1. Setting Up - For the simpler reds and whites, leave until mealtime. For your more interesting selections from the cellar, bring to the table 2-3 hours prior to mealtime in order to warm slowly to room temperature.

2. To Breathe. …- Air can be the ally and the enemy of wine. When you pull the cork on some of your cellar selections, allow the wine to interact with the air for 30 minutes for older reds up to an hour (or more) for younger brawnier reds. If you are patient. This process helps the aromas develop and eases the flavors out from their constraints.

3. …Or Not To Breathe - With a delicate wine, or most commercial wines, there's little need to practice the above restraint. It may even prove fatal for the more volatile mature wines - just uncork and enjoy!

4. Time to Breathe - To set the process off, either leave the bottle standing, cork off, or, better still, pour into a decanter. This will not give the wine nearly as much airing as when it is left in the bowl of a glass. Younger, more closed wines need longer, and the more complex show their class with time.

5. Sediment - The main basis for decanting is to separate good wines from sediment. Most older wines from the great growing areas of the world throw sediment. It is not bad! This process shows the nature growth of a red wine. Technically speaking, as some tannins soften and breakdown, they drop to the bottom of the bottle in the form of sediment. Older Bordeaux, Burgundies, Ports, Italian Chianti's and big Piedmontese's and some California Cabs are the greatest offenders here.

6. Decanting - The trick is the let the sediment gather in one place. A decanting basket is nice, but simply letting an older red stand for a period up to 3-5 hours will accomplish the same result. Hold the bottle in a way that you can watch the wine travel through the bottleneck as you pour. Pour slowly. When the sediment reached the neck - stop. Voila.

7. And What About White Wines? - Save your effort. Whites need to be swirled and drunk.

8. How Chilled is Chill? - Most light crisp white wines will drink best at 40-450 F. Lighter reds that sometimes do better slightly chilled (Beaujolais, light reds from the Loire), but not as much so as the whites.

9. Beware: There is such a thing as an over-chilled wine.


How To… Decant a Wine

1. What is Decanting? Decanting is the transferring of wine from its original container to a fresh glass receptacle, leaving the sediment behind.

2. Deposit - It is best to stand the bottle upright for 3-5 hours (sometimes a bit longer) before decanting to let the sediment settle.

3. The First Step - Hold the bottle in a way that you can watch the wine travel through the bottleneck as you pour. Pour slowly. When the sediment reached the neck - stop. Voila.

4. Before you Pour - After pulling the cork, clean around the top of the bottle to avoid any possible mould or such that can alter the flavors inside.

5. Don't Over Do It - Allow the wine to interact with the air for 15 minutes for older reds up to an hour (or more) for younger brawnier reds. But if you are like us, pull the cork and pour, the wine will take on different nuances as you progress through the meal.

6. And What About White Wines? - Save your effort. Most whites need to be swirled and drunk. Some of the bigger, oaky California Chards might do well with a little air.


How To… Taste a Wine
(Serious thoughts for an informal sport)

If you are simply into the fact that good wine makes meals better, then avoid all of this jibberish. Here are some thoughts on tasting wine from a more professional approach.

1. Setting the stage - Utilize a white background, whether it is a white sheet of paper on the table or a white table itself. Medium intensity light. And a comfortably warmed room.

2. Glasses do make a difference - The ideal glass is the ever-present International Standard Glass, better known as the ISO. The brand name of Reidel glassware offers different glass shapes that gather the aromas of certain wines for easier inspection by a taster. They work but are not necessary. All glasses must be matching, for standard conditions to be achieved.

3. The Prep - For chilled wines, keep all samples in the same environment for uniformity. If tasting in the summer, make sure that the room is sufficiently cooled off so that the reds won't taste the same. Also, if tasting older reds, stand the bottle upright 3-4 hours prior to the tasting to allow the deposit to settle. If necessary, decanter the reds that throw the most deposit.

4. Pouring - Glasses should not be filled to more than 1 ½ to 2 ½ ounces. Leave sufficient room in the glass to be able to swirl.

5. Looks matter - The first aspect of the wine to observe is its appearance. You can tell a lot about a wine by the way it looks: maturity, concentration . . . Those big legs are a sign of lots of glycerin in the wine and therefore it should exhibit a full plumy character. Deep straw color in a white? Show tip you off that the wine is big, rich and in most cases has less acid to the finish.

