Five Reasons to Taste Wine with a Pro

Ever wondered why some wines have leathery aromas while others some cinnamon notes? Or why some Chardonnay’s are said to be “buttery” while others “crisp and linear”? And do organic wines taste different from non-organic wines?

When it comes to wine tasting, the best people to taste with are the professionals. Why? Because they are in contact with this beverage every single day. And normally, they taste the wines from infancy to maturity giving them insight into the development and future of the wine. If that doesn’t convince you, here are the top five reasons why you should taste wines with a pro:

1. Key aromas, flavors and textures all provide subtle clues about the grape, the fermentation process and maturation processes. Tasting with a professional will help you distinguish between primary (grape), secondary (fermentation), or tertiary (aging) aromas of a wine.
2. You’re at a restaurant and you’re convinced there’s something off about that wine you just ordered, but your server seems to deny it. We’ve all been there and wish we knew exactly what it was. When you taste with a professional, they point out faults in wine like TCA (corked wine), brettanomyces, or volatile acidity and help you understand what wine faults actually smell and taste like.
3. The world of wine is a passionate one. There is an endless debate between organic and biodynamic, natural and conventional wines. As you can imagine, everyone has an opinion which they can back up with some study or critic note to show this or that. Tasting with a pro will help bust myths about all these categories and let you taste for yourself between a good wine and a bad wine regardless of the category.
4. What’s up with that silly donkey on the label? Or why does your Portuguese wine say ‘field blend’? When you taste with a pro, they know their wines inside out, including the stories behind each wine, how the vintage year affected the wine, the label and the people who make them.
5. And finally, wine tasting with a pro will ultimately help you determine the wines you like and those you don’t so that you’re not spending money on wines that will disappoint or buying bottles solely based on a well-known brand or that wine with the sexy label (we’re all guilty of it).

Now, are you ready to take a deep dive into wine tasting with a wine pro?

Catavino offers 3 different wine tastings in Porto at the LAB:

Intro, Organic and Private, (6) different Portuguese wines to show you a range of styles and tastes. Ryan can help you take your wine tasting to the next level! We can’t wait for you to join us!