A wine fair is your opportunity to taste mind-blowing and rare wines. To get the most out of it, follow these five simple advice.
Going on a wine fair means tasting a huge bunch of amazing and (if you’re lucky) rare wines, which can be difficult to find elsewhere. It is also your opportunity to meet some of the icons and legends within wine making.
You can expect to taste up to 100 different wines on a single day! To make the most out of your visit, we will give you five good advice here.
1. Do your homework
On the bigger wine fairs, it is simply impossible to taste everything. So do your homework, look through the list of wine and pick a handful of “must taste”.
There is nothing more frustrating than finding out afterwards, that you missed a legendary tasting because you did not know it was there.
2. To hell with the plan
After doing your homework and planning your tasting – forget the plan!
Go with the flow, follow your gut, nose, and instinct, and let the energy of the fair guide you. Do you see something intriguing – go have a taste. Broaden your mind and plunge into the completely unknown. You might find magic.
You still have your list of “must taste”, so don’t worry – you’ll know how to priorities, once you are there.
3. Start with Champagne
Many wine fairs are two-day events and it’s normal to feel a bit tired upon a possible late first day.
The best advice against tiredness or possible hangovers is to find the Champagne section of the fair and start here.
The fresh taste and lively bubbles will awaken you in the most pleasing way and get you ready for a new day of tastings.
4. Spit!
Even though it is tempting to swallow the amazing wines you will taste on a wine fair – don’t! Use the spitting bowls if you want to taste more than a few wines. If you don’t, you will become too drunk too fast and will miss a lot of exciting tastings.
And don’t worry, small amounts of alcohol will enter your blood through the thin membranes in your mouth, so you’ll still get a comfy buzz.
5. Join the afterparty
Do you want to meet the winemakers in a more informal way? Find the afterparty.
Wine fairs are the winemakers opportunity to meet, talk, and party so most likely there is an afterparty somewhere near the wine fair. Ask around, it is probably not announced anywhere.
Natural wine fairs
Natural wine fairs can be quite different from the more formal and business oriented conventional and classical wine fairs.
On natural wine fairs like La Dive Bouteille or Salon St jean, the atmosphere is more relaxed and festival like. It’s more of a party where you can meet and chat with some of the biggest icons and legends of natural wine making in a relaxing and unpretentious atmosphere.
Are you into natural wine the best and most important advice is: Go!
See our comprehensive list of natural wine fairs here.
