You will see nothing, feel nothing and learn nothing from a wine swallowed quickly in one gulp. What could be more pleasant than pouring yourself a glass of wine and savouring every last mouthful?

Is your wine thin, fleshy, mellow, heady, heavy, robust, light or slightly sparkling? The way to get the most out of each mouthful is to swirl the wine around in the whole of your mouth, chewing it in the customary way with your tongue and making an effort to concentrate. Once you have swallowed or spat out the wine, keep your attention focused for a little longer so that you can assess whether the wine is short or has length on the palate – in other words, whether its flavours and aromas fade away rapidly or whether they blossom and linger in the mouth.

Even with very little experience you will be able to tell which sweet-smelling notes are expressed between the end palate and the nose, what the tannins are like - whether they are mild on the palate, silky and supple, and whether the sensation you feel is a pleasant one.

"Taste cannot be described, it has to be tasted."

Remember that your own sensations are the ones that matter!

The Loire Valley wines would like to wish you many enjoyable wine-tastings.