How to Build a Wine Menu + Do an At-Home Wine Tasting: BriCember Day 2

Welcome back to Bri Books! Today, we’re discussing my 4 pillars of wine framework that helps you understand where wine comes from, even without reading the label. Planning a wine menu can feel overwhelming, especially during the holidays. In this episode, I’ll teach you how to build a simple, elegant wine menu that works for any gathering and any budget…and then I”ll walk you through an at-home tasting exercise using my signature 4 Pillars of Place tasting method. Listen to this episode of Bri Books to review the 4 Pillars of Place.

In this episode, we’ll cover:

1. The three-bottle wine buying formula (red, white, wildcard)

2. How to taste wine at home: My 4 Pillars of Place: Temperature, Terrain, Soil, and Touch

3. How to build a wine list for parties or dinner

How to Build a Wine Menu: Bri’s 3-Bottle Formula

To avoid overwhelm at the wine shop, use this formula:

1. Crisp white: Choose a Chablis, Gruner Vetliner, Albrino, Saul blanc, or Loire Sauvignon Blanc. These whites pair with almost anything. This works with a wide range of plates and are perfect aperitif wines to start the evening.

2. Juicy red: Choose a Beaujolais, Etna Rosso, Cab Franc, Gamal (Beaujolais), Tempranillo (Rioja raven), or Côtes du Rhône red wine. These are perfect for winter foods, including cozy dishes, meats, and hearty soups/ stews. These pair with poultry, winter vegetables, charcuterie, cheese, and most holiday dishes without overpowering them.

3. Wildcard bottle: This is your personality pick! Go for an orange wine, a sparkling red like Lambrusco, a pet-nat, or a liter bottle of something fabulous and weird. This bottle turns into conversation at the dinner table, and it’ll earn you pride points. The wildcard teachies people something new, and it gives your dinner or party a signature you touch.

How to Do an At-Home Wine Tasting Using the 4 Pillars of Place

My 4 pillars framework helps you understand where your wine comes from, even without the label.

1. Temperature: Look at the wine. Color intensity can give you climate clues.

2. Terroir: Smell the wine. Aromas reflect whether grapes grew near the sea, mountains, forests, or plains

   1. ltitude = floral, lifted flavors

   2. Warm climate = ripe, deeply drinkable

   3. Coastal = salty, breezy, fresh finish

   4. Mountain = Sharp, linear, mineral

   5. Valley floor = lush, smooth

   6. Volcanic = smoky, stony, earthy flavors

3. Soil: Taste the wine. Texture reveals the soil type. As a reminder:

   1. limestone = chalky, saline wine

   2. Volcanic = smoky, ashy flavors in the wine

   3. Granite = crunchy, bright, often ‘cool’ flavors in the wine

   4. Clay = smooth, plush, slightly pucker-y in flavor

   5. High a

4. Touch: Notice winemaking styl. Is it bright? Clean? Raw? Heavy sediment? Is it sharp? Does it grip? Touch is the easiest pillar to learn and the quickest path to understanding what you like.

How to Build a Wine Menu + How to Build Your Wine Knowledge Intentionally

1. Follow local wine shops and their newsletters: One of the easiest ways to stay in the loop is to follow local wine shops and natural win bars on social media, or newsletters. Any time I move or visit a new neighborhood, I look up the closest natural wine bar, the most interesting bottle shop, their IG accounts and their newsletter signups. Shops announce new releases, free tastings, special imports, staff picks and seasonal changes. this is a real secret to discovering wine without having to do any heavy lifting.

2. Create your personal “wine library”: Your phone is your best wine tool. Whenever you try a bottle you enjoy, snap ap photo of the label; drop it into a saved album or add it on Pinterest or an Instagram Story highlights. This becomes your personal wine memory bank, a way to build instincts without memorizing anything.

3. Choose a budget and don’t budge: Before you even walk into the shop: decide: 3-4 bottles for $50, or $12-$15 per bottle? Budget creates clarity. You won’t get distracted by pretty labels or panic-buy the expensive bottle by the register, if you go in with a plan.

4. Let your weekly meals guide you: Think about what you’re actually eating that week. Pasta? Have a red on deck. Chicken, veggies or fish? Keep whites or rose. Tomato dishes love something bright, and cozy reds are great for hearty meals and pot roasts. This practice makes wine more functional.

5. Add a liter bottle for value and ease: I love to go with a liter bottle, which is great for people who want wine that lats several nights. anyone who needs a ‘house red’ is in luck when it comes to tier bottles.

6. Ask what’s new and Tate seasonally: Wine is seasonal like produce. when you shop in store, ask, “What’s new? What came in this week? What’s your sleeper pick under $20?” This gets you small importer finds, seasonal gems, and wines with little to no marketing.

Listen to Bri Books and find @BrionnaJay on Instagram. You can always find Bri Books on Spotify and Apple Podcasts, and at bribookspod.com.