Bottle Service - Wine Tasting Tips

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In today's column of Bottle Service, I offer some tips and suggestions on how to get the most of your wine tasting experience.

During my early days of wine education, I would attend as many trade and public tastings as I could. These tastings gave me access to so many different types of wine, especially pricier or esoteric selections that I could not afford to purchase on my own. I would also interview winemakers, importers and distributors and use their feedback to bolster my knowledge and understanding of the subject.

Wine tastings can also be a huge social event which is fine but if you want to use them strictly for education, you have to put your blinders on. I would often get sucked into a conversation with a colleague and 30 minutes would roll by and I would find myself standing in the same spot holding an empty glass of wine. Sure, I was all caught up with what was going on in Suzie Q's world but I hadn't tried anything. The great and legendary Master Sommelier Larry Stone gave me a superb tip on how to deal with this. When you attend a tasting, decide what your focus is going to be for that day. Perhaps you want to learn more about Sauvignon Blanc so make that your mission. Gather 3-4 examples from across the globe - Loire Valley, New Zealand, California, Bordeaux, etc. and then find a quiet corner and really concentrate on the stylistic difference between the various regions. If you don't do anything else that day, at least you walk away with a better understanding of Sauvignon Blanc.

And speaking of wine tastings, if you're a Chicagoan looking to put these tips to good use and you're fan of Pinot Noir, there's a big Pinot Noir festival happening this weekend at Navy Pier. Click here for tickets and more information.