Drinking wine is just as much about the visual as it is about the physical - so look at your wine. If you take the time to look for certain things in your glass - each tasting will be like a little lesson into the complexities of wine. So just slow down and awake your senses. Look at the wine and ask yourself:
Now look at the legs. The legs make the first impression and help you understand the 'body' of the wine. Determining the 'body' of a wine and the differences between a light-bodied wine and a full-bodied wine is very simple and totally fool proof.
A wine's body is directly related to its alcohol content or alcohol by volume (ABV). On every wine label you'll notice a percentage of alcohol by volume and this is generally how you can measure the body:
When you have your wine start moving it around. The best way to do this is by placing the glass on a flat surface and moving it in a circular motion without taking the glass off the table. As you let the swirl settle, notice the extent to which the wine sticks to the side of the glass.
Light-bodied wines will typically not leave many legs or any trace, whereas a full-bodied wine will leave obvious streams (or legs) that fall slowly down the side and back into the wine.
By doing all of this you just determined the ballpark alcohol level and age of the wine without even smelling or tasting the wine.
When you're moving the wine around in your glass, take a whiff. Our sense of smell is critical in properly tasting wine. Stick your nose down into the glass and take a deep inhale through your nose. Do not be shy. Get the whole nose in there. Do you smell oak, vanilla, berry, flowers, citrus? What is the general aroma? Any tar?
A wine's aroma is an excellent indicator of its quality and unique characteristics of the wine. It will also tell you if the wine is good or corked.
After you've looked and smelled the wine, it's time to taste.
Let it roll from the front of your tongue to the back - as you will have different reactions to the wine at different tasting areas on your tongue.
Allow yourself a small breath of air in through your lips and allow the wine to mingle with the air (called swirling). You can even suck in some air and roll the wine around - be a pro!
So what do you taste? Reds will often have berry, woody, oak, vanilla, and pepper or spicy tastes. White wines will often have apple, floral or citrus flavors associated with them.
Taste can also be broken down into two main categories:
Initial taste is the first impression you get of the wine's components and flavors. How the wine lingers in your mouth, the acidity, the immediate flavors.
Did it last several seconds, minutes?
Was it light-bodied (like water) or full-bodied (like milk)?
Was the wine acidic?
Acidity is quite literally the juice behind the wine. It can make your lips pucker or body go into a pleasurable tail spin. Without it, wines would have no base, no taste, and be flat and boring. Acidity makes the wine stand out and the element of wine that you would describe as tangy, sharp, refreshing, bracing, bright, crisp or zingy is the acidity.
Wine is constantly evolving - especially in the glass. So give it time and be patient. You won't be disappointed.
Enjoy a brief description of some popular wine terms used when describing a wine.
Balanced: Indicates that the fruit, acid, and wood flavors are in the right proportion. A wine is well balanced when none of those characteristics dominates.
Big: A wine that is full-bodied, rich and slightly alcoholic tasting.
Bite: A marked degree of acidity or tannin. An acid grip in the finish should be more like a zestful tang and is tolerable only in a rich, full-bodied wine.
Body: The weigh or viscosity of wine in your mouth, commonly expressed as full-bodied, medium-bodied or light-bodied.
Bouquet: Used to describe the smell of the wine as it matures in the bottle.
Character: A wine with top-notch distinguishing qualities.
Closed: Describes wines that are concentrated and have character, but are shy in aroma or flavor.
Dense: Describes a wine that has concentrated aromas on the nose and palate, desirable in young wines.
Depth: Describes the complexity and concentration of flavors in a wine.
Dirty: Covers any foul, rank, off-putting smells that can occur in a wine, including those caused by bad barrels or corks.
Empty: Flavorless and uninteresting.
Finish: The taste that remains in the mouth after swallowing. A long finish indicates a wine of good quality.
Flat: Having low acidity; the next stage after flabby; or refers to a sparkling wine that has lost its bubbles.
Heady: Used to describe the smell of a wine high in alcohol.
Mouth feel: The texture of the wine.
Neutral: Describes a wine without outstanding characteristics, good or bad.
Robust: Describes a full-bodied, intense and vigorous wine.
Round: Describes a well-balanced wine in fruit, tannins and body.
Short: Describes a wine that does not remain on the palate after swallowing.
Supple: Describes a wine with well-balanced tannins and fruit characteristics.
Tannin: Describes a dry sensation, with flavors of leather and tea.