6. Give it a swirl . . . Once you've had a good eyeful, to get the aromas flowing a wine needs air contact. The glass should be swirled around, steadily, to let the wine inside circulate. But just watch that you don't start doing this with your water glass - a wine snob can be spotted at 100 paces.

7. The Nose - forget about loganberries and lychees for a moment; think more about youthfulness, depth of fruit and complexity.

8. Corkage - It's terribly important in a professional tasting to have at least one reserve for each wine, in case of corked wine (a definite flaw). If you are tasting informally, it may not be so easy. If the offending wine is from a local merchant, take it back and ask for a replacement. It may be a good move to test for these problems way ahead of closing times.

9. Taste - As for smell: this time look for acidity, body, tannin presence, length and finish. And the bigger picture: overall balance and elegance.

10. Value judgments - Many professional tastings give a guideline of price bracket and the taster is expected to judge accordingly. Think about it: would you really call a $4.00 crisp white 'better' than a cru classe' Saint-Emilion, just because it's cheaper?


How To… Cure a Hangover

1. Stay in bed - is probably the most pleasurable. Refuse to move, talk or eat until that headthumping nausea has passed 9allow the whole day).

2. Rehydrate - Drink water, preferably in large quantities, before, during and especially after, is probably one of the best and healthiest measures.

3. Drink more - 'Hair of the dog'": avoid the hangover, by maintaining alcohol levels. It's a desperate, but often successful option in the form of Bloody Marys, Black Velvet (Guinness and Champagne) or anything from a hip flask.

4. Nourish it - Recommended 'alternative'cures come in the form of Cynarus (artichoke), or an anti-toxin Carrduus marianus (Milk Thistle), Taraxecum offinalis (Dandelion) high in minerals and said to be good for the liver and kidney.

5. Buy it off - Chemists sell numerous products claiming to help, though one, Sob'r-K, actually offers a money-back guarantee. However, remembering to take it could be the problem, with two pills to be taken each hour while drinking. Costs $10 for five packs of six pills, Tel: +1 651 774 2760.

6. Stuff it - Eat your way out of adversity choosing from one of these tried and tested morning-after remedies: a full fried English breakfast; bacon sarnie; mars bar and coke; black coffee with eggs in (apparently people do); or the early morning meeting special, Red Bull and expresso.

7. Take heart - Attempt to replace all those lost vitamins by eating healthy foods such as fruit, vegetables, bananas and milkshakes. These are advocated by those feeling guilty about the previous evening's bodily abuse.

8. Horrify it - Read the section on 'alcohol related disabilities' in Alcohol and Alcoholism by The Royal College of Psychiatrists (Tavistock Publications). It might stop you doing it again (reading the book, that is).

9. Ignore this - Of course, the only way to definitely avoid a hangover is not to drink at all: but this isn't a serous proposal, as how would you ever get to enjoy your cellar, endure dinner at the in-laws or kiss on a first date if alcohol was not involved?

10. Could be worse - When feeling really awful and no cure appears to work, take heart from this quote attributed to Frank Sinatra:" I feel sorry for people who don't drink. When they wake up in the morning that's as good as they're going to feel all day."


How To… Choose the Best Wine Glass

1. The shape of things - Glasses should have different shapes to allow for the full expression of the aroma and nose. The bowl should also allow for the drink the ability to aerate the wine.

2. View from the Outside - Avoid all pretty colored glasses when you are concerned about what you are drinking. Color in wine is often the first indication of the "shape" a wine is in.

3. Lead or other - While lead crystal surely has a better "feel" to it, the weight of a glass will not effect the quality in pour into it. Just be sure to fine clear glass.

4. The Taster's Taster - One size can fit all, when it comes to wine tasting. There is one style of glass recognized as the ideal tasting apparatus, the ISO (International Standards Organization) glass: the stem is about 5cm tall, bowl 10cm tall (at its broadest 6.5cm wide).

