Imperfect Wine Tastings Bring People Together

Wine tasting has the power to create genuine human connection.  Sharing your unedited and raw experience of a wine is both a brave and generous act.  It paves the way for others to speak just as openly about what they feel. 

At a tasting among a group of friends and strangers, a conversation of a red wine showed how our different perceptions can bring us closer instead of pushing us apart.  

“Maybe it’s because I just came back from a trip to the countryside in Saratoga Springs because I smell cut, dried grass and I see hay bales and rolling green fields under a sunny sky.  It’s delicious!” gushes Chris, smiling.

“I also taste something that’s like grass.  Though for me, I think it’s more like the dirt clumps of dried grass?” Ollie adds with uncertainty. 

“Well, I don’t taste anything but dirt. YUCK,” Anna pronounces, shuddering.  

The group roars with laughter, several people nodding vigorously in agreement.   

Whether through a smile, a grimace or just a few words—positive or negative—your outward expression is an opportunity for the group to relate to each other and to understand one another’s unique impression of a wine.  

When you smile, your positive experience can extend and prolong the pleasure that someone else is also having with a wine.  Much like a sunset is more magnificent when admired with others around you, wine tasting is more satisfying through collective enjoyment. 

Your visible pleasure might even allow others to savor the wine vicariously through your senses.  This is why adults find delight in watching the faces of young childrenas they play.

Verbalizing your interpretation of a wine helps others notice nuances they might have missed.  When you share what you taste, people become curious and want to explore deeper to taste the wine as you do.  With your input, they might be able to make the connection to a memory that was out of their grasp a minute ago. 

Or, if they are not tasting the wine at all like you, they may find other flavors that would have gone unnoticed had they not persisted.  

Expressing confusion or dislike can be equally connecting.  Voicing that you don't understand or enjoy a particular wine reassures others who feel similarly but hesitate to admit it.  Feeling less alone, that person may be encouraged to contribute their own impressions of a wine.  

In the tasting above, Anna’s candid “YUCK” created an instant bond with others who shared her reaction.  Her unselfconscious comment brought a playfulness that transformed the tasting into a moment of spontaneous joy for everyone.    

Shared moments of discovery like these ultimately matter more than the technical quality of a wine.  Wines, in themselves, are not inherently good or bad.  Their aromas and flavors are experienced differently based on each person’s biology, cultural background and psychological make-up. 

In group tastings, the wine can be a medium for communal discovery, understanding and connection rather than the sole focus of the event.  The camaraderie that comes from the shared goal of exploring together is what makes the wine and the moment truly meaningful and memorable.

In the end, wine-tasting is about much more than technical vocabulary and knowledge—it is about the meaningful connections we build through the honest sharing of our lived experiences.

Sartvourez helps groups and teams have supportive, fun, group bonding conversations through the collaborative exploration of art and wine.  

Art: Henri Matisse, Nasturtiums with "The Dance" (II) (1912)