Help me pour wine
February 9, 2009 7:49 AM Subscribe
How do I learn to pour wine without spilling any wine on the bottle?
Last week at a restaurant I saw a sommelier confidently pick up a wine bottle and pour wine into everyone's glasses. Immediately after pouring one glass, he poured another because there was no wine at all on the bottle. How do I do that?
I've gotten to where I can get that lonely drop of wine to dribble down the side of the bottle. And indeed I've seen many waiters with a napkin. They pour the wine, wipe the bottle and pour again. This much, I can do too. It involves giving the bottle a small twist at the end of the pour.
But how do I pour so as to leave the bottle completely dry? Tips from people who know how to do this would help as would pointers to any online videos or tutorials. Thanks!!
Last week at a restaurant I saw a sommelier confidently pick up a wine bottle and pour wine into everyone's glasses. Immediately after pouring one glass, he poured another because there was no wine at all on the bottle. How do I do that?
I've gotten to where I can get that lonely drop of wine to dribble down the side of the bottle. And indeed I've seen many waiters with a napkin. They pour the wine, wipe the bottle and pour again. This much, I can do too. It involves giving the bottle a small twist at the end of the pour.
But how do I pour so as to leave the bottle completely dry? Tips from people who know how to do this would help as would pointers to any online videos or tutorials. Thanks!!
Best answer: Practice. The timing of the twist is key.
posted by pointilist at 7:57 AM on February 9, 2009
posted by pointilist at 7:57 AM on February 9, 2009
Pour a few dozen glasses of wine every day. if you don't actually want to drink half a dozen bottles of wine in a sitting, reuse an empty you've refilled with water. It's something you just get the hang of with practice.
posted by valkyryn at 7:57 AM on February 9, 2009
posted by valkyryn at 7:57 AM on February 9, 2009
Best answer: One tip that helped me was that confidence matters. Start your pour full tilt, don't carefully edge the bottle until wines starts coming out. Don't be afraid to glug, but be careful not to splash. Just as, if not more, important is to end the pour with confidence as well, twist and untilt firmly and quickly, don't untilt slowly so that you've poured juuuust the right amount, just untilt quickly and hope you got the right amount in there (that part gets better with time/timing/practice).
posted by Grither at 8:00 AM on February 9, 2009 [1 favorite]
posted by Grither at 8:00 AM on February 9, 2009 [1 favorite]
The way I was taught was to give the bottle a slight turn—clockwise, since I'm right-handed—as I finish a pour.
posted by emelenjr at 8:00 AM on February 9, 2009
posted by emelenjr at 8:00 AM on February 9, 2009
On preview, what the others said. Easy with a tiny amount of practice.
Pour at a reasonable speed (not so slow that the wine dribbles down the bottle). When you want to stop pouring, twist the bottle at the same time as you lift it upright. The twisting motion will cause the wine at the opening of the bottle to spread itself around the (mostly dry) lip instead of sitting in a blob at one point (which is what causes the drip).
You can practice with an empty bottle and any liquid you like.
posted by le morte de bea arthur at 8:01 AM on February 9, 2009
Pour at a reasonable speed (not so slow that the wine dribbles down the bottle). When you want to stop pouring, twist the bottle at the same time as you lift it upright. The twisting motion will cause the wine at the opening of the bottle to spread itself around the (mostly dry) lip instead of sitting in a blob at one point (which is what causes the drip).
You can practice with an empty bottle and any liquid you like.
posted by le morte de bea arthur at 8:01 AM on February 9, 2009
Oh, and obviously glugging isn't the best option, either, but once you can do the no drip pour, you can work on the no glug, no drip pour.
posted by Grither at 8:02 AM on February 9, 2009
posted by Grither at 8:02 AM on February 9, 2009
Best answer: Grither is correct; that's exactly the way to do it. We do this in a chem lab where bollixing a sample has legal and financial implications. His method is exactly what I teach new staff. Pour with confidence, twist-off the last drops and lift the bottle sharpish. The twist should start just as you lift the bottle. You need about an 1/8th to 1/4 of a turn (a 45 to 90 degree twist).
