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What to do when you invite someone round, how to set the table, how to arrange the
seating.
A few simple rules for you to remember.
As of this
month, there will be a short guide to the choices and main wine
accompaniments. The first part is dedicated to cellar storage and the choice of the
glass.
| HOW TO STORE WINE IN THE CELLAR |
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The first rule for correct storage of wine is that it must be kept
in a horizontal position in the cellar, or if not in a
cellar, in a cool, dry environment, away from any light and heat
sources.
Avoid standing the bottle up, because the wine must be in constant contact with the
cork, so as to keep the cork damp. Furthermore, wine should be stored separately from other foods because it tends to absorb other
aromas.
The position of wines in the cellar should be as follows:
Starting from the bottom and going towards the top, we should
find, first of all Champagnes and Spumante wines, then dry white
wines, and immediately afterwards the sweet whites. Continuing up, we should then get to the rosé wines and following them the young red
wines, ending with the vintage bottles.
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| THE
CHOICE OF WINE |
The
best and safest way to know if the wine you have chosen
has matured well, and has not taken on the flavour of
the cork, is to taste it. However, as it is preferable
to serve an unopened bottle of wine to guests, in order
to avoid losing face, you can check the level in the
bottle.
Naturally, during the maturation, the wine loses volume
and the level in the bottle therefore lowers. This,
however, should never reduce so much as to be below a
certain safety level. This is how to understand where
this level is:
- if the neck of the bottle is almost empty and the wine
is below the 'shoulder', too much air has got in, and
99% of the time, the wine is no longer useable;
- if the wine is in contact with the cork, or one/two
centimetres below this level, it means that the
maturation is continuing correctly.
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| THE
GLASS |
Once
you have chosen your wine, you should pay careful
attention to the choice of glass in which it is
to be served. This is a very important factor, as the
choice of the right glass will allow us to best
appreciate all the nuances of the wine that we are about
to taste.
You should avoid coloured, decorated or faceted glasses
at all costs, but also avoid metal glasses, or those
made of any material other than glass or crystal.
The perfect glass is of very fine crystal with a stem
which is not only elegant, but also serves to avoid all
contact between the hand and the glass, which would heat
the wine and give it outside odours. If you do not have
any crystal glasses, plain glass is an acceptable
alternative, as long as it is as fine as possible.
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