How do you taste wine?

Tasting means taking the time to look, smell and taste. You don’t need to be an expert: a few steps are enough to enjoy every glass more.

The three steps

1. The eye

Tilt the glass against a white background. The colour tells you about the grape and the age: a young white is pale, often with green hints, and turns golden with time; a young red shows purple hints, which move towards brick as it ages.

2. The nose

Smell first without swirling: these are the most delicate aromas. Then swirl the wine in the glass to release the others: fruit, flowers, spices, oaky or mineral notes.

3. The palate

Take a small sip and move it around your mouth. Notice the attack, the balance between freshness, alcohol and tannins, then the length: how long the aromas linger once the wine is swallowed.

The right glass, the right gesture

A tulip-shaped stemmed glass, filled to one third, concentrates the aromas. Hold it by the stem so as not to warm the wine. Between two wines, a little water and a piece of plain bread reset the palate.

Learn from those who make it

The easiest way to learn is to taste at the estate, with the people who make the wine: our tasting cellars at Château Gilbert & Gaillard, in Saint-Chinian, and Château de Thésée, in Touraine, welcome you.