What You Are ACTUALLY Meant To Do When A Waiter Pours You Wine To Taste At A Restaurant

Unsure what you’re meant to do when the waiter pours a small glass for you to taste at a restaurant?

You’re not alone, according to wine expert Ashwin Muthiah, who says that it’s a situation that ‘can feel super awkward’ to many diners.

‘Most people have no idea what they’re supposed to do,’ said Ashwin, founder of US-based educational platform unPINNED Wine.

That’s why the former sommelier recently shared a straightforward, step-by-step guide to demystify the wine tasting ritual at the table.

First things first: it’s not about deciding if you like the wine.

‘The taste isn’t to see if you like the wine,’ Ashwin explained. ‘It’s to make sure it’s not faulty.’

Few people, he says, know the tell-tale smells or flavours that signal the wine is ‘off’.

To help, Ashwin put together an accessible checklist for the 165,000 followers of @unpinnedwine, so anyone ‘can feel confident next time the bottle hits the table’.

Step 1: Swirl & Sniff

When the waiter offers your tasting glass, Ashwin advises first gently swirling the glass to release the wine’s aroma.

Then, you should carefully lean over the glass to ‘sniff’ it.

Look out for any unpleasant odours which may indicate the wine is ‘off’.

One of these is a ‘wet cardboard’ type of smell, which could mean the wine has ‘corked’ and ‘spoiled’.

Other warning signs during the sniff test, are offensive smells like ‘rotten egg or sulphur’ or ‘vinegar or nail polish remover’, as these are all signs that a wine has turned.

Step 2: Sip for Signs

‘If it smells fine, take a small sip and check,’ Ashwin advised as the next step.

As you taste the wine, he recommended asking yourself the following three questions.

Firstly, ‘Does it taste flat or sour?’

Then, the next question to consider is: ‘Is it fizzy when it shouldn’t be?’

The last taste consideration is ‘does the flavour taste wildly unexpected?’ – particularly compared to what you thought you had ordered.

‘You’re not judging if it’s delicious – just if it’s clean and drinkable,’ he added.

Step 3: Give the Final Judgement

If your wine has passed steps one and two, Ashwin says it’s perfect for drinking.

‘If all seems good, give the nod and say, ‘That’s great, thank you.”

However, if anything seems off, Ashwin suggests politely informing the waitstaff, ”I think this might be corked or a bit off, do you mind also tasting it to let me know what you think?”

At this point, a staff member or sommelier will likely taste the wine themselves and ‘take it from there’.

Ashwin, who runs in-person courses and virtual online wine tastings, created unPINNED Wine to make understanding and appreciating wine accessible to everyone.

His recent Instagram advice post followed a recent experience where he had to send a wine back at a restaurant. ‘Not because I didn’t like it – but because it had that musty, wet cardboard smell that usually means something’s off.’

‘And that’s exactly why the waiter gives you a small taste.’