How to impress in-laws with wine at a Thanksgiving or Christmas gathering.

Her parents always under-appreciated you, but the holidays are coming, and you are all gathering at your place. How can you impress them? If you had a new sport car sitting in your garage purchased from a holiday bonus - that would not be a question. However, most of us lead a simple life and would still love to have authority and appreciation at the holiday table. So how do you make in-laws listen and nod with every word you say?

Impress them with the right bottle.

Shop in advance to avoid the holiday rush. The bottle you pick should not be ridiculously expensive. Unless you have a father-in law who used to work as a sommelier you won’t impress him with a rare expensive bottle. Moreover, you might be labeled as an over-spender as most older people tend to be careful with money. The best pick would be a wine you have tasted before and really liked. The key factor here is that you really enjoyed the wine, so you want to buy it again to share it with loved ones. There are plenty of wines from various regions that are really great and cost about an average of $15 a bottle.

People love to hear a good story.

Yes, people love to hear a story especially with warm company after a glass or two of wine. Do some research. Learn a story behind the wine you serve. What region it came from. Maybe even a little history behind the area where the wine grew. Most European wine regions have a rich history of wars and power struggles. On the other hand, you can concentrate on the specifics of the regional climate that produced such a great wine. This would be a great moment to bring up the memories of your last trip to France or Italy to support your knowledge. Personal experience will make your story have more authority.

Wine tasting experience.

The story behind the wine you serve should be complimented with professional tasting attributes. Right after pouring the wine in all glasses, you should slowly raise you glass and evaluate the color and the density of the wine. Swirl the glass a few a times - and before taking your first sip - smell it. Feel free to share the notes of its smell out loud. Ask everyone what notes of fruit they have smelled. Then slowly taste the wine and share the tasting notes you picked with others. Believe me, this approach to tasting wine will impress everyone at the table and immediately make you an expert in wines. And it will make the wine tasting experience fun for everyone. Finally, your in-laws will be looking to you as an expert and asking for an advice on how to choose the right wine for the next occasion. If you’re looking or one last way to impress - mention that the price of the wine was not very high, instead it was your expertise that allowed you to find a hidden gem.