Resources & Links:
Sign up for the Wine Educate newsletter to submit your question and get tasting sheets, study tips, and updates: www.wineeducate.com//newsletter-signup

About the Episode:
This week’s listener question comes from Liz, and it’s one many of us can relate to—how do you know when it’s the right time to open a special bottle of wine?

In this episode, I walk you through the key components that make a wine age-worthy—acidity, tannin, sugar, concentration, and complexity—and how proper storage conditions play a big role in how a wine matures over time. I also share strategies for checking in on how a bottle might be drinking now (even if it’s not yours!) using tools like CellarTracker and Wine-Searcher.

If you’re sitting on a wine you’ve been saving for the “perfect” moment, this episode might help you decide whether to wait—or go ahead and pull the cork.

What You’ll Learn:

• Why most wines are not made to age and are best enjoyed young

• What structural and sensory traits give a wine aging potential

• How bottle variation and storage conditions affect aging

• How to use online tasting notes to guide your drinking window

• Why sometimes, it’s worth drinking the wine now—and creating a memory

Ask Your Own Question:
Got something you’d like to hear about on the podcast? Leave me a voice note through SpeakPipe—the link is always in the newsletter. I’d love to hear from you.

Thanks for listening, and don’t wait too long—life is short, and the wine is probably ready.

Resources & Links
Subscribe to the newsletter to get the Body Exercise Handout: www.wineeducate.com/newsletter-signup

Have questions or want to share how your tasting group is doing? Email me: joanne@wineeducate.com

Episode Summary
In this Tuesday Tasting episode, we’re revisiting one of my favorite exercises for helping students understand a core component of wine tasting: body. This is a concept that comes up frequently in both Level 2 and Level 3 WSET exams, and it's something many students struggle to pin down confidently.

We’re stepping away from the wine glass—at least temporarily—and heading to the fridge. This episode walks you through a tried-and-true tasting experiment using skim, 2%, and whole milk to illustrate how body feels on the palate. It’s a simple way to isolate that sensation of “weight,” and it gives you a clear reference point that you can carry into your wine tasting practice.

Whether you're studying for the exam or just want to fine-tune your palate, this is an exercise worth doing—and worth repeating.

In This Episode
Joanne breaks down how to approach the concept of body in wine and explains how alcohol, tannin, and sweetness all contribute to it. She shares her go-to “cheat sheet” for estimating body and guides listeners through a fun, low-pressure experiment using different types of milk to simulate the light-to-full body spectrum.

She also touches on how to translate this into a wine tasting, offering examples of wines you can use to reinforce what you learned through the milk exercise. Plus, there’s a reminder about wine tasting order and why it matters more than we think.

If you’re already subscribed to the newsletter, check your inbox for a printable version of the milk experiment, along with discussion prompts for tasting groups. And if you're not on the list yet, you can sign up anytime at wineeducate.com.

Want to Share Your Results?
Joanne would love to hear how this exercise goes for you or your tasting group. Just hit reply to the newsletter email—or send a note to joanne@wineeducate.com—and let her know what you discovered.

Resources & Links
Connect on Instagram and join the conversation: @wineeducate
Have a wine question for Joanne? Email joanne@wineeducate.com

Episode Summary
In this Thursday episode, Joanne digs into a frequently asked—and slightly spicy—topic: what exactly is a sommelier? Who gets to use the title, and how has the meaning shifted over time?

She traces the word’s origins from its Old French roots (spoiler: it involved pack animals) to its evolution in aristocratic households and, eventually, the modern fine dining scene. Drawing from respected sources like Jancis Robinson’s Oxford Companion to Wine, Joanne breaks down the traditional definition—and then explores how that definition is being stretched today.

With the rise of formal certifications (like CMS and WSET), social media, and pop culture (hello, Somm), the title “somm” is now being used far beyond the restaurant floor. But is that a problem? Or just part of natural language evolution?

Joanne plays devil’s advocate, shares some historical perspective, and invites you to weigh in. Whether you work in a restaurant, retail shop, tasting room, or classroom, this episode offers food for thought on how we define roles in the wine industry.

In This Episode:

• The origin and history of the word "sommelier"

• The traditional definition (and who sets it)

• The modern shift: somm as a role vs. somm as an identity

• How wine professionals in education, retail, or distribution fit into the picture

• Why the term can be controversial—and why it still matters

• A call for listener thoughts and discussion on Instagram

Join the Conversation
Have an opinion about the word “somm”? Find the discussion post on Instagram @wineeducate and share your thoughts. This is one where we want to hear from you.