With Italian wines currently experiencing a boom in popularity on the international level that is hitherto unknown in the grand history of the industry, the efforts to educate those outside of Italy as to the best ways to enjoy the wine are most definitely underway.
While it is very unfair to make a blanket assumption that those outside of Italy don’t understand the best ways to enjoy their wine, especially as much of what follows really depends as much on the individual’s tastes, there is nothing wrong with looking at a few ways that may help people get the most out of their drink.
What follows is an examination of various things you might try to truly get the most out of your bottle of wine. After all, there is no point having a glass of the best Italian wine if you simply gulp it down without appreciating the many subtle joys that it can bring.
Visit A Vineyard
We bet you thought that we were going to talk solely about drinking wine here? While that will certainly be a focus later on, we feel it is extremely important to stress just how crucial it is that the drinker appreciates just how much work has gone into the wine they are drinking.
Every wine, from the most famous through to the local productions, has been created with love and care. Winemakers spend their entire lives trying to find that perfect balance of ingredients and productions to create the absolute best product that they possibly can, so it is important to show appreciate for the artistry that goes into their work.
While we appreciate that visiting a vineyard isn’t exactly easy to do for those who don’t live near to one, we feel that is an excellent way of finding out just how much goes into the creation of your favourite vintage. If you ever get the chance, do spend a little time wandering around and speaking to the people who make your wine.
Don’t Mix With Other Drinks
In recent years, especially in countries like the USA and the United Kingdom, it has become somewhat popular to make cocktails using various kinds of wine. Prosecco is often a favoured ingredient, due to the fact that it is light and apparently mixes well with other drinks.
However, there are those in Italian wine culture who believe that such practices show a certain level of disrespect to the work that has gone into creating such an excellent wine. Winemakers spend an enormous amount of time growing their grapes and tweaking their production methods in an effort to create a perfectly balanced wine, which is somewhat ruined when that balance is thrown out by adding another drink.
We are not saying that you should never experiment, as many of these cocktails are delightful drinks in their own right. However, try to take a little bit of time to appreciate the wine that has been used in the cocktail on its own to truly get an idea of the qualities it brings to the table.
Enjoy Company
Any Italian will tell you that a good wine can be enjoyed along but a truly great wine must be shared with your nearest and dearest. Good company can make absolutely any wine taste even better, plus it is an excellent conversation starter as you can spend hours discovering what people enjoy and don’t enjoy about their drink.
This is why wine is such a popular fixture at dinner parties and other celebrations. By sharing your love of wine with more people you not only have yet another reason to be with those who are closest to you, but you also present them with the opportunity to share in something that you truly love.
Sharing is one of the most wonderful things that any person can do in this world and your wine will taste all the better for being enjoyed by other people in addition to yourself.
Research
There is a temptation amongst the less-informed to assume that the quality of a wine is always reflected in the price tag. While it is usually true that any wine carrying a higher price tag will be of a high quality, it is not the case that wines purchased for a little less money will be lower in quality.
Remember that every winemaker pours their heart and soul into their wine, and each is imbued with just a touch of their personality. Couple this with the fact that everybody has their own individual tastes and there is plenty of reason to explore vintages that don’t carry the larger price tag but certainly hold their own in terms of the quality that they provide.
Do a little research before making your decision and look to see what others are saying about the wine. Speaking to professional sommeliers is a particularly useful experience, as their educated tongues may expose you to a world of wines that you may otherwise have never had the chance to discover.
Drink Slowly
There is something of a drinking culture in some countries where much of the aim is to experience the effects of the alcohol, rather than enjoy the textures and complexities of the drink itself. While this is perfectly fine, and again comes down to individual preferences, to truly experience a great Italian wine you must take the time to examine its properties.
Drink your wine slowly and truly get a feel for the work that has gone into creating it. All wines contains notes and aromas that may end up going undetected if you simply guzzle it down as quickly as possible, so take a little time to discover everything that the drink has to offer.
This way you will not only find out which wines you truly enjoy, but you can get ideas about where you can use them and what foods they would combine well with. Furthermore, it can make you something of an authority on the subject and places you in a position to recommend wines based on your friends’ tastes.
