How to Taste Wine (The Basics)

I. Drinking or Tasting

  It’s easy to drink wine-we just put it in our mouths and swallow.  However, the most we can expect to learn from the experience is whether or not we like the wine.  Maybe that’s all we care to know.  Fair enough. 

Tasting wine, on the other hand, is different in that we want the wine to reveal more about itself.  We want to be able to “read” a wine.  We want to determine the difference between a good wine and a better wine, or if it deserved the high score it received in the press. Ultimately, we just want to trust our own palates so that we can make our own decisions.

  But, there is one secret to becoming a good wine taster. The secret is, concentrating on the wine; become one with the wine being tasted, sounds like meditation, yes, but with a twist you get to enjoy good bottles of wine along the way.  

II. Notes

  It is important that you take notes on the wines you taste.  Collected notes can serve as an anthology of the wines you’ve enjoyed.  Notes can help you give practical reference to the wines you have tasted and help you recall your impressions.  Another reason for writing down your thoughts is that, writing notes forces you to organize and focus your thoughts and concentrate on what it is you are tasting.  Listed below are tried and true steps to tasting wine (with our own little twists).

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III. The Procedures for Tasting Wine

When tasting wines we use all of our senses:

         Sight 

        Smell (nose)

         Taste

         Touch (part of taste)

For touch (tongue), consider the texture, the weight, and even the temperature of the wine in our mouths. Our main focus will be on the sight, smell, and taste.  When you approach a glass of wine, its important to think about each sense individually.  Here is the procedure for tasting wine:

Key Points:

 * Make sure you have good lighting

  * A white background such as a napkin or piece of white paper

  * Comfortable atmosphere (temperature of area)

  * If at all possible no perfumes or cologne

  * Glasses 4.5 oz (minimum) tulip shape with stem

  * Amount of wine to pour 1.5-2 oz

  * Pitcher of cool water (not iced)

  * Napkins, pencils, note paper

Serving Temperature for wines:

Note: Before beginning, determine the ideal serving temperature for the wine you will be tasting.  See approx. chart below.

Step 1: Sight (Look)

When we look at a wine, we should tilt the glass at a 45-degree angle.  This will spread the wine out and give you a better perspective.

When we look at a wine, we should think about two things: Color and Clarity.

A. Color:

White wine colors will range from clear as water to golden in color often times associated with the intensity of the wine, but, by no means is this an indication of it’s complexity (you must taste the wine for that)

Red wine colors will range from deep purple to brick red with orange hues, it can sometimes be used as a clue to maturity, the deeper the color the younger the wine.  To be used as a guide.

B. Clarity:

For marketing and appearance the wine would have gone through some type of filtering process giving it a beautiful brilliance in the glass.  However, if you should encounter a wine that has little floating particles, it’s most often a part of the wine and in most cases harmless.  It could be things such as` cork, sediment or crystals (tartaric acid) if you find this unappealing please, decant it.

Step 2: Swirl & Smell

Note: If you are new to swirling, here’s a tip, leave the glass sitting flat on it’s base on the table while holding the stem or base, rotate the glass either right or left in a circular motion.  Experienced swirlers have at it!

Two things are accomplished with swirling:

1.  Agitation and air.  In this case oxygen is your friend, the swirling mixes and incorporates air with the juice in order to help release it’s aromas (this is the non-scientific explanation).

2. When you stop swirling observe a light or thick coating that adheres to the inside of the wine glass as the juice begins to settle, this is what is called the wines “legs” it can give us some idea as to the body or weight of the wine.

Guideline (for body or weight):

· Light bodied wines (not sweet) 11-12 % alcohol

· Medium bodied wines 12-13 % alcohol

· Full bodied wines 13-14 % alcohol

Although 14 % and above may seem to alcoholic if other components are not in balance.

After we’ve finished swirling, it’s time to smell and communicate what we smell.  There is no right or wrong in this phase,  but only your opinion of the impression the wine reveals to you.  However sharing your findings are encouraged.  Have fun!

Smell (Nose):

Hover your nose on the inside of the glass and inhale long (about 10-15 seconds) slow and deep.  This will set the brain registers for what’s next.  Think about what you smell, but don’t write it down just yet.  Give it another swirl and draw in more of the wine’s aroma.

Here’s what we do:

·   1-5 seconds, gives me my first impression often times fruit.

·   5-10 seconds I receive more of the wine’s vapor and it reveals more of itself.

·  10-15 seconds is when the wine gives me its lasting impression, the finish.

For some you may have to swirl and sniff a few times, its okay you’re just maybe out of practice.  So practice, practice, practice

Step 3: Taste

The moment of glory.  You should expect to taste what pre-registered with the smell/nose phase, but sometimes there is a beautiful surprise hidden in the glass that will be received from tasting the wine.

To taste wine you must have a basic understanding of the components of your taster (tongue) and the wine itself.

Tongue: 

We measure basic sensations upon taste

  *Sweetness, at the tip

  *Acid/sour and salt, on the sides (although you shouldn’t taste salt, but being a mineral its possible.

 * Tart on the back

These combine with the smell create flavor, it’s that simple.

Wine:

The four most important components are:

1.  Acid

2.  Tannin (cotton mouth) may be a sign of the wine needing to rest awhile.

3.  Sugar

4.  Alcohol (to much and the wine will feel hot or burning)

Without these components present, you will just simply be drinking water (which is also a component of wine)

 so your job as the taster of wine is to:

· Identify each component

· Determine if the combination of each is in/out of balance (think of a lemon/lime martini.

Note: because of the difference and tolerance in tastes this is all subjective, so, you can’t be wrong.  This is the beauty of tasting wine.  One tasters loser, is another one’s “diamond in the rough”.

What you are looking for is harmony in your mouth.  What’s this you ask?  Ask yourself these questions:

1. What is the mouth feel?  Meaning: rich, full, heavy, light, dry, tannic, etc.

2. How do the components spread?  Meaning: sweet only, tart only, just all tannins etc.

3. Do I only taste alcohol?

4. Is there a balance, but each being somewhat equal and not overpowering the other.

5. What is it about the wine that I like or dislike?

Now, that you have a clear picture.  Drink up.  Take a little of the wine into your mouth, say about ¼ of it, swirl it around inside to coat all of your mouth.  Do this for about 5 seconds, now spit or swallow.

Spitting:

In wine tasting this is not impolite, because you will want to stay in focus, as you taste more wines, so it’s encouraged.

 Swallow:

 Some people say, “If it’s in my glass I’m not going to waste it.”  Make sure during your tasting you have water on the ready if you choose to partake in swallowing, please pace yourself.  It’s also said, “After awhile it all tastes the same.”  So let’s be fair to every bottle tasted, and let’s drink responsibly.  Thank you.

Step 4 The Finish:

 Aftertaste or Afterthought

What is the lasting impression of the wine?

Is the finish short, medium or long?

Has your opinion changed?

 Now, you can write down your thoughts and explore with others.

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