How To Taste Wine Like A Sommelier: 5 Weird Tricks That Work

Okay, some people think sommeliers are the end-all to beat-all about wine; others think they're just a bunch of snotty people in dark suits. Regardless of which side you fall, sommeliers have spent a considerable amount of time thinking, drinking, and studying wine, so they know a thing or two, or three, about wine. Although most would agree, some of their behavior around wine is downright strange. There is a method to the strangeness as we're about to find out.

1. Staring Blankly At The Glass (or what looks to be blankly)

What we take for a blank look, sommeliers are actually evaluating what's in the glass. You can tell a lot about a wine by just looking at it. The age of the wine, whether the wine has been oaked (i.e., oak was used in the processing of the wine – this is more prevalent with white wine), and how much alcohol is in the wine (by noting how the wine coats the inside of the glass). So that's not a dumb look, it's a deductive look.

2. Smelling the wine

Ever watch a dog take a sniff of something? They don't take in great big snorts of air; they take in rapid, brief sniffs that give them a lot more information about what they're smelling. Try this right now: Take a glass of liquid. Part your lips slightly and then put your nose over the glass and take two short, rapid inhales –That's what sommeliers do and look slightly crazy doing it.

Your nose can tell you a whole lot about wine without taking a sip: whether the wine is flawed, old, young, fruity, spicy, and so on. In fact, smelling your wine before you taste it is like getting a preview of coming attractions. The taste of the wine mostly (although not always) reflects what you detect through your nose; if you smell blackberries and cherries, chances are that those fruits will be detectable in the wine.

3. Swirl, Swirl, Swirl

Okay, a lot of people get really irritated by this behavior – watching grown people play with their food – but there are really good reasons why swirling wine in a glass is something you should do, and not just to look cool. To get a little geeky, wine has stuff called esters, which are organic compounds that are formed during fermentation. These are the guys who are responsible for the different fruity flavors and floral aromas in wine. (Think lemon zest or peach pits with some types of white wine.) Swirling introduces air into the wine, releasing the esters, kind of like releasing the hounds. The more swirling, the more air is introduced into the wine, and the more apparent the different aromas of the wine. So it's a good thing.

4. Spitting Like Your Life Depended on It

One of the first things you learn in an introductory wine class is how to spit. Okay, this one grosses out a lot of people, but there are ways to spit discreetly, and it is achievable if you practice a lot. You spit, for obvious reasons. If you are not careful, you can rack up a lot of wine just during one casual tasting. Multiply that by 3 or 4 separate tastings, and you are looking at a lot of wine being imbibed in a very short period of time. Not a great equation.

Sommeliers spit because it keeps their palates clear and minds focused. I always recommend using a spit cup when planning a wine tasting day; most wineries provide all kinds of spit buckets. It helps keep one focused and avoids those unintended wine purchases you tend to make after a long day of tasting wine.

5. Savoring Like A Blowfish

You see some sommeliers resembling blowfish after they take a sip of wine; cheeks puffed out, and loud swishing of the wine in their mouths. Again, there are practical reasons for this behavior – basically, they are evaluating the wine's finish (i.e., how long the taste lingers) to start, but they are essentially letting the wine reveal its secrets – that's the fun part. So, don't forget to enjoy the wine.

Hopefully, this demystifies some strange stuff! You may think that it's still a bunch of malarkey, but try them out the next time you're sipping—and let the wine do the talking.

🍷 Stay tuned for more tasting tips, pairing advice, and travel-worthy wine experiences.