Wine techniques

Opening, decanting, keeping, tasting and hosting: practical guides with the tools that make the difference.

Opening

Opening a bottle of still wine: The right corkscrew, a calm hand and a few small habits get any bottle open cleanly, from a screwcap Arneis to a firm Barolo cork.
Opening sparkling wine: A sparkling wine cork is under pressure. Cold wine, a still bottle and a hand on the cork at all times mean it leaves when you decide, with a soft sigh instead of a pop.
Opening old bottles: A twenty-year-old Barolo cork can be soft, dry and stuck to the glass. With the right tool, a day of rest and a slow hand it still comes out whole, and the wine reaches the glass clean.
Sabrage: opening sparkling wine with a sabre: A cold bottle, the seam, one smooth stroke. How to open Champagne, Alta Langa or cava with a sabre or the back of a knife, cleanly and safely.

Decanting old wine: An old Barolo or Barbaresco carries a deposit of sediment and a fragile bouquet. Stand it up, pour it once, slowly, over a light, and drink it while it is at its best.
Decanting young wine: A young Barolo, Barbaresco or big Barbera can taste tight and closed straight from the bottle. A brisk pour into a wide decanter and an hour or three of air bring out the fruit and soften the edges.
Aerating wine: methods and tools: From swirling the glass to aerating pourers, hand-held aerators, shower funnels, electric aerators and even the blender: what each way of giving wine air really does, and when it is worth it.

Serving and cellaring wine: The right temperature, a decent glass and a cool, dark place to keep the bottles do more for a wine than spending another ten euros on it.
Wine glasses: shapes, care and storing: The glass is the last tool between the bottle and your nose. Which shapes are worth owning, how much to pour, and how to wash, polish and store glasses so they never get in the way of the wine.
Keeping an open bottle: Once a bottle is open, air and warmth start to wear the wine down. Cold, less air and the right stopper buy you days, and for a special bottle, weeks.

How to taste wine: Look, swirl, smell, sip, think. Five unhurried steps turn a vague impression into a wine you can describe, judge and remember.
Food for a wine tasting: The right food resets the palate between wines and shows how they behave at the table; the wrong food hides them. Here is what to put out, what to keep away, and the Piemonte classics that do both jobs.

A wine evening with friends: A good wine evening needs a plan, not a cellar: a handful of bottles in the right order, enough glasses, food that suits them and water on the table. Here is how to host one, Piemonte style.
Tasting games and blind tasting: Hide the label and everyone tastes more carefully. Blind tastings, guess-the-grape rounds and a Barolo village flight turn a bottle evening into a game, and teach more than any book.
Aroma kits and smell games: A box of little vials, a blindfold and a few friends: guessing the smells in wine is far harder than anyone expects, and it is one of the most fun things you can do at a wine evening. Here is how to play, and how to make your own Piemonte kit.

Matching wine with food: A good pairing is mostly chemistry: acid, sugar, tannin, salt and heat pushing against each other. Learn the few rules that matter and you can choose a bottle for almost any plate.
Cooking with wine: Wine brings acidity, fruit and aroma to a dish. Choose a dry bottle you would happily drink, add it early, and give it time to reduce.
Piemonte wines: Barolo, Barbaresco, Barbera and more: A small region of fog, hills and hazelnut groves that makes some of the world's great reds, plus everyday Barbera, crisp whites and Moscato. Here is how to find your way in.

The wine tools worth owning: You need far fewer gadgets than wine shops suggest. Here is the short list of tools that actually make a difference, what each one does, and when the more expensive ones are worth it.