Overall you will discover, wine tasting is truly meant to be a thoughtful reflective process. For me, flavors are often attached to memories, and as we smell, or taste, memories of fruit, baking, herbs and earth may come to the forefront of our thoughts. But first before we get all philosophical about life let's start with ~
Step 1: Look (this takes about 5 seconds often confirms the information on the label, get good at this and 'who needs a label'....just kidding)
- Check for color & Intensity
- Is the hue blue/almost purple looking wine
- Does it have an underlying red/orange hue which indicates good acidity
- What about the intensity of color, meaning can I see through it or not. High opacity and I can't see through the wine which means its color is intense. Less opacity and its color is less intense.
- Check for tears/legs running down the sides of the glass after you have given it a swirl.
- more legs, more alcohol
- check the viscosity, is it like water, then it is less sweet. More like syrup and yup it is going to have more sweetness.
The pros can tell how much alcohol, possible grape types and sometimes ability for wine to age with time, just by being 'well practiced' at step 1~ LOOK.
Step 2: SMELL ~ use your nose silly, thats what its there for of course! These lists are not exhaustive use your memories.
- The goal is to sniff out 3 fruits and 3 other types of aromas
- Primary Aromas are grape derived and include
- fruits Black or Red, strawberry, plum, apple raspberry even prune, yes the list is long!
- herbal scents
- floral notes
- Secondary Aromas are derived from the winemaking practices itself
- Yeast-derivative can be found easily in a white wine.
- cheese rind
- nut husk (peanut or almond)
- stale beer
- Tertiary Aromas come from aging, most likely in the bottle or from the oak.
- Savory aromas may include
- Roasted nuts
- Baking spices, like vanilla, cinnamon
- Autumn leaves
- Old tobacco
- Cured leather
- Ceder
- Coconut
Step 3: TASTE ~ this concept involves using the tongue and full palate as a tool to experience the wine vs just tasting it like a soda pop. Think, about the feel of the wine that the tongue observes. We take the first sip, the wine hits the tip of our tongue and we may experience a moment of sweetness, it continues pass the front heading to the mid-palate area, by now you may be swishing the wine all over your cavernous mouth, and notice all kinds of sensations. The dry-mouth from something very tannic, or the pucker of acid, what about the thickness or smoothness of the wine. And yes the burn of the alcohol as it goes down the throat...and then there is the long lasting flavor of the wine still remaining in the mouth...if it is a good wine of course. This whole experience is broken down into three main areas.
- Taste: experiencing salty, sour, sweet or bitter flavors
- the sour comes from the acid, think lemon. All grapes have a bit of acid.
- salty is not a common flavor experience in wine, but in some cases it really is there. I found this very often in the wines produced near Angels Camp CA....It was weird, sort of like experiencing sweat sometimes.
- Pino Grigio is known for a bitterness that manifests as a light, pleasant refreshing tonic flavor
- Texture: texture is perceived as the tongue touches the wine
- increasing alcohol content provides the richer/thicker sensation of wine. For me I think of thick or thin coffee. American coffee is then, almost like dirty water, where as coffee made in africa has a lucious thickness about it. Ok, this is on to a different story and experience.
- Tannins provide that dryness affect in the wine. Puckette describes this experience as the 'sand-paper or tongue-depressor drying sensation in red wines." Instant tannins can be experienced when chewing on the skin of a Santa Rosa Plum!
- Length ~ taste is time-based
- How long does it take until the wine experience is no longer with you after the swallow? Is it 5 seconds, or 15 seconds....This actually drives the wonder of the experience.
Step 4: Think Reflect back upon the entire experience, starting with the Look, recalling the Smell, and ruminating over the Taste. Ask yourself the question or many questions:
- Memorable or something that was just hm
- most importantly, do I like this wine?
- Is the wine balanced between the flavors including acid, alcohol and tannins?
Thursday night I tasted a Petite Syrah, 2009 and found it way too tanic. In fact that affect overwhelmed my mouth! But Friday, I took that same wine and poured it between two wine glasses to allow plenty of oxygen to get into the wine. OMG the tannins floated away and it was a very smooth, flavorful experience. So yes how you prepare the wine before you serve/taste it is also important. Something to discuss next week!
So we have experienced this process of wine tasting. And life too is meant to be experienced. I believe it was Laura who said, Hope is like the aging of wine. We must wait for it sometimes, knowing that the process of aging makes the wine better. Perhaps Hope is the knowing part that things will get better with time....or really Hope is the knowing WHO is in charge of making things improve with time. Pastor David talked about knowing where our Hope is directs the direction of our feet, or really our life. Knowing our Hope in Christ, keeping my eyes there helps me to keep walking forward in the midst of the craziness of our times. Perhaps these covid times are really a rich red wine like a Petite Syrah, which will take a minimum of ten years to age and come into its own elegant beauty. I know what this fabulous wine can be if served properly with the best decanting and swirl experience. Because I know my wine, I can wait. Because I know in whom I have my Hope, I too can wait.
Thanks for reading and see you next week.
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