Learn

Acidity is one of the main components of structure, which is the "backbone" or "architecture" of a wine. Use S.T.A.A.F. as an acronym to help remember the components of structure:  Sugar Presence Tannins Acidity Alcohol Fruitiness   Why is acidity in wine important? Acidity gives wines a certain liveliness. Snappy, zippy, fresh, electric energy. It provides a thirst-quenching character that other components don't. We mentioned backbone earlier. A wine without sufficient acidity doesn't have one. It's considered "flat" or "flabby" or quite simply, dull. There's no electricity dancing on your palate. No tartness making your mouth water. Acid is a key component to the foundation...

"Are any of the wines dry?" "Yes. Literally every single one on the list." This guest-interaction is my biggest pet peeve in all of my years of working the restaurant floor. NOBODY understands what it means for a wine to be considered dry (or sweet). Which is completely fine. There's countless fundamental things in other industries that I am out to lunch about.  I think the most common misconception in wine is when folks confuse fruitiness for sweetness. A wine may smell sweet because it's so fruity, but in fac,t not have any sugar in it at all. Most people played "slap...

   What are tannins? Tannins = Natural polyphenols derived from plants, seeds, bark, wood, leaves, and fruit skins. Polyphenols = complex bonds of oxygen and hydrogen. Idk. Science, man. Essentially, tannins are microscopic solid pieces of plants... They feel astringent and grippy on the palate, particularly on your gums, inside of your cheeks, and tongue. Tannins taste bitter, but think good bitter, like dark chocolate or espresso. So if a wine (particularly red wine) tastes bitter, feels grippy in your mouth, and is drying out your palate, odds are that the wine is high in tannins. If you cannot pinpoint what...

The days are getting longer, the nights shorter, and the weather finally warmer? What a strange winter it has been. The Rocky Mountain West has barely received any snow, while the winter storms in the North East won't stop! Those East Coast skiers finally get to brag about something! And I think I speak for everyone when I say that we're ready for some nice weather! But before we start popping bottles of rose and breaking out the picnic blankets, we might as well savor some hardy reds that warm the soul. As sick of winter as we might be,...