As a catering company we are always asked to serve drinks at our events, more often than not, wine is served with the food. Serving wine is not just about pouring it into a glass but the interactive and approval of the customer.
- Storage is the most important aspect of serving wine, red wine is to be stored and served at room temperature and white and rose to be served between 1-3 degrees Celsius (straight from the fridge). White and rose is also to be kept in an ice bucket or chiller to keep the temperature at the table.
- Showing the wine to the customer will ensure it is the correct bottle that was ordered.
- Regardless whether it is a cork or screw top you should ask the person who ordered the wine to see if they would like to taste the wine first. This is not to see if the customer likes it but to make sure it is not off or corked. Wines which use corks, generally have more problems.
- Once the customer is happy, pouring begins with the women on the table followed by the men.
- All wines ideally need to breathe for a few minutes before serving. Decanting the wine into a decanter is the best way, however pouring into the glass and giving it a swirl should do the job. Red wine requires more time to breathe than white.
- For more mature wines, decanting also allows you to eliminate sediment from your wine.
- Never fill a wineglass more than half full. A serving of wine is five ounces, and most wine glasses hold seven to eight ounces or more if filled to the brim. Filling the glass only halfway leaves room for the wine to be swirled in the glass so that its full aroma may be released.
