A question I get asked all the time: What is the proper way to taste sparkling wine? And the short answer is, the same way you taste red wine, white wines, dessert wines….any wine for that matter.
You want to become a wine expert, but don’t want to go through all the classwork and certifications. I totally get it. When I was getting certified the best advice I received was, “Just keep trying different wines.”
That’s the best way to find a good wine and the grape variety you enjoy. And the only way to do that is to taste a new wine everyday (ok, maybe not everyday, but you get the idea.)
Sparkling Wine Tasting
You know we not only go sparkling wine tasting all the time, but also host sparkling wine tasting and pairing parties as well. And when it comes time to taste sparkling wine, I always tell the guests, you can be as formal or as informal as you want. After all, it’s your experience.
The fun part about following the “formal” steps to taste sparkling wine is it gives you practice if you ever want to become certified. And on the opposite end of that is sometimes it’s nice to just enjoy a glass of wine and taste the sparkling wine for what it is, not following any formal steps.
We tend to flip flop between the two, but if you want to learn to wine taste or sparkling wine taste like a pro, there are six easy steps to follow.
First things first, if you want this handy card we use for our sparkling wine tasting experience you can download it for free. And if you just wand to follow these steps, go for it.
6 Steps to Taste Sparkling Wine
There are really six simple steps to the formal wine tasting process.
Step 1: Sight
The first step when tasting any wine is to observe the color.
That big blank spot in the middle of your card will help you with this step. Simply tilt your glass at a 45 degree angle so that the wine comes up the side of the glass. Place that over the white part of the card and observe the color of the wine.
Rosés are my most favorite to do this with to see the varying colors of pink thanks to the pinot noir and pinot meunier grapes.
When I am tasting sparkling wine, I am not only looking at the color of wine but the bubbles as well. Are they large or tiny bubbles? Are they active? Are they going up the middle of the glass or the sides of the glass?
Step 2: Swirl
Now many people think this step is only for still wines, but that is not the case actually. But don’t be too aggressive on the swirl or you will lose your bubbles.
Giving your bubbly a gentle swirl before tasting will open up the bubbly to release the aromas and, of course the flavors.
Step 3: Sniff
Now that you gave your bubbly a little swirl, it’s time to activate your sense of smell. You may smell anything from fresh fruit to citrus to cooked fruit to yeast to freshly baked bread to the elements of the earth.
I learned a very valuable lesson while doing an in depth cava tasting in Spain. When it comes to smell and taste of your bubbly, you will typically only smell and taste what your taste buds are familiar with. If you don’t eat apples or have never tried one, you would never smell or taste apples. Does that make sense?
And this part, to me, takes the most practice. An easy way to get better at identifying the aromas in wines is to literally start smelling fruits, flowers, spices, nuts, etc.
We like to take a sniff, see what we can identify and then read the bottle or do some research online to see if what aromas we can identify.
And you may hear wine wine professionals discuss things like primary aromas, secondary aromas or tertiary aromas, but if you’re just beginning, just identify every aroma you can and come back for more and we’ll sort them into categories.
Step 4: Sip
The moment we’ve all been waiting for! You finally get to take a small sip of the wine and try and identify the flavors. Of course, the flavor is everything. And there’s no right or wrong here. Just like I said above when it comes to smell, you’re going to taste the flavor characteristics that are familiar in your diet.
This is where you will really be able to identify dry wine or sweet wine. And that is based on the amount of residual sugar in the wine. We of course, have a sweetness scales to to help you discover your favorite.
But I want to ask you a question to consider: Are you really drinking a sweet wine with a higher sugar content or is it a fruity wine?
And you know I am also evaluating the types of bubbles during my sip here too. Are they dancing on my tongue or do they fall flat?
Step 5: Swallow
When you swallow your wine you may taste different flavors as it moves through the back of your mouth leaving you with an aftertaste. It might taste sweeter or fruitier. And that is all part of the experience.
The other fun thing to identify during this step is the finish. After you swallow the wine, count how long that flavor lasts in your mouth. If the flavors are gone within 2-3 seconds, that is a short finish, but if they last for 10-15 seconds that is a long finish.
Now, if you’re left with an unpleasant or burning sensation,
Step 6: Savor
The final step is to simply enjoy that sip of wine and give it a rating. This is my favorite part because this is where you identify your personal preferences and those of everyone you’re tasting with.
If you have a Bubbly Side of Life placemat (if you don’t, download it now), you’ll see 5 empty bubbly flutes in each space because there are 5 glasses in each bottle of bubbly.
Color in how many glasses of that particular bubbly you’d want to drink. Is this a one drink and move on to something else or is this something you wouldn’t even want to share the bottle because it’s just that good?
If you don’t have a Bubbly Side of Life placemat, make a note on how well you like that particular sparkling wine. Trust me when I say it will help in the end when you want to purchase a bottle of bubbly.
What’s your favorite way to taste sparkling wine? Formal or informal?
Type of Glass
One thing to consider during this sparkling wine tasting is the type of glass you’re using.
And trust me when I say I understand the struggle. While I love a tulip glass the best for enjoying a glass of champagne, it’s really hard to find a large quantity and a smaller size to make the 2 oz pour actually seem substantial.
The tulip glass will give you the best experience, but if you want to taste these side by side (which is my favorite way), a champagne flute is a great way to serve up a number of wines at one time, not take up too much space and be able to compare and contrast each of the sparkling wines.
Want to learn more about choosing the perfect glassware every time, check out this post.
Ideal Serving Temperature
When creating the sparkling wine tasting experience in a side by side manner, it’s important to recognize that these sparkling wines will be sitting out and you definitely want them at the ideal serving temperature for the great experience.
And you’re probably wondering what the ideal serving temperature for sparkling wine is and that is 41-50 degrees Fahrenheit.
To do this, I chill the bottles in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours. Then about 20-30 minutes before I am going to pop the bottles, I put them into the freezer. This way, once I pour them and they’re sitting on the table in room temperature, they will drop to the ideal serving temperature.
Now you can always wait and pour each glass one at a time removing it from the ice bucket or chiller right before you pop and pour.
Either way works great, when I am doing a side by side tasting, I just love to be able to revisit as I taste down the line.
Final Tip
If this is your first time hosting a wine tasting experience remember one thing: HAVE FUN! I mean, you’re popping bubbly and enjoying good company. It doesn’t get better than that.
Don’t get wrapped up in wine tasting terms or following a strict systematic approach…unless you want to. This should be no pressure and all fun!
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