The best part about being a wine drinker today is that the wine scene is 100% welcoming and accessible. Whether you’re a seasoned sipper or a curious beginner, you’ll have a relaxing experience when you visit a tasting room, winery, or accept an invite to a dinner party. Even though things are less stuffy than they used to be, there are still a few simple rules you want to follow when it comes to how to hold a wine glass, serving temperatures, and the types of wine gifts to give a hostess.
Mastering a few simple wine etiquette techniques can further enhance the way you enjoy wine, and make you look like you know exactly what you’re doing at your next event, cocktail party, or that time you meet your boyfriend or girlfriend’s parents for the first time!
If you’re using this guide to master wine etiquette before you visit a winery, take a quick look at these winery outfit ideas and wine captions to make your day a breeze.
Why Holding Wine Glasses Properly is Important
Here’s a little secret: the stem of a wine glass isn’t just decorative, it has a very important purpose: preserving the temperature of the wine, and enhancing your sipping experience.
How You Hold a Glass of Wine Influences Wine Temperature
When it comes to wine, temperature matters. Gripping the glass bowl warms the wine, and affects its taste. Instead, pinch the stem between your thumb, pointer, and middle fingers to maintain the correct temperature. Holding the base with your thumb and pointer finger, and steadying it with your middle finger, is also acceptable.
…and Appearance
Apart from temperature control, holding the glass by the stem avoids unsightly fingerprints on the bowl, allowing you to appreciate the wine’s clarity and color.
Properly Holding a Wine Glass Enhances a Wine’s Flavors
Swirling is an essential part of wine tasting. A gentle swirl of the wine enhances aration in the wine, and helps to bring out the different flavors and aromas. Holding the wine glass by the stem, rather than the bowl allows you to gracefully swirl your wine, which can enhance the wine’s flavors.
The Best Ways to Hold a Wine Glass
By the Stem
The best way to hold a wine glass is by the stem. Use your thumb, index finger (pointer finger) and middle finger to lightly grip the stem.
This method prevents your hand from warming the wine, which is particularly important for white wines, rosé wines, and sparkling wines, which are all best enjoyed chilled. Holding the glass by the stem also prevents your fingers from smudging the bowl, so you can appreciate the color and clarity of the wine.
By the Base
Holding a glass by its base is less common, but is also considered an appropriate way of handling a wine glass. This is especially true of stemware with larger bowls like Bordeaux or Pinot Noir glasses. It has the same benefits as holding by the stem but can offer more stability.
Whatever you do, don’t hold the glass by the bowl.
TIP: The exception to this rule is if the wine in your glass is served too cold – as in, someone put the bottle in the refrigerator and then forgot about it until they poured you a glass. If you’re served ice cold wine, by all means, feel free to cup the bowl of the glass in your hands to warm the wine to the proper serving temperature.
Serving Different Wine Types
If you’re throwing a dinner party or hosting an event, in addition to knowing how to hold a wine glass, you will also need to know what temperature to serve wine – and how to serve different wine types – is as important as knowing how much wine you need per person for an event like a dinner party or a wedding.
For whites and rosés, chill them; reds do well just below room temperature, unless we’re talking about light red wines, like glou glou wines, which are served closer to white wine temperatures. Here are the proper serving temperatures for all champagne and sparkling wines, white wines, rosé wines, and various types of red wine.
Serve Champagne and Sparkling Wine: 42°- 50°F
Serve White Wine: 45° to 55℉
Serve Rosé Wine: 45° to 55℉
Serve Chillable Red Wine: 50° to 60℉
Serve Red Wine: 60° to 68℉
How to Give Wine as a Gift: Wine Gifting Made Easy
Depending on how well you know the hostess, presenting a bottle of wine as a gift at a dinner party can be tricky etiquette-wise. To sidestep any awkwardness, and ensure your bottle is clearly a gift and you have no expectation that it will be opened that evening, consider gifting two bottles. This way, it takes the pressure off of the hostess on whether or not they want to share the wine with the whole party, or enjoy it in the future.
I like to give wines that might be new to the host. Bottles of Timorasso from Piedmont, a quirky Counoise, an elegant Trousseau wine, or a bottle of Cabernet Pfeffer – an ultra rare grape that’s oh, so good!
It’s also fun to give different styles of wine, like Ramato Pinot Grigio or a fun pet nat from a local California producer. Try to give a producer, or type of wine the host doesn’t have in their collection to make it more memorable, and introduce them to something new.
In Conclusion
Next time you raise a glass, do it with the finesse and confidence of someone who has mastered the art of proper wine etiquette, from how to properly hold a wine glass to the best serving temperatures and wine gifts!