Hoy, Pinoy! So okay, you are used to drinking tuba^ (coconut wine) and San Miguel beer and it is only during special occasions such as Christmas and the New Year (also birthdays, anniversaries, etc.) that red and white wines flow freely.
Based on Pinoy misconcepcions on wine drinking and tips from a French mentor, here are some tips you should know about red wine:
Red Wine Tip #1: Novellino is rubbish. So is Carlo Rossi and Paul Masson. They are not the traditionally made, oak-barrel stored wines, but are cheap factory-made wine sold en masse. Unless you treat them as a better alternative to softdrinks, you can never be proud serving these so-called wines to a more discerning wine drinker.
Red Wine Tip #2: Real red wine goes off as soon as you pour it out and oxygen comes in, so consume it within 2-3 days. The air that you see inside the bottle between the cork and the wine is nitrogen which is why it goes pop when you open a bottle of wine.
Red Wine Tip #3: Never put ice in your glass of red wine. It destroys all the beautiful intentions the wine maker has put into his wine. Drink red wine at room temperature. Chill your bottle of wine only if you have to store it, then bring it up back to room temperature when you are about to drink it again. Cold wine loses its aroma and tastes flat.
Red Wine Tip #4: Red wine goes with red meat, white wine goes with white meat, and tastes better if poured in a rounded wine glass than straight smack into a flat-bottomed regular glass.
Red Wine Tip #5: Red wine has a calming, therapeutic effect, thus you sleep better and could live up to a hundred years. Which is probably why countries whose people drank wine and tea make stronger nations because their citizens are healthier.
Red Wine Tip #6: If you have to keep red wine for your nightly therapy, it is best to get a four- or five-liter cubi (short for cubitainer or cubic container or box) which has a tap or faucet from where you just open to draw a glass of wine. Inside the box is a plastic bag which collapses as more wine is being drawn out, thus preventing the oxygen from entering for the wine to keep for 2-3 months.
Red Wine Tip #7: Don't be fooled by buying a glass of red wine from half-full bottles stored in a hotel wine bar stand. It is probably 3 months old already and if you remember Red Wine Tip #2, good wine only lasts 2-3 days. If the wine you bought still retains its flavor long since it's been opened, you can be sure it's packed with preservatives, you'd be better off with a freshly opened Novellino.
Red Wine Tip #8: If you can't tell which wine is best, just remember countries like France, Australia, Portugal, Spain, and Chile where they grow one of the best grapes for their wines. Avoid Italy (they could either be best or worst), South Africa, Argentina, or the U.S.
Red Wine Tip #9: Choose up to only 12% alcohol content. Beyond that, it could knock you off and lose the appreciation of the taste of raspberries, traces of oak, flavors of different nuts, hints of lemon, the sweetness of honey, and all the wonderfully mind-boggling glossal sensations you are supposed to discern when enjoying your glass of wine.
Red Wine Tip #10: Red wine tastes best if it is drank in the place where it is made. So if you want to have a taste of the best French wine, drink a glass only in France!
So, Pinoy, what would your next glass of wine be?
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