Wine Tasting 101

As the calendar turns toward summer, the sun comes out, the weather warms, and all over the world (the northern hemisphere anyway) grape vines twist and turn, yearning for more space.  While big floppy green leaves pull in the sun's rays turning clusters of little bitter green pebbles in to sweet juicy wine grapes.  This is a wonderful time to be out in the vineyards, as we wait for crush in autumn.  This is wine tasting season.  Here in the Willamette Valley wine tasting season is generally considered to be between Memorial Day and Thanksgiving weekend, though many wineries and tasting rooms are open year round.

The Rainbow Vineyard at Yamhill Valley Vineyards

But here is the thing, some people just don't like wine.  It's too foofy, it's too snooty, wine people are rude and elitist, it just doesn't taste good...  I've heard 'em all.  And often times what I find the real issue to be is that most people who "don't like wine" just don't know about wine.  And wine people sure don't make it easy do they?  There are different names for wine made from the same grape based on where they are grown?  (I'm looking at you Pinot Gris and Pinot Grigio.  Bordeaux and Cabernet we will get to you later.)  What is with that pretentious swirling and smelling?  What am I supposed to be tasting?  Why is it so expensive?  What is the best bottle of wine?

Basically wine tasting can be intimidating.  Over time I will attempt to cover all of these issues and more.  But here are a few key points to keep in mind when you do finally give it a shot.  Like anything else you aren't going to "get it" right away.  It takes practice, but trust me, running through a tasting flight is going to be more fun than running wind sprints.  So, here we go with some helpful and easy to understand guidelines...

     1) The Basics - When wine tasting you are going to be served a series if tastes called a flight.  A taste is typically a 1 ounce pour.  A flight will usually be comprised of 4-7 tastes, and will range from around $10-20.  Flights often start with the lightest wines and graduate to the more powerful (and often more expensive) wines.  They do this so the previous tasting does not overpower the next.  It is easy to go from lighter to darker, but difficult to go the other way.  Also there is going to be water or maybe crackers of some kind available, these are there to "cleanse the palate".  It is a good idea to occasionally cleanse your palate so your taste buds are ready for the next taste.  Feel free to ask questions about the wines, the server should have plenty of information on each wine.  And remember they are there to help you, and ultimately they would like for you to buy some wine to take home, so they want you to enjoy the tasting.

     2) No one else has your palate - This is key to understand, and it changes everything once you get this.  Your palate is unique to you.  Just like people prefer different toppings on their pizza, or dressing on their salad, different people are going to like different styles of wine.  This is important because it allows you to have your own opinion.  The lady pouring your taste might have some good information about different flavors in the wine (called "tasting notes" more on them later) but your palate might actually taste the wine differently.  Don't let people tell you what you are tasting; taste for yourself and see what notes you can pick out.  Trust your own taste buds, they will tell you what you like.

     3) Trust your senses - Not to get too Obi-Wan Kenobi here, but let your senses tell you what you have in your glass.  I don't recommend touching or listening to the wine, but, hey if you really want to, let me know if that helped you at all.  But you should trust your eyes and nose.  This is where the swirling and smelling comes in to play.  First, look at it.  What color is it?  Is it red or white?  Is the color rich and dark or is it thin and barely there?  It can be helpful to hold your glass with a light or white background behind it to really see what it is you are about to taste.  Red wine usually starts off bright vibrant red or purple and mellows as it ages to burgundy or brown.  White wine will often start off crisp yellow or green and ease into warmer amber or gold as it ages.  But different grapes and wine making techniques can have effects on color, so look for yourself and notice what it is you are looking at.
     Now, Swirl it around.  How does it stick to the glass?  Is it watery or does it cling and create what are called "legs"?  These legs are created by the alcohol content and are said to represent a wine's quality, but now you know the only quality that matters is what wine you like, so just use these as a benchmark and look to see if you prefer thinner or thicker wines.
     Ok, go ahead, smell it.  Stick your nose right in there and smell it.  Take a good whiff.  The first time you do this you won't know what it is you're smelling.  But the more you try, you will begin to recognize scents that are common in the wines you like.  Smell has the strongest "sense memory", meaning that your brain remembers and correlates smells better than other senses.  So, quaffing wine first will help establish your mind and palate for what it is you are about to taste.  Doing this will help set a good tone.  And when you find a scent that reminds you of one of your favorite wines its like being wrapped in a warm blanket.  Comforting and relaxing.

     Take note of what you see and smell and find for yourself what attributes you prefer in your wine.  While swirling and sniffing might seem like a strange ritual you can really glean a lot of information from this step.  You are already way ahead of the game, and you haven't even tipped any back yet.

     4) Tasting - Now the moment we've all been waiting for, tasting the wine.  We've all seen that guy swishing the wine around his mouth like it's mouthwash and generally looking silly.  You do not have to do that, he is way over the top.  But, he's on the right track.  Many flavors in wine open up as it comes in to contact with oxygen.  So taking a sip, holding the wine in your mouth, and drawing air in to "aerate" the wine will bring out notes that you would not notice if you just threw it down the old hatch.  This can however be done quite subtly and without drawing attention.
     Also, take a moment to acknowledge the "mouth-feel", which is exactly what it sounds like.  Some wines are crisp, some are full bodied, and some feel like they are ripping the enamel off your teeth, and much of that has nothing to do with flavor.  This is the mouth-feel or structure, and it has to do with the physical reaction of your palate and tissue to the liquid introduced to the mouth.  We will discuss this further in later posts, but for now just be aware of it and enjoy the different textures.  Now, lets focus on flavor.
     Wine is simply fermented grape juice.  It would logically follow that wine would taste like grapes, right?  This is where logic fails us.  Many wines, in fact most wines, do not taste like grapes.  Or at the very least if they do taste like grapes it is a very small component of what is called the "flavor profile".
     Wines are layered with enough different components and nuances that Dr. Pepper himself would be jealous.  These components are called "notes" and there are tons of them.  Blackberries, cherries, roses, smoke, honey, tobacco, citrus, pepper, toast, chocolate, and the list goes on and on...  Think of nearly any flavor, and there is probably a wine somewhere that boasts about it.  This concept will require a longer and more in depth post, but what is important to remember is that training your taste buds to find these notes will help you pick wines that please your palate the most.

This is just a jumping off point.  For many the quest is on-going and never ending.  But a life long love affair with wine need not be your goal.  With these few hints in mind you will be able to at least relax and allow the experience to be genuine.  It is supposed to be fun after all.  Think of it as a journey.  And you aren't actually tasting wine to find the perfect wine.  You are in fact learning how to use the most exclusive and sensitive tasting mechanism on earth: your own palate.  So, get out there, enjoy, and above all Drink What You Like!!!

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