beginner · Wine School
How to Taste Wine
A step-by-step method for tasting wine like a professional — look, smell, taste, and assess.
Professional tasting follows a simple, repeatable method: Look, Smell, Taste, and then reflect. Each step gathers information.
Look at the wine against a white background — its clarity, depth and colour hint at age, grape and body. Swirl to release aromas, then smell. Note fruit, floral, herbal, spice or earthy characters.
Sip, and let the wine coat your palate. Assess sweetness, acidity, tannin, body and alcohol. Finally, judge balance, length, and how the wine finishes.
Work the senses in order
Sight, then smell, then taste. Writing one short note for each forces you to notice more.
Compare to learn
Tasting wines side by side — or the same grape from two regions — is the fastest way to build your palate.