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of the tongue tastes sweet flavors, the front sides of the tongue: sour, the back sides of the tongue fruit and tannin, and the far back of the tongue: bitter. When it comes to wine tasting, each of these zones on the tongue are stimulated to detect different flavors. When you take a sip of wine, swish it around in your mouth. "I usually like to do this for about ten to 15 seconds to let the wine get into all parts of my mouth," Parrous said. To get the full taste of the wine, you should follow three steps. These steps are initial taste, actual taste and aftertaste. The initial taste awakens the senses. It's sometimes a shock, because wine can be bitter or sour. Allow your palette to adapt to the wine and take a second sip after evaluation. Next comes the actual taste part. "I like to draw some air into my mouth at this time to aerate the wine," Parrous explained. "It also lets you examine the body." Ask yourself: Is the wine light, rich, smooth, sharp? Finally, examine the aftertaste. This is where you either swallow or spit the wine (as aforementioned, a spittoon is often used at multiple wine tastings). Here can be where you experience the strongest tastes. It's very easy at this stage to find out what parts of the tongue are stimulated by the wine. "I like to evaluate a wine at the three different parts of my mouth," suggested Parrous. "Front, middle and back." Ask yourself: Is the wine bitter, or is it sweet? Is it sour, fruity or dry? Is the aftertaste mellow or strong, long or short? Also, make sure you evaluate the wine based on its appropriateness. Is the wine supposed to be dry or sweet? This way you can evaluate the quality. With this, a proper wine tasting is complete. If you're really serious, take a few notes about what you experienced and mentally capture what you've tasted. Though it takes some thought, you'll find that wine tasting can be extremely enriching. "It makes you think about wine in a totally different way," Parrous explained. "And it opens up the door to an experience that people all over the world have come to appreciate." CV u Local Wine Tastings v The Wine Café Millstone Towne Center 5943 Camden Rd., Hope Mills Official monthly tastings as well as wine classes. Call 910.339.2917 for dates or visit www.thewinecafeus.com Grapes and Hops NC Highway 24, #87, Cameron Friday: 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. The Hilltop House 1240 Fort Bragg Rd., Fayetteville Thursday: 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Luigi's Restaurant 528 N. McPherson Church Rd. Fayetteville Thursdays: 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. The Office Pub 2828 Raeford Rd., Fayetteville Wednesday-Friday: 3:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. ScrubOaks Restaurant 5780 Ramsey St., Fayetteville Call 910.884.3072 for wine tasting schedule no contracts for membership Tai Chi : : Zumba Yoga classes : : PreCor Adaptive Motion Trainers [AMTs] Cardio Equipment with Personal Viewing Systems Massage Therapy available 7 days a week (910) 615-7539 :: www.healthplexonline.com CityViewNC.com | 29

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