This article was co-authored by Samuel Bogue
and by wikiHow staff writer, Dan Hickey
. Samuel Bogue is a sommelier based in San Francisco, California. He is the Wine Director of the renouned Ne Timeas Restaurant Group and a wine consultant for other top restaurants in the San Francisco Bay area. He gained his Sommelier certification in 2013, and since then has been recognized as a Zagat "30 Under 30" award winner and a Star Chefs Rising Star.
There are 13 references
cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page.
This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources.
This article has been viewed 37,500 times.
You’re excited to wind down with a glass of wine after a long day, but when you uncork the bottle, you realize it isn’t quite to your liking. Is there any way to make it taste better? Thankfully, there are a ton of ways to change the taste after you pour a glass. We’ve put together a handy list of ways to make wine taste better, from mixing in new ingredients to simply letting it breathe. If you’re ready to kick back and take a sip, keep scrolling!
Things You Should Know
- Mix wine with a small amount of lemon juice to brighten up a dull flavor.
- Add a pinch of sugar to overly acidic wine.
- Mix the wine to make another drink. You can make sangria, calimochos, or spritzers with wine that doesn't taste good on its own.
- In general, be sure to chill and aerate your wine. Drinking out of appropriate wine glasses can also help maximize flavor.
Steps
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Bad wine is best served cold. White wine is normally chilled anyway, so consider storing it in the freezer to mute any unsavory flavors. [1] X Research source Keep red wine, which is usually served at room temperature, in the refrigerator and pull it out about an hour before you want to uncork it to reach the ideal temperature. [2] X Research source
- Add ice cubes to bad wine (red or white) if you don’t have time to chill it before drinking. As the ice melts, it’ll water down the bad flavor, too.
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Aerated wine smells better and has a smoother, more balanced flavor, since oxygen will help it mature. To aerate your wine quickly, pour it into a wine decanter through an aeration funnel . The large width of the decanter creates more surface area, which speeds up the process. [3] X Research source
- Alternatively, just uncork the bottle and let it sit for about an hour. You can also try stirring the wine, or even putting it in the blender for a few seconds!
- Aerating is most effective on red wines, but can make a difference in the taste of white wines too.
- Trying to enjoy some wine on a plane? Aerate those sealed, single-serving wine bottles by shaking them for 45-60 seconds before drinking. [4] X Research source
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Wine glasses are shaped to give you the optimum taste and aroma. For reds, go for big, wide wine glasses and stop pouring at the widest part of the glass for maximum aeration. For whites, choose a more slender glass with a smaller rim to focus the aromas and reduce aeration. [5] X Research source
- Pour just a little wine at a time. A glass that’s too full can't breathe properly. [6] X Research source
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Blending is an easy way to improve the taste of cheap wine. If you have another, higher-quality bottle around, mix the 2 together to make your own personal blend. Put like wines together—for example, mix a cheap chardonnay with a more refined bottle of chardonnay, a merlot with a merlot, and so on. [7] X Research source
- If you have a sophisticated wine palette, experiment with mixing grape varieties. Who knows? You might end up with your own wine brand one day!
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Add lemon to balance the acidity and brighten the flavor of dull wines. Just squeeze the juice from a lemon wedge into your glass and give it a quick stir. Let it sit for a minute before you take another sip and voilà! You’ll have a crisper, more refreshing wine. [8] X Research source
- The scent of lemon will mix with the wine’s natural aromas, which helps balance the wine and lemon flavors.
- Lime juice will work in a pinch, but not as effectively because it doesn’t have as much citric acid.
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If your wine tastes thin or acidic, sweetness will balance out the flavor. Try adding tiny pinches of sugar to your glass, tasting the wine between each pinch until you find a taste you enjoy. Try granulated sugar, Stevia , or even simple syrup (although this will also water the wine down a bit). [9] X Research source
- The best sweetener is unfermented grape juice . Look for grape juice with no added preservatives or sugar at the grocery store.
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Bubbles and ice can make a big difference in the taste of your wine. To make a spritzer, add a splash of club soda to reds, whites, or rosés to liven the flavor and add some texture. If you want to get fancy with it, add berry flavored seltzer water to reds and rosés, or lemon or pear flavors to whites. [10] X Research source
- Add as much carbonation to your wine as you like. A good place to start is 1 part soda water to 2 parts wine. [11] X Research source
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Calimocho is a Spanish drink made from red wine and Coca-Cola. It’s a refreshing beverage that tastes almost like a spicy cherry cola. Pour equal amounts of Coke and red wine over ice and you’re ready to drink! A lime wedge adds a nice touch, too. [12] X Research source
- Feel free to adjust the proportions of Coke to wine to your liking.
- Calimocho is also spelled as “kalimotxo” in some regions of Spain.
