TASTING or the appreciation of wine is probably the main reason why people drink wine. It is also probably the toughest thing to do. The rule used to be simple - either you like it or you don't. Now, there are more complex formats of appreciating wine. Here, I have developed my own framework for evaluating wine which I hope you may find useful. There are three basic elements -color, nose and taste. Included here are also some general words for describing wines. You may then rate the wine based on the three elements.
Objectives : The appearance of the wine gives you a good guess of the type of grape, the age of the wine and whether the wine is bad! Assess the wine by tilting the glass of wine over a white background or holding it up the light.
| a. HUE (color) - Depends on vintage, varietal, age & style |
| White Wine |
| Pale Yellow - Chablis, German Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc. |
| Straw - Gewurztraminer, Chenin Blanc, Riesling |
| Buttery Yellow - Chardonnay, French Burgundy |
| Golden Honey - dessert wines, aged white wines |
| Red Wine |
| Inky Purple - Petite Sirah |
| Deep Red - Cab Sauvignon, Bordeaux wines, Merlot |
| Light Red - Pinot Noir, Burgundy |
| Purpley light red - Beaujolais (Gamay) |
| b. INTENSITY (Depth of Wine) |
| - Useful for red wines which will range from opaque to transparent. Older wines tends to be brownish on the wine's edge in the glass. |
| c. CLARITY |
| - Clear or Cloudy. If it is the latter, it's probably spoiled! |
Objective : The smell or "nose" of the wine can tell you more about the wine than anything else (that's what the experts say). The bouquet of the wine would usually identify the varietal which is very characteristic. To release the bouquet of the wine, swirl it in a proper wine glass before taking a slow long sniff.
| Cabernet Sauvignon | Cedar, cigar box, mint, black current, cloves, cinnamon, pepper, olives, chocolate, cream |
| Chardonnay | Pears, apples, pineapple, melon, lemons, vanilla, cloves, butter. |
| Chenin Blanc | Pears, peaches, ripe melons, lemons, celery |
| Gamay | Fresh strawberries, strawberry soda, cinnamon, cream |
| Gewurztraminer | Roses, lychees |
| Grenache | Earthly, black pepper, plums, coffee, spice |
| Merlot | Chocolate, violets, oranges, plum, black current |
| Pinot Noir | Wood smoke, damp earth, mushroom, strawberries, barnyard smell, sweet cream |
| Riesling | Green apples, apricots, peaches, honey |
| Sangiovese | Tobacco, smoke, spice, raisins |
| Sauvignon Blanc | Grapefruit, lemons, fresh herbs, cut grass, smoke, flint |
| Semillion | Grass, lemon, nuts, butter, toast |
| Sirah | Black pepper, blackberry jam, blackberries, oranges, plums |
| Tempranillo | Earthly, mushrooms, cedar |
| Viognier | Apricots, fresh flowers |
| Zinfandel | Raspberries, chocolate, black cherries, cloves, black pepper |
| Spoiled | Vinegar, mold, rubber, kerosene, cabbage, sulfur, fish, soap, wet wool, nail polish, wet cardboard, corky, musty. |
Objective : The final tasting of the wine will usually help you confirm the varietal of the wine as well as which region is is from. Experts will be able to tell you the vintage and style too! To taste, take a small sip and suck the air between your teeth. Hold the wine at the center of your tongue for a few seconds longer to allow the character of the wine to be apparent. There are 6 different characteristics you may want to classify your wine.
| a. Flavor | Fresh, floral, fruity, spicy, earthy, smoky, buttery, nutty, corky, complex, musty, sulphury, yeasty. |
| b. Acidity | (For whites) - High acidity (Dry, crisp, sharp) to Mid acidity (Off-dry) to Low acidity (sweet, rounded) |
| c. Tannin | (For reds) - High tannic (astringent bitter, dry) to low tannic (soft, easy to drink) |
| d. Body | (Weight of wine in mouth) - Full, medium or light |
| e. Oakiness | (Presence of wood) - oaked or unoaked |
| f. Finish | (After-taste of wine) - Long, medium or short |
With the characteristics above, you can usually define your preference of wine. For example, I like wines with strong earthy flavor, high acidity with good tannic, full bodied and heavy oak and excellent finish.
Included here are some general words that can be used to describe wines. These descriptions are in addition to the ones used above under the nose and taste of the wines.
| Astringent | A mouth drying feeling caused by tannins |
| Attack | The very first impression of the wine in your mouth. A positive first impression is always good. |
| Balanced | Whereby all elements like acid, alcohol, flavors, texture is in pleasing proportions. |
| Big | The whole flavor of the wine, including alcohol. |
| Breed | Balance of qualities in fine wines due to grape, soil and skill. |
| Charming | To describe elegant wines you really like. |
| Chewy | Fat, meaty hard texture that allows you to "chew" through. |
| Clean | Fresh, without defects. |
| Deep/Depth | Complexity in flavors that requires more attention. |
| Dumb | Full quality not achieved (too young) |
| Easy | Drinks smoothly without much complexity |
| Elegant | When all the wine's elements comes in perfect harmony to give you a classic fine wine. A wine that deserves attention. |
| Fat | Flavor and texture that fills the mouth but overwhelms. |
| Firm | Young and vigorous in a high quality style. |
| Flat | Opposite of "firm". |
| Fresh | Good measure of fruity acidity, especially for young whites. |
| Hard | High tannins making it difficult to appreciate. |
| Heady | Alcohol content is out of proportion. |
| Hollow | Lacking a satisfying middle flavor. |
| Lean | Lack of a fuller body or flavor.May be used in a positive way. |
| Length | The finish (aftertaste) of the wine. |
| Light | Little alcohol and body which is positive in some wines. |
| Nervy | Vigorous and fine. |
| Noble | Even better than "elegant" - for really the top classed wines. |
| Racy | Exciting, vital and fast. |
| Rich | Gives an opulent impression. May be also be very sweet. |
| Robust | Good body, vigorous and firm. |
| Rough | Poorly made cheap wines. |
| Round | A more positive term for "fat" |
| Structure | The overall architecture of the flavor. Important for good wines. |
| Stylish | In line with current style, definite and decisive. |
| Supple | Used for young wines that can further improve with maturity. May also be used as a middle ground between "hard" and "soft". |
| Vigorous | Young at heart, lively, desirable. |
Objective : OK, you have tried your newly opened wine and managed to evaluate the wine according to 3 formats above. How do you rate the wine? There are many official methods of rating wine - most of them using a 100 points system. However, I find that it rather redundant - how many wine have you seen being rated 38 or 57? Hence, I adopt a simple 20 points rating based on the format mentioned above
| a. Color of Wine (2 points) | ||
| - Hue (1 point) | ||
| - Intensity (1 point) | ||
| b. Nose of Wine (6 points) | ||
| c. Taste of Wine (12 points) | ||
| - Flavor, acidity, tannin, body, oakiness, finish (2 points each) | ||
Naturally, you would rate your wine according to your own preference and sometimes, a high rating you give to a wine may taste terrible to another friend. It does not mean that you rated wrongly, just that you have a different preference.