5. And then there is Riedel - Austrian glassmakers Riedel has developed a series of lead and nonlead glassware that "show different varietal and age group of wine better. While we try to keep our expenses concentrated more on what we are drinking rather than what we are drinking from, we do feel that the Riedel system, while expensive, works well. Example: the distinctive curve on the lip of a Riedel Riesling or Pinot Noir glass guides the wine to the tip of the tongue, where fruit and sweetness is picked up, balancing the varieties' naturally crisp acidity.

6. Bigger is sometimes better - The larger the glass, the more exposure to air, ergo the more evolvement will take place inside, awakening the hidden aromatic depths and balancing tannic power and fruit. The younger (and more closed) the wine, the bigger the bowl required.

7. The Marie Antoinette Champagne Glass - Any glass with more bottom area has a tendency to lose their bubbles quicker. And there is nothing worse than flat champagne. Save these glasses for jello and use a flute. The flute - tall bowl, tapered in at the top - is the only way to drink bubbles - a wide, tapered bowl keeps them small and in several streams, released slowly.


How To… Store Your Wine

1. Wine should be kept in a cool, dark place: the ideal temperature is about 10oC. Though cool, it must be frost free (avoid unheated garages for this reason). Humidity is important to keep the seal of corks - and thus the wine in good condition.

2. Don't keep white wines in the fridge for weeks on end as this can deaden the flavors when you do come to drink them.

3. Always store table wine lying on its side to ensure that the corks don't dry out. Champagne and other sparklers can be stored upright - the layer of carbon dioxide in the neck of the bottle protects the wine from contact with the air.

4. Keep fine wines in their original wooden cases until you are ready to drink them. There's no safer way to store the precious bottles, and the official packaging should certainly be retained if you might want to sell at auction later on.

5. To prevent damp damaging labels on bottles, try sealing them with a blast of unscented hair spray.

6. A compact solution for wine storage is the spiral cellar. These round cellars are sunk into the ground below your house and entered by an integral spiral stair. Bottles are stored in a honeycomb of bins that make up the outer wall of the cellar.


How To… Store an Open Bottle of Wine

1. The Obvious - The obvious solution to this problem is not to let it occur at all, however, in the unfortunate circumstance that they eye is bigger than the appetite help is at hand.

2. Use the Fridge - A well-sealed, fairly full bottle will remain fresh in the fridge for a week or more (remember to let it warm up to room temperature before polishing it off). On the whole, red wines last far better than white.

3. When putting a cork back in a bottle - be sure to put it back the way it originally came out. This is particularly important for older vintages where you don't want the wine exposed to the dirt and mould which may have built up under the capsule.

4. When storing a recorked bottle stand it up to ensure the minimum surface area of wine is in contact with the air: oxygen is the enemy of wine.

5. Save those half bottles! Pour unused wine into a clean half bottle to reduce oxidation. If the bottle is full and sealed with a clean, fresh cork the wine inside may keep for years. NB: Don't wash your halves out with detergent or washing up liquid, the residue may taint the wine.

6. Sucking the air out of the bottle with a Vacu-vin can help a wine keep longer. These devices, available from supermarkets and wine shops for about $8.00, use a pump and a special rubber bung to create a partial vacuum in the bottle, thus reducing the amount of air in contact with the wine.

7. A layer of inert gas can help protect wine from oxidation. Several systems exist, but the most suitable for home use is WineSaver, which squirts a mixture of nitrogen and CO2 into the bottle. The gas covers the surface of the wine and prevents air from getting to it.

8. A Champagne saver is a vital accessory for any sparkling aficionado. The best designs have arms which clip down over the collar around the neck of the bottle - the press down variety have a tendency to fly off rather dramatically. Check for a good strong spring to ensure an adequate seal.

9. Some premium Champagne bottles, such as those of Dom Perignon or Taittinger's Comtes de Champagne have necks which are too narrow for many Champagne savers. While there are some old tales of placing a silver spoon in the neck of the bottle, we believe that the only real solution is to finish the bottle off. Champagne will never taste better tomorrow.

10. Should all these methods fail then all is not lost, a grand cru classe' makes a great wine vinegar or a superb base for salad dressing.


How To… Clean a Decanter

1. The first thing never to let near your decanter is washing up liquid, it's almost impossible to get rid of all the residue of detergent.

2. Get a brush - The long, wire handled brushes used for cleaning babies' bottles are ideal for getting out the dregs of that 1955 vintage port cakes at the bottom.

