Tasting Room Etiquitte

The relatives will be home over the holidays:  It is a perfect time to visit a local tasting room and show off our amazing wines.  

Whether you are visiting one of over 30-plus area wineries or one of the more than 425 across the state, your day and that of your fellow wine lovers will be enhanced if you consider just a few points of "etiquette.’ 

Heavy perfumes and colognes: Don’t wear them. They will dull your enjoyment of the wine – and possibly offend others in the room.     

Dump buckets: Use them.  Pour excess wine from your glass into a container provided.  While it may be appropriate to ‘spit,’ if you are so inclined, ask for a small individual cup rather than lean over the community dumpster on the winery tasting counter.  

Getting Tipsy:  Pace yourself and consume reasonably and/OR bring along a designated driver.  But in any case, sip responsibly.  No one appreciates an overbearing, loud patron.  [Remember seeing the drunken Miles in ‘Sideways?’] 

Scarfing up food samples: Appetizers offered during the wine trail programs or at a tasting bar are generally just light bites, designed to complement the wines served and are not meant to replace dinner. 

Screaming kids: Wineries are all family owned, long drawn-out discussions about the nuances of wine appreciation will make the best-behaved children restless.  If you bring the kids, have items in hand to keep them amused.   

Petty pilfering: Lovely wineglasses with thin bowls and a ‘cut’ rim make wine tasting more enjoyable.  Some wineries use especially elegant glasses on purpose.  There is a difference when wine is offered into appropriate stemware [or stemless ones.]  But the next time you visit, if glassware disappears in droves, wineries might feel they need to use either less expensive discount store varieties, to resort to plastic [egad!!!] or raise their prices. 

Chewing gum: Leave it at home.  Those intense flavors and aromas will mask even the most complex wines and totally ruin your experience.

And some ‘dos’ to think about before you approach the tasting bar: Is this your favorite place, and you will simply order that Riesling, which is always consistent and great?  Or are you in the mood to explore?  If the latter is the case, ask the server for a light white, perhaps an off-dry variety to try.  Perhaps Grüner Veltliner or Sauvignon Blanc might be available.  Ditto if you drink Chambourcin:   consider trying a red blend or maybe a Cabernet Franc. 

If you are new to wine, or this is your first time at a new winery, share with the server that you prefer either red wines or white wines, and whether or not sweet or dry styles are preferred. It will help guide them to something you will truly enjoy..Then continue the conversation to discover other labels that would be fun to try. Or purchase an inexpensive tasting experience.  Finally, you will have found the best wines for your glass or bottle purchase. 

But of all the ‘rules,’ the most important ones are to enjoy the conversations around you, relax with family, make new friends, learn a little, and have fun in the process.