Whenever you come across fertile wine country, wine tasting is often one of the most rewarding experiences available.  If you long to walk through the vineyards, admiring the grapevines and picturesque backdrop wine glass in hand, take a moment to appreciate the subtle beauty of wine.

1.  Look at the wine. Tilting the glass a bit can make it easier to see the way the color changes from the center to the edges.  White wines become darker as they age.  Red wines lose their color and turn brownish or muddy.

2.  Swirl the wine in your glass.  This allows some oxygen into the wine which will help it open up, releasing its aromas.

3.  Note the wine’s viscosity – how slowly it runs  back down the sides of the glass while you are swirling.  More viscous wines are said to have “legs”, and are likely to contain higher levels of alcohol.

4.  Sniff the wine deeply. Try to describe to yourself what you smell.

5.  Take a sip of wine, but do not swallow yet.  Roll the wine around in your mouth, “chew” it,  exposing it to all of your taste buds and breathing through it  as you do.

6.  Take another sip of the wine, now swallow it.

7.  Note the aftertaste when you swallow.  How long does it last? Do you like the taste?  What flavors do you taste, try to describe them to yourself.

8. Remember what you experienced, and build on that experience.

9.Try pairing wines with different foods and note how they enhance or diminish the flavors of the wine.  Pair red wine with different cheeses, meat, good quality chocolate and berries.  With white wine, pair apples, pears and citrus fruits.  Most importantly, a wine should complement the food.

Drinking wine is easy… just tilt the glass and swallow.  Tasting wine is more of an experience.  You need keen concentration, a good memory and a vivid imagination, and in the end you will learn to love and appreciate wine.  That is why wine lovers learn to really taste.  Tasting the wine in your glass adds an extra dimension and becomes a celebration of life.

Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/wines-and-spirits-articles/the-way-to-taste-wine-1083014.html

It has been almost one year when I visited the small village on my way from Antibes to Arles. I just can´t help myself and to enjoy the opportunity to see the village which name is magic to wine lovers all around the world. Chateauneuf-du-Pape.

My first stop was the Brotte Wine Museum which was established in 1972 by Maison Brotte. The museum is located on the main road when you arrive to the village.

Maison Brotte was founded in 1931 by Charles Brotte and has been managed already by three generations of Brotte family. After succesful expansion in 1990s nowadays Brotte sells about 1.4 million bottles per year.

The museum which was reconstructed in year 2000 covers surface area of 500 m2. The most attractive exhibits you should not miss are the 4,000 liter wine barrel from 14th century and wood wine press dated back to 16th century.

The exhibition splits into four parts:

• information about French concept of „Appellation d’Origine Controlée“ which guarantee the wine origins and of course its quality,
• information about the land, its magic which helps to save the sunshine and warms up the vineyards during the nights,
• section about the man and his hard work that enables to get the spirit of the country and feeling of hundreds years history in the wine from this region,
• information about grape varieties which can be used.

Interesting part of the museum is the glass wall, behind it you can see the bottling and packaging line of the Maison Brotte.

The whole tour finishes in wine cellar where you can taste the wines from Maison Brotte production and of course you can buy the bottle(s) as souvenir at very good prices. The offer of the wines is not limited to wines from Chateauneuf-du-Pape but you can also buy Brotte’ s wines from other regions.

When you visit Provence, don’t miss your chance to see this wonderful museum with very friendly staff.

If you want to know more about Chateauneuf-du-Pape, generally French wines or you are planing wine tour in Provence or other French wine region, visit our website.

Miroslav Kucera is author of site about French wine www.aboutfrenchwine.com.

Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/wines-and-spirits-articles/the-best-wine-museum-at-chateauneufdupape-1083259.html

You can make up to 10 gallons of grape wine from home using different types of grapes or any other kind of fruit. You can find most of the winemaking supplies from the grocery store and the type of fruit you use will determine the type of wine that eventually come out of your home venture. Here are the steps that you can follow to make a mild to strong wine right from your home.

Get A Wine Making Recipe: Step # 1

You can find a simple wine making recipe that has already been tried and that is guaranteed to give you good results. If you go wrong here, your wine might come out cloudy and tasting like vinegar. You may also have to look for a wine making kit to make life easier.

Prep the Wine Making ingredients: Step # 2

You can now prepare the grapes or any other fruit that you want to use to make homemade wine. You will need to remove all the large pits. You can cut into half any large fruits and slit th small ones to allow fermentation right inside the fruits or in this case grapes. Try to cut down the other small ingredients like the raisins and expose the surfaces of all other ingredients to allow them to be useful in the process. You can start with the easier types of fruits before going to those that require more specific handling.

Stir the Homemade Wine Mixture: Step # 3

You can mix all the ingredients in the primary fermentation container that you have prepared and stir them well. At this point, you have not added the yeast yet. You can now collect all the pulp in the fermentation bag that comes with the kit and submerge it into the wine making mixture.

Add Water To Main Fermenting Wine Container: Step # 4

You can now add water to the main fermenting container up to the 10 gallon mark and add some sodium bisulfate tablets. Follow the directions on the label to know the exact amount required. The sodium bisulphite tablets are for killing off bacteria and mould. You could therefore not add yeast at this point yet as yeast bacteria would be killed off too.

Let the Home Wine and Sterilize it Over 24 Hours: Step # 5

The bisulphite compound you had added is to sterilize the mixture. The sulfur gas that will be produced by the bisulphite cleans the grape or fruit juice and is gone in 24 hrs. Cover the fermenter with a cheese filtering cloth and let it stay for 24 hours. You can now add yeast by sprinkling it over the surface of the juice. Cover the container with a piece of cloth for 7 days.

Remove the Homemade Wine Ingredients Bag And Siphon: Step # 6

You can now remove the bag and press off all the juice back into the wine and throw away the bag. You can now empty the wine into a secondary container making sure to leave enough sediment in the wine. You may need to add some water to return the wine back to 10 gallons.

Secondary Wine Fermentation and Bottling: Step # 7

Now put it in an air tight condition and fill it halfway with water. Now you have the half way fermented wine with a lot of sediment in it. Siphon the half done wine and remove all the sediment. Fill it half way with water and let it ferment again for 6 weeks until it is completely clear. Add some bisulphite according to the recipe you are using and you can now bottle your wine.

Please read more details on the best way to making my own wine at home here: How to make your own Wine at Home, Ingredients, supplies and Kits

Learn tips on how to make your own wine at home in 7 weeks Home Wine Making Equipment,Help, Supplies and Course

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