3. Dissolve those red wine stains with white wine, the more acidic the better - use the end of any unfinished old bottle you have around the house (also a very useful technique for removing claret stains from silk ballgowns).

4. For those really stubborn wine stains, get serious with vinegar, soaking the decanter in it overnight. White wine vinegar is more effective than malt. Don't use any of the flavored varieties.

5. The odd white deposits which appear on crystal decanters, particularly old or antique ones, are lead salts which have leached out of the glass. Through the decanter is perfectly safe to use, due to the range of exciting effects that lead has on the human body (it doesn't do the flavor of the wine much good either, though it can make it slightly sweeter) it is very important to clean them off before use.

6. The traditional butler's method of removing lead salts is with fine gauge shot, obtained from a gunsmith. A spoonful if placed in the decanter, sometimes with a little water, which is then shaken vigorously for about 10 minutes. The abrasive action of the shot rubs off the salt deposits.

7. Among the many modern substitutes for shot, and perhaps more readily obtainable, are sand and water (highly effective) and dry coffee grounds. Some authorities swear by ultra-hard stale dried pudding rice.

8. The old restaurant technique of scouring the decanter with strips of torn up newspaper works, but should probably be avoided because of the interesting components of printing inks. There's also the difficulty of getting the bits of newspaper out again afterwards.

9. When all else fails, there can only be one solution: chemical warfare! False teeth cleaning solution is sovereign for cleaning decanters: simply fill and leave overnight, but be sure to rinse it extremely thoroughly to avoid that tell-tale minty nose.

10. Dry your decanter carefully with a lint-free cloth to avoid water stains. To quickly dry the inside, try Suck-ups. These newly invented socklike bags filled with a high tech water absorbent substance make short work of polishing the interior of a decanter. Contac the manufacturers, LaLaLa Ltd, on +1 609 397 1571.


How To… Buy en Primeur

1. Do your homework before deciding on a purchase. Consult magazines like Decanter for pre-release tasting notes and harvest reports to discover which estates have performed best.

2. Look beyond the 'usual suspects' and don't purchase a wine simply because so-and-so gave it a high score (unless you know that their taste is similar to yours). There's much better value to be had away from the media-hyped superstars and fashionable appellations at a bargain price.

3. Cultivate a relationship with a merchant whose recommendations you can rely on. Get on the mailing lists of as many good merchants as you can.

4. It can pay to shop around - Offer prices for the same wine vary considerably between merchants, depending on the state of the market and from which tranche individual firms obtained their supplies.

5. Read the small print of the offer extremely carefully, and work out what the final cost will be. To a tempting 'ex-cellars' price you will have to add shipping to the UK, plus VAT, duty and, of course, delivery. An 'in bound' price means shipping is included, but the other costs must be paid for before you take delivery. All told, these costs can add significantly to the final price - allow for them.

6. Keeping wines in bond while they mature can be a good option, particularly if you might want to re-export them. The usual caveats regarding storing wines with merchants apply.

7. Don't buy speculatively - fine wine prices can fluctuate dramatically, as in the early 1970s, so your wines could end up being worth less than you paid for them. Only purchase wines that you actually want to drink and don't be stampeded into buying en-primeur in the hope of a quick profit.

8. If you can afford it, buy two cases of any chateau you follow. Sample one as it matures and leave the other untouched so you will have an ample supply on hand when it's finally ready.

9. If you are going to buy only the big names or those with high Parker scores you may well have to pay a premium for them: many merchants are charging extra for these bottles to try and discourage speculators - some are even refusing to sell to people who request trophy wines solely, or insisting that only purchasers of other wines have a chance of obtaining supplies of the sought-after estates.

10. Check on delivery terms and find out exactly when you will receive your wines. Remember to inform your merchant if you move house in the long gap between buying the wine and delivery - some people don't!


How To… Learn About Wine

1. Master it - If you're after the prestigious Mast of Wine qualification (only about 250 worldwide), then contact the Institute of Master of Wine on +44 171 236 4427. For other professional exams, as well as appreciation courses, contact the Wine & spirit Education Trust, London EC4, Tel: +44 171 236 3551 (www.wset.co.uk).

