I was chatting to Craig today and he mentioned he didn’t ‘rate’ my wine reviews because he didn’t have a point of reference. You see, he doesn’t drink wine. Yeah I know, there had to be one person alive who didn’t.

I like wine. J'aime le vin. Beaucoup!

Wine is a very personal thing. Everyone has their own preference and it’s more than likely different to everyone else’s. This is perfectly normal. Finding out which wine you like is a lot of fun and will take a lifetime. There is so much out there, it will take that long to try it all.

A huge range of variables come into play with wine. Grape variety, climate, soil, time of harvest, hemisphere, the winemaker, storage, age(vintage), your attitude toward it, among others. All these impact on how it smells (its bouquet), how it looks, and how it tastes.

I’m no expert but I know what I like so I’ve thrown together a few tips on how to taste wine... for the chappos out there. If you really want good advice, read a book or find an expert.

Remember, tasting include the whole of your mouth not just your tongue, and most importantly - your nose. Smell and taste are intricately linked.

Let’s get started.

Body: is what you feel in your mouth. Is it light like water or heavier like milk?

Acid: is what makes a wine “crisp” and you feel the tingling on the sides of your tongue.

Alcohol: too much of this will make the wine feel warm or hot at the back of your mouth. Not a good thing. You shouldn’t be able to feel this sensation in a well balanced wine.

Tannin: comes from the skins, pips and wood. You can’t smell or taste it but it gives a wine a dry feeling to your mouth.

There is also things like “fruit” which ballances out the alcohol and oak, a flavour from a barrel. All these things together make up the wine and how it is balanced.

So, how does one taste wine, what is the methodology?

This is how I go about it.

Find a good glass. Preferably one with a stem that closes slightly at the top. Just like the ones you get at a winery. Fill it to about a third and give it a good swirl.

Take a good sniff, depending on the type of wine/grape you’ll get a large number of aromas. Try and identify some of them. Cinnamon, nutmeg, oak, mint, citrus, smokey, the list is long.

Now for each of the body, acid, alcohol and tannin take a half a mouth full, swishing it around each time. Spit or swallow, it’s up to you.

Once you’ve done that you’re ready for the different flavours, cherry, chocolate, lemon, blueberries, raspberries, wood (if it’s been oaked), mango, raisins, sultanas, prunes, honey, and so on and so forth.

...and that’s it. Work your way to the bottom of the bottle.

So that was your first bottle of that type. Now try it chilled. Then try a different vintage, younger, older.

Taste is only the start. Different wines look different, they have different colours and change colour as they age. Riesling get’s darker as it ages, as can Chardonnay. Reds become deeper in colour depending on the grape. As they age, their taste changes too.

There are so many to work through and each with differing characteristics.

White:
Chardonnay
Gewurztraminer
Pinot gris
Pinot blanc
Muscat
Sauvignon blanc
Riesling
Semillon
Viognier
Verdelho

Red:
Cabernet Sauvignon
Pinot Noir
Malbec
Merlot
Carmenère
Grenache
Shiraz/Syrah
Cabernet franc
Pinotage
Gamay

Fortified Ports, sherries etc etc.

...just to name a few.

Get tasting. Life is short and there’s so much to try.

Tags: wines