1. How much of a wine do you need to drink to get an idea of what it is really like? 1 oz, 2 ozs, a glass, half a bottle?

2. How often do you like something at a retail tasting and then don’t like it once you get it home, if ever?



I am aware of air time, temp, mood etc. This is a quantity and frequency question.

3 sips

2 oz is a good pour for both nose and taste. 1 oz is very doable but not quiet as easy. If I am really perplexed or intrigued by a wine (as in I am trying to figure out how much to buy) I will ask for another taste. The fine line at a retail tasting is to set yourself apart as someone who is actually a buyer and not just someone who is out trying to taste everything and get a buzz and not buy anything.

I have noticed that once I put my "buying cap" on and start putting together a six pack or a case most people are more than willing to help me make my decision.

Did you go to a tasting with a bunch of short pours and no one willing to show you a wine twice?

CD

2 oz is fine for me. If I feel the person pouring is too "cheap", I normally dump the wine and go on, possibly to the next table or home. I never buy if I don't feel the situation is sufficiently allowing me to get a real impression of the wine.

It has happened to me that I got something home from a tasting that I didn't like as much as when tasting it. I normally blame it on the nice people that made the tasting experience extraordinary .

If you're tasting a number of wines, you want the minimum to get an idea of what you're tasting. For me, that's three sips. If you need a bit more, ask for it. Even if you're spitting, too much of each wine will result in palate fatigue sooner.

I hate it when the tasters won't let me swish the glass with the new wine first then pour me another.

Surprisingly to me, the reps for the more expensive bottles are nicer about it.

The smallest sip i've ever gotten was a Krug free tasting. Each pour was just enuf to get one tiny sip. Kinda ruined it tho because all the bubbles dispersed in the glass before i got to sip

I can usually get the job done with a 2 oz pour. I rarely bring a wine home and later disappointed.

Yes spo

quote:

Originally posted by Board-O:
If you're tasting a number of wines, you want the minimum to get an idea of what you're tasting. For me, that's three sips. If you need a bit more, ask for it. Even if you're spitting, too much of each wine will result in palate fatigue sooner.

I totally agree, but I'd rather dump the rest than not having enough to taste it.

I find that having about 2 oz is good for me. Like Cal-Duck, I always ask for more if I feel like I need it. Usually they are happy to pour, unless they are short on bottles.

On a similar note, do you all bring your own glasses to these tastings or use the ones provided by the retailer?

1.5 oz is ideal for me. This is about an inch high in a standard 15oz red wine glass.

I believe Virginia law limits tasting pours to 1 oz. I get frustrated when vendors pour so little that all I can taste is alcohol. I wonder if they realize how bad their wines show with such a small pour.

I used to buy a lot of Australian shiraz based on 1 oz pours in small plastic cups. I stopped doing that because more times than not I was disappointed with the wine when having it at home.

1-1.5 oz seems sufficent for me. One or two decent snif-swish-sip-swallows. BTW, do your retailers typically taste in plastic cups or glass? I certainly prefer the latter and, if plastic, despise the little specimen cups sometimes offered....