A Brief Glossary of Tasting Terms

"The value of a winetaster does not depend only in his sensitivity as a receptive instrument, nor on his capacity to recognize scents, tastes and to appreciate their harmony. It also depends on his ability to describe his impressions." Emile Peynaud. Le Gout Du Vin.

A.

Acetic - vinegary smell, sharp overtart on the palate. A vinegary condition resulting from the action of aceto-bacter, harmful ferments that attack wine left in open unfilled bottle or carboy.

Acetone - high toned estery aroma, connected with the ethyl ester acetate or with nail varnish -like amyl acetate.

Acid/acidity - on the nose and a mouth watery refreshing character, sometimes like raw cooked apples. Detectable on the tongue, giving the wine a crispness and zing. The right sort of natural acidity is an essential component of sound wine. It acts as a natural preservative. Youthful acidity tends to mellow with age.

Aftertaste - the internal bouquet that sometimes remains in the throat and usually what is poetically referred to as a 'lingering fairwell.'

Alcohol - an essential component, binding and preserving. In the pure form the higher alcohols, amyl and butyl have an unpleasant, throat catching odour. Ethanol presents in its pure form a burning sensation. However, diluted as in wine, alcohol is scarcely detectable on the nose though it can be assessed by its weight in the mouth. Cumulatively well known in its effects on the head of the imbibber.

Aroma - the part of the smell of wine derived from the grape. As opposed to bouquet which is derived from the development of the wine in the bottle or barrel.

B.

Baked - an earthy hot smell produced by grapes that are shivelled and burnt due to damaging sunshine and shortness of rainfall.

Beefy - a character that is muscular in extract, alcohol and tannin.

Big - a character that contains vital elements not just heavy with alcohol.

Bitterness - it is detected on the back of the tongue and is usually unpleasant. Bitterness can be imparted by colouring substances. Polyphenols that are extracted from dirty contaminated wooden barrels that contain oxidized wine may add to the bitterness. Dirty wooden barrels may harbour bacterial diseases. Unless you clean and CARE for your wooden barrels you may experience a disenchanting variety of flora and fauna. Stay away from "traditional" backyard wineries.

Body - a weight sensed in the mouth due to alcoholic content and other physical components. This character arises from the quality of the vintage and its geographical origin.

Botrytis - a short form for Botrytis cinerea also known as noble rot. It is a condition encouraged to develop on the skins of grapes in Sauternes and the highest vineyards in Germany during the delayed autumn harvest. When Botrytis is found on the grapes they are shriveled and their water content is reduced. With this, the sugar content increases and the effect on the palate and nose is akin to honey.

Bottle age - a hard to describe entity. Usually more pronounced earlier in bulk aged wines, (in containers stainless, wooden or otherwise that are larger than 100 litres). However, when bottles are left for substantial periods of time a definite softness and slight oxidation occurs. Usual time for such a transformation from Heurige wines can be between 18 and 36 months.

Bouquet - the pleasant and characteristic smell of wine. In a nutshell it is a smell created by the wine's own development. Esters and aldehydes are formed by the eventual oxidation of weak fruit acids and alcohols.

Buttery - self descriptive smell and taste.