New York Etiquette Guide

Wine Etiquette Tips: What to look for when selecting wine

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

by Meghan Keneally

Sommeliers study for years to truly understand the nuanced differences between each sniff and sip of the worlds’ wines, but by learning a handful of key facts, you will be able to impress while helping to pick the wine at a business dinner. By taking general drinking etiquette and business etiquette into account, as well as some simple rules about pairing food with wine, you will be able to appear vaguely knowledgeable about the delicacy during a fancy dinner. 

Being appropriate when it comes to alcohol:

Dinners with clients are seen as opportunities to both thank a company for their business, but also to charm them into continuing your working relationship. As a result, it is important to practice proper business dining etiquette while ‘wining and dining’ clients. Wine has long been associated with the higher classes of society, but by taking the time to know both what types of wine you like and what wines are popular, you will be able to show that you have a grasp on the field. 

When it comes to the price point, that depends both on the clients that you are trying to impress (and how much they are worth) and your expense account. While a pricier pick does leave an impression, you can easily show your skills by choosing the appropriate type of wine for the meal. 

 

Picking perfect pairings:

Depending on the formality of the restaurant and the occasion, diners will typically either order one or two types of wine for one meal. If going for only one, white wine is probably the safest bet since it works for appetizers, main courses with either fish or fowl, and desserts. Red wines are best suited for heartier game or steak dishes. 

If you asked a trained professional to divide white wines into categories, they could write you a dissertation. The crudest version divides whites into groups of either dry whites (Pinot Grigio, Sauvignon Blanc, or Chardonnay) or sweet whites (Reisling, dessert wines like Marsala or Champagne). 

 

Talking the talk and the Three W’s

With wine tasting courses making frequent appearances on group-sponsored coupon sites, many average diners are learning more about what they are drinking, and, as a result, have started using the wine vocabulary words that were once left solely for sommeliers. If a conversation about the wine selection begins at your business dinner, there are a few keywords that you can drop to describe your thoughts on the wine. 

Body, degree of delicacy, and dryness are all terms used to describe the taste of the wine when it is in your mouth. If it has a bold flavor it can be described as being full-bodied, or if is more muted and temperate, perhaps the wine is delicate and dry. The aftertaste left by a wine after it is swallowed is called the finish, and higher quality wines tend to have a longer-lasting finish. If you want to get particularly technical, you can mention the complexity or bouquet of the flavors of the wine. Similarly, the acidity and balance are ways to describe the ‘bite’ (or lack-there-of) in a sip. 

The basics of selecting wine, however, are widdled down to the three W’s: The Where (which is known as the region of the wine), The When (the vintage of a wine is the year in which it was produced), and The What  (the type of wine- Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc- describes the type of grape used).