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I love teaching people how to swirl.
It’s a hack that makes you look legit and without spending a dime, actually makes your wine taste better. I do it with beverages of all kinds, oftentimes unknowingly and against my will, as a sort of nervous tick at parties or bars or coffee shops or with my water bottle at the gym. My wrists love to swirl, and I have no control anymore. And maybe that’s okay.
How we swirl:
It’s all in the wrist.
Holding your glass by the stem, move your wrist in small, controlled circles.
Watch as the wine climbs up and drips down the sides of the glass like a wave.
Smell the wine.
It doesn’t have to last a long time or be dramatic in any way. It can be a few seconds, a quickie little flick of the wrist, just to let the wine give you everything it’s got.
Why we swirl:
We swirl to release all the aromatic compounds in the wine. Swirling gently spreads the wine around the bowl of the glass, creating more surface area and pulling a bit of oxygen into the wine. That movement helps those aromas lift out of the glass. It exposes the wine to oxygen and oxygen releases the aromatics.
Wine glasses have curved sides (think like bowls, not like coffee cups) so that the shape of the glass directs all those aromatics directly into your nose.
Swirling increases the aromatic intensity of the wine. This means it makes the smell stronger. We love this! Most of the pleasure from wine comes from the smell, so increasing the smell is a lovely way to increase pleasure.
Can it look sexy? Yes.
Can it look pretentious? Yes.
Can it look absurd? Yes.
Can you swirl too much?
Yes, but it’s hard.
Much like decanting, for 99/100 wines, the wine won’t get worse with over-decanting or over-swirling. The 1/100 exception to the rule is wines that are really old and delicate. If you’re drinking Barolo from 1960, do not decant and swirl with discretion. Anything else, you’re good to swirl to your heart’s content.
Go ahead, try it.
For first timers, 3 suggestions:
Smell the wine without swirling. Then swirl and feel the difference for yourself.
Keep the base of the glass on the table in front of you. Move the base of the glass in a circular motion, keeping it flat on the table. Once you get comfortable with this, lift the glass off the table and practice free-solo style.
Only fill your glass with 2-3 ounces of wine to practice. A wine glass with 6 full ounces of wine is more likely to splash out of the glass.
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