Step 2: Look at the Wine

Looking at a wine's colour allows you to make some assessment about how old a wine is and how heavy it might feel in your mouth. White wine is at its palest when it is young and gradually turns a straw colour. On the other hand, red wines are at their most intense colour when young - close to purple - fading to brick red, then brown.

You will also expect varying colours from different wine varieties: Cabernet Sauvignon is darker by nature than Sangiovese. Also, the riper the harvested grape, the more colour it adds to a wine.

Pour the wine into a clear, clean wine glass, so that it is a quarter full. A big tulip-shaped glass that is broad at the base and narrower at the top will help to concentrate the aromas of the wine. Holding the glass by the stem, tilt it to a 45° angle against a white background, so you can see the range of colours in the wine from the centre to the rim.

Thickness of colour usually indicates a richness, fruitiness or heaviness. Thickness is best judged toward the edges of the wine as it sits in the glass.