The Secret of the Swirl

When you break it down, swirling is the craft of releasing the aroma of wine. Wine glasses are designed to capture the aromatics of the wine, and when you swirl, you’re increasing the surface area of the wine in the glass. This allows the scent of the wine to fill your nose as you slowly swirl your glass, inviting you to not only appreciate the smell and creating a captivating visual experience.

As a sommelier – especially at Blackberry Farm where the wine cellar runs deep with over 150,000 bottles of wine – you perfect your own methodology of the wine swirl. “I like to let the wine sit in the glass for a few minutes to allow the esters to fill the glass,” says Head Sommelier of The Barn at Blackberry Farm, Jason Drotar. “I like to allow my senses to capture as much information about the wine as possible. Before I swirl the glass, I like to pick it up in order to get the initial impression of the wine. I like to discover what story this wine is telling. Then I will do a single swirl to introduce a little new oxygen to the glass and push out some of the lighter smells in the glass. I'll repeat this process three, maybe four, times because with each successive swirl, I get new information about the wine.”

During a stay at Blackberry Farm, guests have the opportunity to perfect their own swirling technique during a wine tasting. Blackberry tastings dive into the story behind each bottle, learning about the region, variety, producer and vintage as you sip.

“Swirling [wine] looks great, and once you have built up that muscle memory, you swirl every glass you hold,” says Andy Chabot, Blackberry’s Vice President of Food and Beverage. “In fact, I often find myself swirling my water glass too!” There is no correct or incorrect way to swirl a glass – whichever direction you choose is correct for you. It’s all about enhancing your overall wine experience. So, go on! Swirl, smell and enjoy.