{"id":1074,"date":"2018-10-31T13:39:12","date_gmt":"2018-10-31T13:39:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/powertasting.com\/?p=1074"},"modified":"2018-10-31T13:39:12","modified_gmt":"2018-10-31T13:39:12","slug":"what-to-ask-your-server","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/powertasting.com\/?p=1074","title":{"rendered":"What to Ask Your Server"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>People go wine tasting for a variety of reasons.\u00a0 For some it\u2019s to have <a href=\"http:\/\/powertasting.com\/?p=174\">a pleasant day in the country<\/a>; for others it\u2019s to celebrate a birthday or impending nuptials.\u00a0 Unfortunately, there are still some who go just to get a little tipsy.\u00a0 For us, the primary reason is to be educated about the vast range of wines and the techniques for making them.\u00a0 Moreover, we love the experience of wine tasting, which is what <em>Power Tasting<\/em> is all about.<\/p>\n<p>The educational aspect of wine tasting begins, of course, with what is poured into your glass.\u00a0 We long ago learned to swirl the wine, smell it, admire the color and consider the expansion of the taste sensations as we sip and swallow it.\u00a0 More than that, if one is really intent on learning, it is important in any endeavor to ask questions and reflect on the answers.<\/p>\n<p>In discussing the kinds of questions to ask, let us make some assumptions.\u00a0 First, there is no reason to be intimidated.\u00a0 The server is there to aid you in the enjoyment of each winery\u2019s products (and maybe to sell you a little) so all but the most harried or <a href=\"http:\/\/powertasting.com\/?p=439\">uninterested<\/a> is going to be friendly and attempt to be helpful.\u00a0 Let us also assume that the server has a basic understanding of the wines he or she is pouring and is able to answer reasonable questions. While it would be valuable if the server were a true educator with deep wine knowledge, that\u2019s not necessary.\u00a0 Finally, lets assume that the tasting room is not packed, with numerous visitors calling for the server\u2019s attention.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/powertasting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/IMG_2371.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1075 aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/powertasting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/IMG_2371-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"662\" height=\"441\" srcset=\"https:\/\/powertasting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/IMG_2371-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/powertasting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/IMG_2371-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/powertasting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/IMG_2371-1024x683.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 662px) 100vw, 662px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Here are some recommendations for the kinds of questions a relatively inexperienced wine taster (or even some more experienced ones) might reasonably ask:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>\u201cWhich wines are you best known for?\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0 It is probably easy to tell which are considered the winery\u2019s <em>best<\/em> wines; they are the ones that are most expensive. But those might not be the ones they sell the most of or for which they have gained their reputation.\u00a0 There\u2019s a winery in Dry Creek that we return to often for their Zinfandels and Cabernet Sauvignons, but when we asked this question we were told that they sell far more Sauvignon Blanc than anything else.\u00a0 This grape is not a particular favorite of ours but we then paid more attention to it at this winery and found we liked it quite a bit.<\/li>\n<li><strong>\u201cHow long until this wine reaches its peak?\u201d\u00a0 <\/strong>Almost every winery will tell you that their wines are ready to drink when they are released and, unless you are tasting in Bordeaux, this is generally true nowadays.\u00a0 But drinkable is not the same as ideal, so this is a reasonable question, especially if you are considering buying some.\u00a0 (You might want to invest in a <a href=\"http:\/\/powertasting.com\/?p=884\">Clef du Vin<\/a> \u2013 also known as a Wine Key \u2013 to get an answer.)<\/li>\n<li><strong>\u201cWhat foods would go well with this wine?\u201d\u00a0 <\/strong>Sometimes the answer is written on the back label.\u00a0 You might also get a canned answer: white wines with fish and chicken, reds with meats and cheeses.\u00a0 But perceptive wineries will often make specific recommendations about which wines are ideal for fine dining, barbecues or causal dinners.\u00a0 You might get tips for not over &#8211; or underpowering &#8211; the food with which you open a particular bottle.\u00a0 This also gives you an idea of how the wine maker positions his or her products.<\/li>\n<li><strong>\u201cHow does this vintage compare with the best in recent years?\u201d\u00a0 <\/strong>No one will tell you that any specific harvest produced substandard wines.\u00a0 But 2014 was spectacular in Napanoma; so was 2010 in Bordeaux and Chianti.\u00a0 So by giving the serve a benchmark, you might get some valuable information.\u00a0 You won\u2019t be told that the wine in your glass is inferior, but you may be told that it is lighter, more fruity or more elegant.\u00a0 And if you\u2019re lucky, the server might open one of the older bottles and let you judge for yourself.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>People go wine tasting for a variety of reasons.\u00a0 For some it\u2019s to have a pleasant day in the country; for others it\u2019s to celebrate a birthday or impending nuptials.\u00a0 Unfortunately, there are still some who go just to get a little tipsy.\u00a0 For us, the primary reason is to be educated about the vast &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/powertasting.com\/?p=1074\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">What to Ask Your Server<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/powertasting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1074"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/powertasting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/powertasting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/powertasting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/powertasting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1074"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/powertasting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1074\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1076,"href":"https:\/\/powertasting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1074\/revisions\/1076"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/powertasting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1074"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/powertasting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1074"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/powertasting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1074"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}