Recording your overall impression is important - if you don't like a wine, you can try a different one the next time. Perhaps write down some foods that you think that particular wine would be good with, and then you can check back in your notes when deciding what to serve with a particular dinner.

Wine Etiquette - There are a few things that you ought to know before serving wine, and likewise there are also a few bits of etiquette that you would do well to know before attending a wine-tasting event.

To go from room temperature to the proper temperature, put red wine in for about 5 minutes, white wine for 10 minutes, and Champagne for 15 minutes. Some people (not wine snobs, usually) even toss an ice cube or two in a glass of wine to chill it quickly. Spend a minute learning how to pop the cork properly. Don't bend it. Pour the cork out with about an ounce of wine to remove any debris from the cork and to check the wine out. Some folks prefer to decant the wine to remove any other particles that have settled out of the wine.

Keep in mind also that it is usually recommended to allow red wines to "breathe" for an hour or so before serving. Breathing the wine for two long, however, will cause the wine to taste dull and flat.

When pouring, don't touch the bottle neck to the glass and hold the bottle around the body instead of the neck. You can hold a napkin below the neck to catch dripping if you prefer. Fill the glass no more than two-thirds full, though preferably to only about half full. If there is leftover wine and you can't convince anyone to finish it off, you can save what wine is left, but don't just re-cork the bottle.