Why bother with blind tasting?
Wine tasting is shockingly susceptible to bias. Studies repeatedly show that the same wine, served in a bottle labelled "Grand Cru" vs "table wine," gets dramatically different scores from the same drinkers. Price tags work the same way — knowing a wine costs $80 makes it taste better.
Blind tasting strips that bias out. You're forced to score what's actually in the glass, not what's printed on the label. This is humbling, instructive, and genuinely fun once you commit to it.
How to set up a blind tasting
Single blind
Bottles are wrapped (foil, paper bag, sock) so labels are hidden. Tasters know what category of wine they're getting (e.g. "six Pinot Noirs") but not which is which. Easiest way to start.
Double blind
Tasters know nothing — no theme, no region, no grape, nothing. Pure mystery. Much harder, and the basis of every Master Sommelier exam. Save for once you're comfortable.
Practical tips
- Number the bottles before guests arrive. Use small stickers or label them "1" through "6." Track which number is which wine on a sheet you keep face-down.
- Pour into glasses out of sight. The pourer (you) sees the bottle but the tasters never do.
- Use opaque glasses for double-blind. Black wine glasses exist and remove visual cues entirely. Optional but fun for one or two flights.
- Don't reveal until everyone's locked in their scores. Wine Night enforces this — scores can't be edited after the host reveals.
The deductive tasting method
This is what sommeliers use to identify wines blind. It works in five steps.
1. Sight
What colour is it? White, rosé, or red? How intense is the colour? Pale white = cool climate or young; deep gold = warm climate or aged. Bricky red = aged; bright purple = young.
2. Nose
What fruit family? Citrus, stone fruit, tropical (whites)? Red fruit, black fruit, dried fruit (reds)? Are there secondary notes — oak, vanilla, smoke (suggests oak ageing); bread, brioche (lees ageing or bottle age); leather, mushroom (significant age)?
3. Palate
Acidity (high = cool climate). Tannin (high = thick-skinned grape, e.g. Cabernet, Nebbiolo). Body (light = high acid / cool climate; full = warm climate / oak / high alcohol). Alcohol (warm finish on the back of your throat).
4. Synthesis
Now combine. High acid + light body + green apple + crisp = probably cool-climate Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, or Albariño. Medium tannin + red cherry + earth = probably Pinot Noir or Sangiovese. Big tannin + black fruit + cedar oak = probably Cabernet or Bordeaux blend.
5. Conclusion
Make a guess on grape, region, and approximate age. Even being wrong is informative — you'll learn what makes you think Bordeaux when it was really Bolgheri.
The cheat sheet most beginners miss
Whites
- High acid, lemony, no oak → Sauvignon Blanc, Albariño, Riesling, Vermentino
- Round, oaked, buttery → New World Chardonnay
- Honey, petrol, off-dry → Aged Riesling
- Tropical, low acid, intense → Viognier, warm-climate whites
Reds
- Light, transparent, red cherry, earth → Pinot Noir
- Medium body, tart cherry, leather, dusty → Sangiovese, Tempranillo
- Bold, blackcurrant, cedar, firm tannin → Cabernet Sauvignon
- Jammy, peppery, black fruit, soft → Shiraz / Syrah
- Massive tannin, tar, roses → Nebbiolo (Barolo, Barbaresco)
How to fake it convincingly
If all else fails:
- "Definitely cool climate." Almost any wine can be plausibly described as cool climate.
- "There's a real terroir expression here." Means literally nothing, sounds intelligent.
- "Slightly reductive." Apply to anything that smells slightly of struck match. Reductive is on-trend.
- "I'm getting some bottle age." Best used after pretending to swirl thoughtfully.
Honestly though — the most respected tasters are the ones who say "I have no idea what this is." Confident wrongness is annoying. Curious wrongness is charming.
Run your blind tasting on Wine Night
Wine Night has a built-in Blind mode that hides wine names and labels until the host reveals them after scoring. Toggle it when you set up your tasting. The reveal moment is genuinely the best part of the night.