & consultant. She also runs the award -winning wine & spirits, travel and hospitality themed blog Drinks & Destinations and curates and conducts training as well as tasting sessions and events. She is a WSET certified professional listed twice as, one of the top ten woman of wine in India. Connect with her on [email protected] or tweet to her @RojitaTiwari.