2. Sunshine State - California is home to two powerful oenology institutions: UC Davis, Tel +1 530 752 1011, and Fresno State, Tel: +1 559 4532000. Both offer a range of courses, winemaking facilities and research.

3. Down south - In South Africa: Institute of Cape Wine Masters in Stellenbosch holds exams at several levels; Tel: +27 2231 731157. The Cape Wine Academy offers a two year diploma and week-long seminars.

4. Cool - For lessons in cool climate viticulture, heard for New Zealand and Lincoln Uni's viticulture and oenology course. It offers programmes from undergraduate studies to a bachelor in viticulture and oenology, to postgraduate studies and research degrees. Tel: + 64 3 325 2811 or Fax +64 3 325 3840.

5. When in Rome - Italy boasts a number of course: the Istituto Sperimentale per La Viticoltura in Veneto, Tel: +39 141 53084) and the Istituto Sperimentale per L'Enologia in Asti, Tel: + 39 141 53084. For appreciation courses, contact Enoteca Italiana, Tel:+39 577 46091.

6. Down under - Two big Institutions in Australia are: Roseworthy Agricultural College, South Australia, Tel: +61 85 24 8057, and Charles Stuart University, North Wagga Wagga 2650 on the West coast, Tel: +61 69 23 2435. Both have on-site wineries and offer extensive courses on viticulture and oenology. (For details of other courses contact the Wine Industry National Education & Training council, Tel: +61 8 8364 5322.)

7. Et Ici - France has too many centers to do credit here; contact Unkon Francaise Oenologues in Montperllier, Tel: +33 467 925424, or ENITA Bordeaux, Tel: +33 557 350707, CFA Pyrenees Atlantiques. A couple of websites worth browsing are www.onisep.fr and www.educagri.fr.

8. Get the habit - Kloster Eberbach, Geisenheim Rheingau is a 12th-centruy Cistercian monastery and base for oenological studies. Contact the German Wine Institute, Tel: +49 6131 2890.

9. Appreciate it - Auction houses, cookery schools, newspapers, restaurants, off-licences often run courses or have details of one-off tastings, and food and wine pairings.

10. DIY Another, immeasurably pleasurable way of learning, is to find a comfortable sofa, open a range of different bottles - chosen to represent different varietals, regions, producers within a region etc - relax, clasping one of the many 'how to taste wine' books and start sipping at your leisure.


How To… Buy Wine in a Restaurant

1. Treat sommeliers with caution - The best of them are genuinely helpful and knowledgeable; the worst are pompous, ignorant and give bad (and frequently expensive) advice. Test them out with an exploratory question or two first. And whatever happens, stand your ground.

2. Don't be frightened to ask for an ice bucket - Far too many red wines are served at excessively high temperatures. The opposite is true of white wines, too many of which could pass for sorbets.

3. Avoid de luxe Champagens, classed growth Bordeaux, and grand cru burgundies, especially those from the best vintages - unless you really want to make credit card executives happy. The same goes for anything that has scored over 95 points in America, been produced in microscopic, massively-hyped quantities or is drunk by film stars.

4. Stay away from restaurants that sell double vintages (1996/97 for example) as though they were interchangeable. It suggests they can't be bothered to update their list from one month to the next.

5. Be wary of bin ends or wines of the week/month/decade/millennium. Unscrupulous or desperate restaurateurs often sell them as a way of getting rid of wines that don't sell. Three-year-old Beaujolais Nouveau is a giveaway here.

6. New World wines are safer bet than Old World wines, but Old World wines are more likely to surprise you (in either a negative or positive sense). New World brands may be a boring choice, but they rarely disappoint.

7. It's usually better to buy an obscure wine by the glass than the bottle. If you like it, you can always order more. This is also good way to expand your tasting horizons.

8. The best value restaurants wines come from Chile, Argentina, southern Italy, the Languedoc and Spain. Along with the famous regions of France and Italy, California generally offers the worst value for money.

9. A long list isn't necessarily a good list - You are often better served by a varied, intelligently chosen, single page of wines than a telephone directory padded out with bottles well past their sell-by date.

10. Fill your address book with BYOs - There aren't as many of them here as in Australia, but the best places enable you to eat (and of course drink) at reasonable prices.