Wine Tasting

“A glass or two of wine a day will not only lengthen life, but may also enhance intellectual power during the extra years provided.”

-Dr. Thomas Stuttaford, London 1999

Whether you are a novice or a wine connoisseur, every YBP should know the basics of wine testing. Knowing how to taste wine properly will help you appreciate the drink more and it’s also a good conversation piece for cocktail parties. I recently visited Vinopolis, a wine tasting attracting in London that offers a self-guided tour about the world’s wine producing regions. The tour included a session on “How to Taste Wine” so I thought I’d pass along the info.

Technique, observation, experience and memory combine with the senses to understand the wine you drink. The following are the accepted areas for concentrating your analysis.

Appearance- Fill your glass one-third full, pick up by the stem (so as not to warm the wine), look at the color- hue, depth- intensity, and clarity- limpidity. Judge hue (true color) by tilting glass looking through rim, intensity by looking straight down through wine and clarity by looking sideways with light shining through. Next, swirl the wine, ‘tears’ or ‘legs’ appear irregularly on the side, the more prominent, the higher the alcohol content.

Smell- The most sensitive, revealing phase, connecting the wine to memories and emotions that provide the associations. Swirl the wine to intensify aromas. Put your nose into the glass and inhale deeply. Your description should focus on freshness, intensity, persistence, and associations. Herbal, fruity, floral, vegetal, spicy, earthy, animal and human traits are associations often used.

Taste- While the aromas are still fresh, take a drink but don’t swallow. Roll it completely round your mouth for 10 to 15 seconds. Focus on the balance of acid, alcohol, fruit, tannins and sweetness. Also, taste for body- fullness on palate- and weight in combination with alcohol and tannin. For white wines, give special consideration to the sweetness of the wine- very dry, dry, medium, sweet, or very sweet. As in the aroma, consider intensity, persistence and harmony. Look for fruit, herbal, spice and other associations. Is taste consistent with aroma? Is there aftertaste? Good wines linger longer.

Wine with food- For some wines, their success will be based on how they matched and complemented your meal. That’s why it’s so important to take notes whenever you taste new wines.

For more information on wines and wine tastings, check out the following sites:

Food and Wine

Wine Enthusiast

Wine.com