The only way to learn this is to practice. Get an empty bottle filled with water and pour some glasses. It's a fairly easy skill to learn, but it does take a little while to get.
posted by bonehead at 8:05 AM on February 9, 2009
The only way to learn this is to practice. Get an empty bottle filled with water and pour some glasses. It's a fairly easy skill to learn, but it does take a little while to get.
posted by bonehead at 8:05 AM on February 9, 2009
Glugging isn't what you want at all. Smooth laminar flow is what you need for a good pour.
posted by bonehead at 8:06 AM on February 9, 2009
posted by bonehead at 8:06 AM on February 9, 2009
Yeah, on further thought, bonehead is right, no glugging is ideal. I think I meant you shouldn't be so afraid of glugging at the start that you wimp out on the initial part of the pour. If wine trickles out at any point, you will most likely end up with drops on the bottle even after the twist/untilt part, and this can result from not starting the pour or not ending the pour quickly enough.
posted by Grither at 8:09 AM on February 9, 2009
posted by Grither at 8:09 AM on February 9, 2009
Response by poster: I HAVE been practicing and sometimes, miraculously, I am able to do it but cant pin down exactly what I did right. I did notice the confidence thing: If I'm trying too hard or thinking about it too much, inevitably liquid not only on the bottle but also all over the table.
I was hoping there was some other secret, magic key. But, I guess I'll just keep practicing...
posted by vacapinta at 8:15 AM on February 9, 2009
I was hoping there was some other secret, magic key. But, I guess I'll just keep practicing...
posted by vacapinta at 8:15 AM on February 9, 2009
Since my wife likes getting her wine ASAP, I usually open the bottle with the foil still in place. (I puncture right through the foil and pull the cork out). This leaves raised pieces of foil that prevent the wine from running down the side of the bottle. Can you tell I'm not a sommelier?
posted by Blue.Squares at 8:25 AM on February 9, 2009
posted by Blue.Squares at 8:25 AM on February 9, 2009
Best answer: The idea of the twist, btw, is to catch the last drop by wrapping it around the rim of the bottle. Rather than have the drop drip down, you twist the bottle so that the final bit of liquid spreads around the rim, becoming too thin to form a big drip. Surface tension then prevents the remaining liquid from flowing down the bottle.
OK, here's a baby step for you. You can increase the contact angle between the glass and the liquid by adulterating the glass. Rub a bit of grease (traditionally one uses butter) around the lip of the bottle. Pouring will be easier. When you've got the motion, try it without the grease.
This method also works for fixing drippy teapots; a little dab of butter on the underside of the spout will prevent badly-designed pots from dripping. Or you could just buy a proper pot, like a brown betty.
posted by bonehead at 8:33 AM on February 9, 2009 [1 favorite]
OK, here's a baby step for you. You can increase the contact angle between the glass and the liquid by adulterating the glass. Rub a bit of grease (traditionally one uses butter) around the lip of the bottle. Pouring will be easier. When you've got the motion, try it without the grease.
This method also works for fixing drippy teapots; a little dab of butter on the underside of the spout will prevent badly-designed pots from dripping. Or you could just buy a proper pot, like a brown betty.
posted by bonehead at 8:33 AM on February 9, 2009 [1 favorite]
You should keep in mind the physics of the thing - when you know why the twist works, then you'll better be able to make it work.
The twist is key because droplets of wine always form on the mouth of the bottle as you're pouring. When you tilt the bottle back and set it down, those droplets run down the bottle and all over the place.
The reason you twist the bottle is so that the force of gravity pulls those around the mouth of the bottle and back inside rather than down the neck of the bottle. This doesn't just work with wine; it's handy with all sorts of liquids. I find it's most useful, and most clearly demonstrated, with honey; and (it's a neat party trick) people are sometimes amazed that I can pour honey out of a jar without spilling any or leaving a sticky mess. In fact, I think honey might be the best way to practice this principle, since it pours so slowly; you're just trying to twist the jar or bottle so that gravity pulls those droplets around the rim and back into the container. Sommeliers just have years of practice doing this, so it's intuitive.
