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As a follow up to my last article, "Essential Wine Accessories"
I thought it would be interesting to touch on a few accessories
that may not be quite so essential but are fun or handy to have
regardless.
Wine pourers are traditionally made from clear plastic and fit
into the neck of a bottle of wine. The pouring surface is
designed to prevent dripping when pouring, for those with an
unsteady hand, by returning any excess wine back to the bottle.
This can be very handy for those interested in preventing red
wine stains on any item of furniture that is not already red in
color!
Decanters allow red wine to breathe, enhancing flavor and
bouquet. Typically created from glass or crystal, decanters have
a narrow neck, which leads to a very wide base. This wide base
allows more of the wine to come in contact with the air, letting
it breathe before consumption. Decanters are not a necessity but
are a practical addition for those interested in enhancing the
flavor of their red wine.
A bottle tote is also a practical accessory to have when going
out on a picnic or to bring a cold bottle of wine to a dinner
party. Usually made from neoprene (the same material diving
wetsuits are made from), bottle totes can keep a bottle cool for
hours, something handy if you are going to be out and don't want
that nice chilled bottle of Sauvignon Blanc to warm up before
you have had a chance to drink it.
How many times have you been at a dinner party and have had to
juggle your plate and your glass? Mingling plates are the
perfect solution for those dinner or cocktail parties when a
third hand is essential. With a slot and hole on the side of the
plate, a wine glass stem can be inserted so that the glass is
resting on the side of the plate. This leaves your hand free to
eat without needing to balance a glass in your hand or setting
it down on a table.
Tip! Taste – This is not a cue for drinking! This simply means to take a sip and hold it on the palate for at least a few moments. We have thousands of taste buds all over the mouth so it makes sense to allow the wine to find almost all of them! Move the wine all around the mouth so that it reaches your cheeks and throat.
My personal favorite not so essential accessory is a wine
chiller or wine refrigerator. Wine chillers can come in a
variety of colors, finishes and capacities to fit your desires.
Usually they are small enough to fit on or under a kitchen
counter and most have gauges, which allow you to set the
chilling temperature according to the type of wine being
chilled. That way if you are using your wine refrigerator to
store and chill red wine (because red wine should best be served
at a temperature of 60 degrees Fahrenheit), the temperature can
be adjusted so that bottles are not chilled as if they were
white!
The list of wine accessories can appear to be endless, and to
write about them all in this article would take too long and
bore you to death. So I hope that the few I have touched upon
are helpful in deciding which not so necessary wine accessories
are more necessary than others.
About the Author:
Ken Finnigan is the CEO of Finest Wine Racks a
website specializing in quality decorative wine racks and
durable wine storage systems.
Article Source www.GoArticles.com
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