While an appreciation for wine may come naturally to some, my first impression was that it tasted like stale vinegar-flavoured water and was not fit to drink. However, with a family of wine enthusiasts and a desire to be seen drinking classy adult beverages, I found myself wishing I could learn to like it (or at least tolerate a glass or two).
Even if it doesn’t seem appealing now, wine is what you get free at weddings, it’s one of the most common gifts to get from someone you don’t know very well, and science tells us it’s really good for your health. Sounds worth it to me.
If you want to get classy, get more free drinks, and live forever, try some of the tips and tricks from my drinking journey and start getting to know your new best friend: wine.
Embrace Your Girly Side
Photo by Meg Caldwell
The easiest wine to get used to is rosé because the fruity flavours help to tone down the taste of the wine. I decided to accentuate this effect by eating a strong, complimentary fruit like raspberries at the same time. Think of it like a chaser: one sip wine, one raspberry, repeat until drunk.
The first brand I bought for my wine adventures was Girls’ Night Out, which I highly recommend. It’s still one of my favourites because they have lots of great flavours and come in extra large bottles, too.
Keep it Light
Photo by Meg Caldwell
Once I mastered the rosé (which is still my favourite), I moved on to white wine. Things can get a little tricky at this stage since there’s much more variety. I found that it was best to start with a sweet white wine rather than dry, and to choose bottles with lower alcohol content as they are typically milder in taste. Of course if you want to get the most booze for your buck, you can switch to buying bottles with higher alcohol content once you learn to like wine. Black Tower is a great one to try as it has a sweet taste, but is not too overpowering.
#SpoonTip: While they are typically sweet white wines, do not try Chardonnay or other “oaked” wines. They’re terrible if you’re not a typical wine drinker. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.
Baby Steps
Photo by Meg Caldwell
While my love affair with white and rosé wine has blossomed, my relationship with red is still complicated. There’s something there, but sometimes I just need my space. At the moment, we’re taking it slow, which is what I recommend for you, too. Drink it slow, in small amounts.
The jump from white and rosé to red is a big one, which will take some serious getting used to. When I drank a full glass of red wine for the first time, it took me nearly an hour to get through it and I felt weirdly full like it was food. Please don’t take this as a challenge to power through and chug it. Trust me, there is no hangover quite so real as a red wine hangover.
Finally, if all else fails, you can always just throw a bunch of random juice and fruit in any kind of wine and make a simple sangria. Everybody loves sangria.