Basic wine rules you're probably breaking
The wine world can be an exceedingly snobby place.
When Christine Ricketts was dining in a restaurant many years ago, she noticed the waiter kept replacing her wine glass whenever it was empty.
When she asked him why he was doing this, he told her that her fingers were making the glass "grubby".
"I never dined at the restaurant again, but I also never held my wine glass like a bowl from that point onwards," says Ricketts, who is now a cellar director at Cellarmasters.
"I hold it by the stem, which is a good idea because it stops the wine from warming."
Most of us, if we're brutally honest, have committed at least one breach of wine etiquette at a restaurant or a dinner party at some point.
Don't be intimidated by snobby people. They don't know everything.
A friend of mine was "let go" from his after-university job at a Brisbane fine-dining restaurant because, after presenting an expensive bottle of wine to the customers, he would ease out the cork by placing the bottle between his legs.
Now, most of us know that's a bad idea, but how are you at pronouncing Moet et Chandon? (Honestly).
Are you still tilting your champagne glass? And what about opening the wine that a guest has bought you? Good idea - or bad?
The party rules
In the case of the latter, it's a good idea, according to Ricketts. Wine, after all, should be shared, which is why she doesn't give guests a chance to sequester her carefully chosen drop.
"I decant beforehand," Ricketts says.
"I bring the decanted wine to their house and say, 'Let's share this.'"
Ricketts says most people serve white wine far too cold and red wine slightly too warm.
"If it's a warm day, put your red wine in the fridge for 10 minutes beforehand to bring it to true (European) room temperature," she says.
"Put the sparkling in the fridge a couple of hours beforehand and the riesling in for about one hour beforehand."
Chardonnay, however, only needs to be chilled for 30 minutes.
"As it's quite oaky, if you chill it for too long all you taste is oak," Ricketts says.
"I am always battling waiters to get the chardonnay out of the ice bucket."
Champagne 101
Then there is the issue of champagne. How to pour it, what glass to serve it in and what makes a good drop.
According to the director of the Champagne Bureau Australia, John Noble, there is a strong demand for factual courses from people who wish they knew more about champagne.
"We have started holding them across the country and we have 127 people so far signed up, with more emails coming in," Noble says.
"The demand is huge."
So here is a crash course.
The flute is not necessarily the best glass to drink your champagne in, although it does keep the bubbles effervescent for longer, which is handy while you're chatting at a party rather than drinking.
"But forget those wretched Marie Antoinette glasses, or coupe glasses, where the effervescence disappears rather quickly," Noble says.
"That is the worst way to drink champagne. The perfect champagne glass is a tulip-shaped wine that you would serve a nice riesling or sauvignon blanc in, preferably in a glass made of some fine crystal."
And don't bother tilting your glass either as the champagne is being poured. There is no need.
"That's often just to ensure you can fill it up in one go," Noble says.
"The best way to serve is to do an initial pour, wait a beat, and then top up."
Moral of the story
That brings us to the thorny issue of wine pronunciation, which seems to stress many a diner out.
Ricketts recommends giving it a go regardless.
"To a degree, all French wines and champagne is Australianised when pronounced," Ricketts says.
"I asked a French waiter whether he pronounces wine in perfect French when serving Australian customers and he said, 'Absolutely not, no one would understand what I was saying'.
"So don't be intimidated by snobby people. They don't know everything."
Noble agrees, and advises diners not to get too worked up about flouting the rules or mispronouncing a grape.
"There are a lot of bamboozle words in the world of wine," he says.
"There is a term 'elaboration of rosé' which literally just means the making of rosé, but people will often use these words to try and sound intelligent."
Say what? Etiquette coach Anna Musson on how to pronounce foreign wines
Champagne: Shampayne.
Moet et Chandon: Mwet ay Shandon, not Moey.
Pinot noir: Peeno Nuare.
Cabernet sauvignon: Cabernay savvingyon.
Pinot gris: (peeno gree) is the French version of pinot grigio (peeno gree geo), which is Italian. It's the same grape.
How to open a bottle of champagne properly
"Hold the neck of the bottle in your left hand on a 45-degree angle with the cork pointing away from your guest. Never take your hand off the cork as there is a lot of pressure in the bottle. To avoid the cork flying out, gently turn the bottom of the bottle with your right hand until you feel the cork gently release" - assistant sommelier at Sydney's BLACK Bar & Grill, Anke Wellendorf.