Most everyone enjoys a great meal and complementing it can be easy with wine, if you know how to choose. This article will provide you with excellent tips on how to pair wine and food together and when to serve what. It may take a little learning and practice to figure out, but it will be well worth the effort.

Leftover wine should not be saved for any more than four days. When wine comes in contact with oxygen, it starts to break down. This greatly effects the taste and balance. It is best to use any wine you have leftover for cooking instead of drinking it as it is.

Purchase the Magnum bottles in the store, which are a bit larger, giving you the best bang for your buck. These wines will generally run for about 10 or 15 dollars, and will last a little bit longer for the price. This is a great way to maximize your monetary value of wine if you drink often.

Look at the entire wine store. Do not just stay in one aisle. Some stores are better organized than others, and you may even find some great deals in a section that you may not normally look in. Take some time to explore it. Surveying the store can help you avoid missing anything.

Understand the types of fruits that are used in your wine and the ones that you like. This can go a long way in determining your favorite types of wines, as you can look at the content before you purchase. This will allow you to filter out the wines that do not have the ingredients you prefer.

When buying wine as a gift, consider pairing it with food of some sort. A nice basket containing some chocolate and wine or fine cheese and wine makes a wonderful gift. It gives the recipient some meal ideas, and can provide for a wonderful atmosphere at a festive event.

Swirling is part of tasting wine. Make the circular motion necessary from your elbow rather than your wrist. Doing so will enable you to smell the wine, enhancing the flavor of it as well. Making the motion just using the wrist is difficult and often will not have the desired effect.

When dining out, don’t be afraid to ask your server if there is a wine expert in the house! Chances are good that someone will have the perfect recommendation to complement your meal. Tell them what you are having and give them a general price range, and you should find yourself with a great bottle to go with the meal.

Wine is terrific for cooking, but also for drinking on its own. You haven’t had great steak until you’ve tried it with red wine cooked into it. White wine is great with any type of seafood dishes. You can add a lot of flavor to fish or scallops by adding some wine.

Take digital photos of wine labels and store them with your notes. Your wine hobby will take you to dozens of tasting and hundreds of wines. At some point, it’s going to get a bit overwhelming and confusing. These photos – when paired with notes- will help keep your knowledge on track.

When working on your food and wine pairing abilities, practice is critical. You might be surprised to find that a certain dish tastes better with a particular sort of wine. Play around and have fun with it.

If you are dining out with work colleagues and trying to impress the boss, try to arrive at the table first and order a bottle of wine to be delivered upon your guest’s arrival. This will really make it look like you know your wines. Avoiding a wait time for the bottle can also enhance the evening for everyone.

Wine can be saved. Once you finish drinking from the bottle for the evening, close it back up and refrigerate it. The wine should be good for about a day. If you leave it out at room temperature, however, it will eventually go bad because bacteria can grow. There are no hard and fast rules about how long wine is good for, so use your palate to guide you and refrigerate as soon as you know you are finished drinking.

When you find a bottle of wine that really hits the spot, put away the whole case for a slightly higher price and you’ll save money in the long run. A case is usually 12 bottles of the same age and flavor. The net cost of a single case is reasonably lower than 12 individual bottles in most venues.

Enjoying a meal with the right wine is a special occasion in and of itself, as any connoisseur knows. Hopefully this article has imparted a bit of delicious knowledge about the wine selection process and will help you to make a meal more enjoyable. Pick the perfect bottle for your next meal and discover the joys of wine.