Getting into grapes. Flavour is the first thing that springs to mind when you’re choosing a bottle of wine. And it’s the grape variety that will tell you the most about what flavours you are to expect. There are hundreds of grape varieties out there but there are only about nine or ten that make it onto the shop shelves. The more wines you taste the more you will develop your palate – it’s as simple as that. I know when we see wine tasting on the television, it all looks highly mysterious, but its not. Swirl, sniff and spit, that’s all it is,. But why the swirl? What are you supposed to be looking for exactly? What is tannin? What is acidity? The first step is to fill your glass until it’s about a third full. Have a good look at it. Tilt the glass slightly against a white back ground, or hold it up to the daylight so you can see the range of colours from the centre of the glass to the rim. Older red wines start to fade at the rim, with a browny, tawny colour. Red wines from hotter climates and gutsier red grape varieties have the deepest colours. Now give it a swirl and get a good motion going. This swirling motion releases the wines aromas. Put your nose right into the glass and inhale slowly. Your first impressions are the most vivid. After two or three sniffs, your senses become neutralized. An experienced taster will be able to tell a lot from just inhaling: what grape variety it is, even where the wine comes from. A novice will soon start to spot key fruit flavours that indicate a particular grape variety. When you inhale, think of those aromas you get in terms of flavours that are familiar to you. It will take a few goes to get the hang of it – but once you do, you’ll soon be smelling warm mocha, freshly mown grass, lemon grass and even peaches. It doesn’t matter if you are the only one to get those particular aromas, everyone has their own flavour references and, anyway, it’s all part of the fun. Now for the best bit – the tasting. Take a good sip and roll it around. The reason why those experts make such a noise when tasting is that they are trying to get the wine to every part of their tongue: sweetness at the tip; saltiness a little further back and sourness or acidity, at the sides, with bitterness sensed at the back. Make a note of any acidity, sweetness or toughness. It helps if you suck in some air through your lips, because it kick-starts the aromas and flavours. Now give it a good chew. Scribble down your first impressions. Some flavours are more obvious than others at first, but don’t worry about finding all the fruit flavours at once – it will soon come with practice. Think about the weight in your mouth. Is it light? Medium or full-bodied? Is it balanced? What are the levels of acidity, alcohol, dryness/sweetness, fruit flavour, and tannin? Then swallow – or spit, if you have more to taste. Make a note of any lingering flavours (known as the length). Do you like it? |