Things that I know about wine tasting that may put you off:
1. You don't get pissed. You spit the wine out after swirling it around your mouth. This is probably the big one.
2. You've gotta know when to use terms like "bouquet", "nose", "palate" and "after-taste".
3. You've gotta be able to know when a wine shows characteristics of "strawberries", "melons", "chocolate" or about 120 other wanky terms used to decribe taste.
To make it look like you know what you're doing try the following:
Use a standard tasting glass. You can get then at bottle shops. They're usually plain with a shortish stem and a deep bowl. Most importantly, they're uncoloured. If they're coloured it will affect the look of the wine, particularly white.
Pour a little wine in the glass. Just a mouthful or so.
Swirl it around the glass and hold it up to the light. Note the "tracks" it makes down the side of the glass. The tighter the tracks, the higher the alcohol content. Check the wine for colour and clarity. Swirling also releases the bouquet of the wine. Make profound comment about it.
Smell the wine. Properly. Stick your nose in the glass and breath deep. Make a profound comment about the "nose" of the wine.
Taste the wine. A big mouthful and swirl it around so it goes over all areas of your tounge. Spit it out. Make a profound comment about the "characteristics" the wine.
Drink water between every tasting to cleanse the "palate".
I don't know many of the characteristics. I generally judge a wine with the terms "I like that one" or "This one tastes like piss".
Best bet is to go to the bottle shop and memorise the description on the backs of some bottles of a few varieties. Then just spout words at random.
I applied for a job as a wine taster cos i reckon it'd be pretty bludgy. Experiance isn't nessecary but i have to demonstrate that I know what I'm doing,which I don't, and I wnt this job cos i just get pissed for free and then get payed for it.
