Wine is one of the best-loved alcoholic drinks in all of history. What makes wine so popular? One of the reasons is surely that there are so many varieties. There are a lot of wines out there, and one is sure to catch your fancy. Here are some smart tips about wine to help you navigate those waters.

Instead of throwing out your last bits of wine, consider saving it for a marinade for dinner the next night. Take your wine, add some seasoning and place it in a bowl. Add your favorite piece of meat to the bowl and let it sit for several hours or even overnight. This will add delicious flavor to your next night's meal!

It is not as difficult as you may think to pair a wine with the food you are cooking. It is really as simple as the sauce. You are looking for a nice balance between the food and the wine. Often, you will not be looking at the main dish, but the sauce that is accompanying the main dish.

Ask for help when picking a wine with your dinner. Every restaurant that offers a large wine selection that is of high quality has someone on its staff that can recommend the perfect wine for your meal. They will ask you about certain preferences and can suggest a great wine based on what you will be eating and what you know you enjoy.

Sweet wines are referred to as dessert wine. They often have alcoholic additives in them to make the flavor even bolder. This creates a syrup-like wine which is great in small doses. Pairing it with a savory dessert creates the best course of the meal, so try it at your next dinner party.

If you want to visit a winery, you should know that the wine you buy and bring home will not taste like the wine you tried at the winery. The wine offered to visitors is often never put into bottles and the wine you buy will change during your trip home.

If you used a wine as an ingredient in the meal you cooked, consider pairing that same wine with the meal when serving. This usually will produce an excellent combination because many of the flavors of the wine are contained within the meal you cooked. It does not matter if it was a marinade or a main ingredient, it always works well.

If you are cooking with wine, the type of dish you are making indicates whether you will need a dry or sweet wine. For savory dishes, always choose a dry wine. If you want a dry white wine, try a chardonnay. Dry red wines include merlot and pinot noir.

A good tip if you're offering wine at a restaurant is to make sure you know how to properly care for the wine. There's nothing more annoying than ordering some wine by the glass, only to find out that it wasn't properly cared for and it wasn't very good because of it.

Store your wine at the right temperature. If you store it in either a too cool or too warm environment, you are affecting its ability to age properly. If you have the means, you should store your wine at fifty-five degrees Fahrenheit. It is not recommended that you keep a large collection if you cannot do this diligently.

If you are going to a party or a gathering, and you would like to bring wine, try to stick with something that is not too strong. Pinot Noir is a great choice for occasions like this, because it goes with most food. Regardless of what the host is serving, he or she should appreciate it.

Carry a map or some sort of direction for your given area. Some of the best wine venues are incredibly organized and easy to navigate, while others are chaotic and will lose you in the twits-and-turns. Print off a map of your designated area, and you'll never miss that perfect shop just around the bend.

Taste wines in an environment free of aromas. If you have food cooking, use candles or have other odors present when you are trying to taste a wine you will not get an accurate impression. Aromas will conflict with the taste and could leave you with a distaste for a wine you may have enjoyed otherwise.

Whether you're cooking, entertaining, collecting, or something else, the information you've read here will become useful. If wine is your thing, then you will be energized by this information and looking for more. Keep the advice that has been mentioned here in the forefront of your mind as you search out your next wine.