This it the best part, right? Well sure it is, but the funny thing about actually tasting wine (or anything for that matter) is that our taste buds are only capable of distinguishing four 'tastes': sweet, sour, bitter, and salty. Taste is really more a function of smell than it is taste. However, these four sensations, which all have well defined regions on our tongues, provide additional information in the tasting process that our noses cannot. Sweetness is realized by the tip of the tongue, sour by the sides, bitter by the back and salty by the center.

In the same way that it is important to view a glass of wine from various angles in order to capture its visual characteristics , or to swirl the wine to experience its aroma, it is helpful to slosh the wine in your mouth so that it comes in contact with all of the sensory zones of your tongue.

When tasting a young, dry (no residual sugar) white wine, for example, you may notice its acidity (tartness), while a strapping young red may leave an astringent sensation (like over-seeped tea or walnut skins) from the grape tannins in its skins. (Reds ferment with their skins; whites don't.) Some varieties, like Riesling, Chenin Blanc, and Gamay Beaujolais, have a fruity taste, while dessert wines will be overtly sweet. (Wines can be fruity without being literally sweet.)

Wines differ in body (the "weight" of a wine) as well. Generally, those with less alcohol are light-bodied, while those with higher alcohol have a medium-bodied or full-bodied texture. A wine without requisite body may seem thin or watery, while a heavy-bodied wine may seem almost viscous. Some wines display a round, supple texture, while others, particularly tannic reds, may taste rough or coarse. Wines too high in alcohol may taste hot and harsh.

Whatever taste sensations a wine imparts, the key to its quality is balance, the harmony of all its elements -- fruit, acid, tannin, alcohol, wood (if any), etc. For example, a wine may fall short of the mark because a low level of acidity leaves it tasting slightly flat or a high level of tannin gives it an unpleasing bitterness. Another important indicator of a wine's quality is its aftertaste or finish. If the aftertaste is short (fades quickly), it's unlikely to be a high-quality wine, while a long finish is one sign of a quality wine.

By the way, professional tasters spit the wine out because they don't have to swallow to learn what they need to know (a little sloshing in the mouth does the trick), and to stay sober while tasting many wines. Whereas we civilians get to swallow. Sometimes it's nice to be an amateur.

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