The Taste For Wine

Hi Puzzlers,

Do you remember your first glass or taste of wine? Ah, what memories. The encouragement you got from your friends to just “TRY IT.” The thinking to yourself it looks good, and lots of people like it, why not give it a try. You gaze at the glass and the beautiful dark red liquid being poured into it by your server. With eager anticipation you bring the glass to your lips and let the liquid flow into your mouth. The flavor of tannins hits you first followed by the alcohol, then if you are like most young people you think, “This tastes AWFUL!” Oh God! What have I done, I’ve just wasted $3.75 and I have to swallow this stuff. You vow, “NEVER AGAIN!” But somehow ten years later your ordering it and you like it! What happened? Did growing older sever my taste buds? Was it osmosis from being married to a red wine loving Italian? How did I get here? I had to find out.

It turns out that most Americans go through what is called wine taste progression. Many believe this is due to our cultures natural inclination to serve our youngsters soda and juice and never exposing them to alcohol in their youth. Europeans on the other hand, serve small amounts of wine, sometime mixed with water, to their children. So, as adults most Americans who like wine, have gone through this wine taste progression to develop the taste for wine.

The progression starts with the sweet and chilled stuff. You remember that type of wine that was sweet, light and served cold. Often it came in beer sized bottles you could buy in a four pack. The really good stuff had a little spritz or carbonation in them. Some Blush and most Fruit wines fall into this category as well. But, soon these little buggers begin to taste too sweet and you are moving on to the next step; the semi-dry and chilled.

Semi-dry wines are served chilled and pair well with some food. These wines have a slight sweet taste, but are not as sweet as the first group, and are balanced by a higher acidity. Most German and several Blush wines come from this group. After enjoying wines from this group for awhile the palette shifts again and no longer prefers sweetness in wine and you are off to the next group: Dry white wine served chilled.

This group of wine includes Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio and the most popular of the bunch, Chardonnay. These wines pair well with chicken and seafood. The palette can take several years to develop in this stage before it is ready to move to the next group, light reds.

This group includes wines such as Beaujolais and inexpensive Pinots Noirs. These wines have a stronger flavor than their white counterparts, and are served lightly chilled. Because of their higher acidity level, they are an excellent choice to serve with fish and chicken. Once the taste for tannins develops it is on to the next group; dry rich reds.

Dry, rich reds have higher levels of tannins and should be served at a cellar temperature of approximately 65 degree Fahrenheit. Allow this wine to warm in the glass. The most popular grapes in this group are the Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.

The final group is the dry complex wines. They come from the same group as above but are at the peak of perfection, requiring decanting before being served and a bigger wallet for buying. I have a hard time spending that much money on wine, so we share a bottle and the cost, once a year, with our wine buddies. This habit led us to a wonderful bottle of 2005 Rudd. It was truly worth every penny, and because you only get one glass you are forced to savor it.

Caution, puzzling and wine consumption can result in missing pieces!

Happy Puzzling!