How do I know what I'm drinking?

I've seen this question pop up quite a few times...how do I know what I'm drinking?  Are there any characteristics that tell you what you're drinking if you're drinking it blind?

Yes and no...

Sometimes you'll find wine that fits into a nice box and sometimes you don't....Even the best at doing it, which IMO is probably Master Sommeliers, make mistakes (A lot)....I think watching blind tasting by very qualified professionals is extremely interesting and you'd be shocked to see how often they get the variety, region, etc, all wrong....Other people might not feel it is interesting at all but to me, I enjoy watching how they break down certain characteristics and come up with a good guess...

So rather than trying to identify a particular varietal of a wine...I think it is easier to start off w/ identifying the basics...

Acid
Tannin
Oak
Residual Sugar
Alcohol

Then move on to:
Malolactic Fermentation
Stems
Skin Contact (for whites)
Lees contact

I'm sure I'm missing some stuff...but these things are relatively objective characteristics of a wine...You can then move on to particular flavor characteristics along w/ the base information to help lead you to a grape variety and/or region....

It is still really really tough though....Even slight hints from other people can easily throw you off....

For me personally, my best blind tastings have been when I'm totally distracted and not listening to anything anyone else is saying...My worst have been when I'm already guessing the wine prior to even tasting it..