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How to taste a wine like a Pro?

By - Admin Jan 26, 2018 5 Mins Read
How to taste a wine like a Pro?
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The two things professional wine tasters look for when tasting a wine are its quality- low to high and its level of maturity, meaning whether it�s past its prime, in perfect drinking condition, or would improve in bottle. Age and maturity are different things. Age is the length of time a wine has been in existence, as determined by a quick glance at its vintage date, while maturity is a judgment call gauging its prime drinking time. [caption id="attachment_253" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Enoteca - Wine Tasting[/caption] A wine�s appearance in the glass reveals clues to its overall quality and maturity. The best way to look at a glass of wine is in bright light against a white background. Standing by a window with a sheet of plain paper or a white napkin behind the glass does the trick. Does it appear clear? This is the first indication of quality. Wine should be clear. [caption id="attachment_250" align="alignleft" width="300"] Enoteca - Wine Tasting[/caption] As well as clarity, the brightness of a wine matters. A wine can range from glossy and radiant to downright dull. Brilliance in the glass can indicate high acidity levels, as well as youth and vigor. Conversely, very dull wine is usually past its best, particularly if it has an orange hue. Brightness can also indicate certain winemaking methods. If a wine is star-bright it has likely been ruthlessly filtered to remove the tiniest particles, which is a controversial practice. Critics argue it removes flavor, while proponents like the way it clarifies and stabilizes a wine, ensuring it stays clear. Unfiltered wine should appear clear in the glass but slightly dull. The color of wine where it meets the glass, which is called the rim, is the best clue to a wine�s maturity. As white wine matures, the rim turns from watery to golden and as red wine matures, the rim moves through a range of colors starting with purple, moving to ruby, russet, brick, and finally brown. [caption id="attachment_251" align="alignright" width="300"] Enoteca - Wine Tasting[/caption] The traces of wine known as legs or tears left on the insides of the glass after giving it a swirl shows the alcohol and sweetness levels in a wine. If you see obvious legs, take notice and expect fairly high levels of alcohol or sugar on the palate. The most important organ in tasting is not the tongue. It�s the nose. Olfactory glands are far more sensitive than taste buds. If you don�t believe me, try tasting something with a stuffy nose. So always remember to get your nose right in the glass and take a whiff before you take a sip. It improves your tasting experience immensely. To nose a wine, which is wine speak for smelling it, give the glass a good swirl to encourage the aromas to vaporize. Then, take a good whiff. Some tasters feel one nostril is better than the other and tilt one side of their nose into the glass. Wine should smell clean. When nosing the wine, look out for musty aromas. These odors generally indicate flaws or simply poor winery hygiene-neither of which is particularly appealing. Some wines will seem to have no aroma, which is referred to as a �closed nose.� This can happen at various points in a wine�s evolution, and is not a flaw. Also, while certain grape varieties are very perfumed, such as Sauvignon Blanc, others are naturally restrained, such as wines made from Trebbiano. The third thing to look for on the nose is aroma. It gives you a clue as to what grape the wine is made from, as well as the wine�s quality level, age, and maturity. More complexity on the nose usually means the wine is of better quality, perhaps has some age, and is further along on its maturity continuum. [caption id="attachment_252" align="alignleft" width="260"] Enoteca - Wine Tasting[/caption] Primary aromas come from the grapes themselves, such as violets and roses, green pepper, and so forth. Secondary aromas come from the winemaking process. Strawberry, apple, black currant, banana, pineapple, wild berries, bread, and butter for instance arise from the fermentation process while toast, vanilla, and spice aromas come from oak aging. Bottle age creates tertiary aromas such as game, leather, tobacco, tar, mushroom, and dried flowers. After you�ve looked at and smelled the wine, it�s time to take a swig and swish it around so it touches every area of the tongue. Each part of this organ detects a specific sensation-sweetness, sourness, bitterness, and so on. Sweetness is felt on the tip of the tongue. Paying attention to this part of the tongue when you taste a wine helps detect sugar levels-from bone dry to lusciously sweet. Judging sugar levels takes practice because other elements in wine-namely acidity and fruit intensity-hide sugar. This is probably why so many people think dry and drink sweet. Sourness, known technically as acidity, is felt on the sides of the tongue. While some wine styles and varieties are more sour than others, all wines should have some acidity, which cleanses the palate by causing you to salivate. A wine with relatively high levels of sourness is often referred to as crisp or refreshing, while a wine with low acidity is called flabby. For a wine high in sugar to be pleasant to drink, it must be equally high in acidity. This balance is critical because, without it, you wouldn�t want to drink more than a sip or two. The wine would seem cloying. Tannins are the astringent compounds found in skins, pips, and stems of grapes, and these parts are left in contact with fermenting juice when making red wine. This is why tannins are generally only found in red wines. In white winemaking, only the juice of grapes is fermented. Tannin is also found in oak, so occasionally white wines can have a bit of delicate tannin from oak aging. Tannins are felt as a drying sensation around the gums and give a wine structure. Structure lets the wine age, keep, and stand up to food. You also notice tannins in overly steeped black tea and walnut skins. Tannins differ. Ripe ones taste velvety while unripe ones taste rather stalky. Think of the difference between eating a well ripened piece of fruit and one that�s still a little green. It is fashionable today in regions such as California to let grapes hang on the vine longer than usual to ripen the tannins completely and eliminate all green flavors. Other regions such as the Loire in France appreciate the added nuance of a little unripe tannin in a red wine. Fruit intensity-also called fruit concentration or extract-should be in balance with the levels of tannin and acidity. Fruit intensity is felt mid-palate, where tactile sensations are perceived. Complexity is one of the earmarks of a good quality wine and can seem to suggest fruit, vegetables, minerals, animals, flowers, wood, spices, herbs, and empyreumatic aromas such as smoke, toast, caramel, and roasted foods. [caption id="attachment_254" align="aligncenter" width="476"] Enoteca - Wine Tasting[/caption] Alcohol level is felt as heat on the back of the palate after you swallow or spit the wine. The alcohol is in balance if it doesn�t stand out. You actually shouldn�t taste the alcohol if the wine is balanced. Wine that is too old and hence lost its fruit, or has been produced in a very hot year, can be too high in alcohol. Not a nice drinking experience. After you swallow, count one-steamboat, two-steamboat, three-steamboat, and so on until you can�t taste the wine any more. The longer the length, the better the wine. After tasting a wine methodically, you can determine if a wine is balanced, meaning one element doesn�t overpower any of the others. If one element does stand out-such as tartness-consider the wine�s inherent style. A Sancerre, for instance, should show relatively high acidity and a Barolo should display relatively high tannins. Once you�ve tasted the wine and considered its elements, you are in a position to accurately gauge its maturity. Is it too young, ready to drink, or past its best? Knowing fruit concentration and, in red wines, tannin diminish as wine ages and acidity and alcohol remain the same, wines with more fruit and tannin than acidity and alcohol will improve with age. When fruit concentration and tannin are in balance with acidity and alcohol, it is ready to drink. Balance, concentration, complexity, and length are the cornerstones of quality wine. Couple this fact with the price and you can determine if a wine delivers good value for the money. An easy way to remember how to taste wine like a pro is to follow the three senses from the top of your face down- eyes to look, nose to smell, and mouth to taste. When you find a wine you like, jot down some tasting notes to remember it. Is it reminiscent of cinnamon, cashew, smoke, tar, cigars, lilac, or thyme? Does it strike you as brooding, sassy, edgy, harmonious, elegant, mighty, or seductive? Log your impressions and jog your memory.
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