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1. OBSERVE color and clarity. |
Look at the wine by holding the glass up to a white background in a well-lighted room.
Wine color is affected most by: |
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* The age of the wine.
* The grape variety
* Whether or not the wine spent time in oak |
White wines vary from clear to deep golden brown, and gain color as they age.
Red wines range from ruby to brick. As they age, they lose color and begin to brown. Also, observe the body of the wine by the way it coats the sides of the glass. If the "legs" trickle down slowly, it has more body. If it falls down in sheets, it has less body.
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2. AROMA |
What is the very first thing you think of when you smell a wine? Common aromas include different fruits, spices, herbs, floral and vanilla. While different people will smell different things in the same wine, there are characteristic smells generally found in specific varieties. Be sure to smell the wine several times. A wine with great complexity will offer different aromas each time, as well as several scents at one time. There are hundreds of smells in wine!
Note: "Off smells" include:
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* Sherry - the wine has oxidized from age or improper storage.
* Vinegar - the wine contains excessive acetic acid.
* Cork/Mustiness - a defective or inferior cork has affected the wine.
* Sulphur - the wine contains excessive sulphur dioxide. |
Roll the wine across your taste buds keeping in mind that a balance of the following characteristic is ideal:
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Body - Fullness or thinness.
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Acidity - Gives the wine crispness and freshness without which the wine is flat and sour. |
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Tannin - The bitterness you taste comes from grape skins and seeds. It is essential to the finish of a wine. Most obvious in reds. |
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Sweetness - Comes from the wine's fruit flavors as well as any fermented grape sugars left in the wine. If there is no perceived sweetness, a wine is "dry". |
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Fruitiness - Intensity is a function of the variety, growing conditions and winemaking techniques |
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