I think the most important thing is to learn to watch the droplets and to catch them with the bottle before they drip.
posted by koeselitz at 8:35 AM on February 9, 2009
The twist is key because droplets of wine always form on the mouth of the bottle as you're pouring. When you tilt the bottle back and set it down, those droplets run down the bottle and all over the place.
The reason you twist the bottle is so that the force of gravity pulls those around the mouth of the bottle and back inside rather than down the neck of the bottle. This doesn't just work with wine; it's handy with all sorts of liquids. I find it's most useful, and most clearly demonstrated, with honey; and (it's a neat party trick) people are sometimes amazed that I can pour honey out of a jar without spilling any or leaving a sticky mess. In fact, I think honey might be the best way to practice this principle, since it pours so slowly; you're just trying to twist the jar or bottle so that gravity pulls those droplets around the rim and back into the container. Sommeliers just have years of practice doing this, so it's intuitive.
I think the most important thing is to learn to watch the droplets and to catch them with the bottle before they drip.
posted by koeselitz at 8:35 AM on February 9, 2009
Confidence in the pour (not glugging, but a firm pour), finding the perfect midway points where your untilt and your twist cross each other like a breakeven, as it were, and pouring into the far side of the glass were the 3 points I was given. Other than that, practice.
posted by allkindsoftime at 8:35 AM on February 9, 2009
posted by allkindsoftime at 8:35 AM on February 9, 2009
Normally I'm a pristine pourer & have that twist down pat, but there'a a merlot I like that refuses to let me pour without that one damn dribble. I'm pretty sure it's due to the shape and size of the bottle mouth/lip & that I'll never conquer it.
posted by zarah at 8:44 AM on February 9, 2009
posted by zarah at 8:44 AM on February 9, 2009
One possible confusion in my earlier answer: when I say to put a bit of grease on the bottle, I mean a narrow band on the outside of the bottle, just below the rim. You don't want the part of the bottle that will though the wine, the rim on the top of the bottle, to be covered in grease. You put the grease in places you don't want the wine to go.
Zarah, I am sure you are right. It's almost certainly the shape of that particular bottle that's messing you up. Sharp edges enhance droplet separation and make it harder to pour cleanly. Good wine bottles have a rounded lip to make this easier.
posted by bonehead at 9:51 AM on February 9, 2009
Zarah, I am sure you are right. It's almost certainly the shape of that particular bottle that's messing you up. Sharp edges enhance droplet separation and make it harder to pour cleanly. Good wine bottles have a rounded lip to make this easier.
posted by bonehead at 9:51 AM on February 9, 2009
You could try practicing with a thick liquid, like honey, and then moving on to thinner and thinner liquids. That way, with the thicker ones, you'll be thoroughly familiar with the mechanics of it, because they pour very slowly, and as you move to thinner liquids, your confidence will build. You could use honey, then syrup, then oil, then wine or water.
posted by gauchodaspampas at 10:37 AM on February 9, 2009
posted by gauchodaspampas at 10:37 AM on February 9, 2009
Similar to gauchodaspampas, but practicing with ketchup in a glass bottle helps.
posted by spec80 at 10:42 AM on February 9, 2009
posted by spec80 at 10:42 AM on February 9, 2009
My last corkscrew came with a bottle collar. It can actually be fairly handy, especially when you have a group of friends who may not be the expert pourer you are. Might be worth using until you get the hang of it or for the trickily-shaped bottles that Zarah mentioned.
posted by Relic at 11:28 AM on February 9, 2009
posted by Relic at 11:28 AM on February 9, 2009
I'm adding an Nth vote to the twist and lift method. I used the method catering weddings and never dripped red wine on anyone ;-)
posted by JFitzpatrick at 4:55 PM on February 9, 2009
posted by JFitzpatrick at 4:55 PM on February 9, 2009
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by Perplexity at 7:55 AM on February 9, 2009