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Acidic, fruity flavors can really make a dull white wine pop. Try adding pineapple chunks for a strong, tropical flavor, pomegranate seeds for a delicious (and pretty looking) beverage, or lemonade for a smooth, refreshing cocktail. A splash of club soda and some ice takes it to the next level. [13] X Research source
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Even a bad wine can make a tasty batch of refreshing sangria. In a pinch, add some chopped fruit to your glass of red—anything works, but apples, citrus, and berries are delicious. If you plan to make sangria ahead of time, a splash of brandy and orange juice makes it more traditional. [14] X Research source
- For a white sangria, add fruits like lemons, limes, peaches, or green apples with apple brandy and cane sugar. [15] X Research source
- There are a lot of ways to make a tasty, refreshing sangria. Next time it’s hot outside, do a quick search online and try out a tempting recipe!
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Mulled wine is a hot drink made with wine, fruit, and spices. The flavor of the wine gets lost among the other ingredients, so you don’t have to worry about the taste you don’t like cutting through. Simmer red wine with brandy, fruit, and spices for a cozy, holiday drink. [16] X Research source
- Try simmering a bottle of red with clementine slices, 1 cinnamon stick, 1 star anise, 3 dried figs, 4 cloves, 3 whole peppercorns, and 50 mL (0.2 cups) of brandy. Fish out the whole spices and enjoy! [17] X Research source
- Try adding blueberries, cinnamon, and clove to make German Glühwein.
- There are a ton of mulled wine recipes online—do a quick search and find one that looks appealing!
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Spicy food distracts your taste buds from fully interacting with bad wine. This is especially true for most white wines and reds that are way too sweet. The sweetness of the wine also makes super spicy foods more palatable, so load up on hot sauce or order that extra-spicy curry you’ve been wanting to try. [18] X Research source
- Try hot cuisine like Indian or Thai food, Spanish chorizo, spicy salami, gumbo, or spicy soups.
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Grilled or smoked food balances out wine that tastes too oaky or smoky. Some wines are exposed to teabags of charred wood chips before they’re bottled, resulting in a smoky flavor. To make it tastier, invite some friends over for a grill out—that wine will be a lot more delicious with a burger or a rack of ribs! [19] X Research source
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Cheese has a strong, savory flavor that compliments almost all wines. Snack on a piece between sips and notice how you perceive the wine differently. Bad reds will taste less bitter or acidic and smell fruitier, and whites become more fragrant without losing sweetness. [20] X Research source
- There’s a lot of science and history behind wine and cheese pairings, but to sum it up—pretty much any assortment of cheeses will make any wine taste better.
- There’s little evidence of any cheese that makes wine taste worse , so feel free to grab your favorite and go to town!
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Savory and high-protein foods counteract that cheap red wine taste. Try pairing your troublesome red with red meat, mushrooms, spiced stews, seafood, or other high-protein dishes. It’ll make you look fancy and make your wine more drinkable at the same time! [21] X Research source
- Other good food pairing options could be pork dishes, pizza, or pasta with red sauce.
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Copper takes away the sulfur smell of bad wine. Wash a copper penny really well and drop into your glass. Swish it around for a few seconds, then fish it out. The copper reacts with smelly thiol compounds and makes them odorless. [22] X Research source
- Since smell guides our sense of taste, a better smelling wine will taste better too.
- If you can, use a penny made before 1982 (modern pennies have less copper in them, but will still work to some degree).
Expert Q&A
Video
Tips
- Tasty wine can be hard to put down. Remember to drink responsibly!Thanks
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References
- ↑ https://unsobered.com/how-to-make-cheap-white-wine-taste-better/
- ↑ https://www.eatthis.com/simple-trick-wine-taste-better/
- ↑ https://canvas.seattlecentral.edu/courses/1254478/pages/3-ways-to-help-your-wine-taste-better
- ↑ https://qz.com/186215/make-airplane-wine-taste-better/
- ↑ https://canvas.seattlecentral.edu/courses/1254478/pages/3-ways-to-help-your-wine-taste-better
- ↑ https://whiningaboutwine.wordpress.com/2012/12/06/how-to-make-your-shit-wines-taste-better/
- ↑ https://unsobered.com/how-to-make-terrible-red-wine-taste-better/
- ↑ https://www.go-wine.com/wine-article-2217-got-bad-wine-heres-how-to-fix-it-using-science.html
- ↑ https://www.go-wine.com/wine-article-2217-got-bad-wine-heres-how-to-fix-it-using-science.html
- ↑ https://www.eatthis.com/simple-trick-wine-taste-better/
- ↑ https://unsobered.com/how-to-make-cheap-white-wine-taste-better/
- ↑ https://whiningaboutwine.wordpress.com/2012/12/06/how-to-make-your-shit-wines-taste-better/
- ↑ https://unsobered.com/how-to-make-cheap-white-wine-taste-better/
- ↑ https://minimalistbaker.com/easy-traditional-red-sangria/
- ↑ https://minimalistbaker.com/easy-traditional-white-sangria/
- ↑ https://www.eatthis.com/leftover-red-wine-ideas/
- ↑ https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/easy-mulled-wine
- ↑ https://unsobered.com/how-to-make-terrible-red-wine-taste-better/
- ↑ https://unsobered.com/how-to-make-terrible-red-wine-taste-better/
- ↑ https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/580884
- ↑ https://unsobered.com/how-to-make-terrible-red-wine-taste-better/
- ↑ https://www.sciencealert.com/watch-here-s-how-to-save-spoiled-wine-with-chemistry