1993 Chateau Mouton Rothschild in a Bordeaux wine store. Nov 2006
PAGE STILL IN PROGRESS!

COME BACK FOR MORE PICS SOON!

See, Swirl, Sniff, Sip ... Savour!

There's many variations on these steps. Scan around your local book store and you will find many publications all teaching the proper way to assess your wines.

See

Look at the bottle. Read the label to see what information it gives about the grapes, region and winemaking practices involved.

Inspect the closure. Is it clean? Leakage around the closure can indicate potential oxidation of the wine. If it's sealed with cork, is it flat and clean? Bulging corks, rust across the top etc is an indication of failing cork and potentially spoiled wine*.

* Author's note on closures: I once had a bottle of Charles Melton's "Rose of Virginia" 1997 vintage - one of Australia's most notable Rosés.

Seven years later, I noticed the bottle leaking. There were drops of dried and sticky wine all around the top of the bottle and even some on the rack.

Figuring it was wrecked anyway, I decided to open the bottle and see the result. The cork disintegrated and as much fell into the wine as I got out. I was anticipating a very unpleasant tasting experience, but was willing to go through with it for the sake of wine education.

Then I tasted the wine. It was SENSATIONAL!! There was plenty of fresh fruit , and a fine dry finish. Unbelievable!

So there you have it - people say you can't age Rosé, and a stuffed cork means ruined wine. Moral of the story: There are always exceptions to the rules. Try it !

Pour some of the wine into a glass. How much? Forget measurements. Rule of thumb is 1/6 of the glass should be filled with wine, and 5/6 left for aroma area - regardless of the size of the glass.

Tilt the glass to around 45 degrees, and hold it against a white background - if not available, then just up to the light will do. Is it clear?

What colours do you see? Notice the different colour around the rim. This is an important bit. The colour of the rim gives a good indication of the age of the wine:

White wines - rim colours:

Light Green/Yellow = 1-2 years

Yellow = 3-4 years

Light Orange = 5-6 years

Brown = 7 years or older

Red wines - rim colours:

Vibrant purple, black or dark = 1-3 years

Ruby = 4-5 years

Light Orange = 6-7 years

Brown = 8 years

[Back to Top]

Swirl

Swirl the wine around in the glass.

Firstly this quickly releases any volatile aromas in the wine and leaves aromas which are truer representation of the wine in the glass. For example, you might detect citrus and apple aromas on a white wine on first sniff, however, after swirling you will detect more the apple and only a hint of citrus.

After swirling, the speed at which the wine precipitates down the sides of the glass when you stop indicates the level of alcohol. The higher the alcohol content, the higher the viscosity, and the slower the running rate down the glass.

After a while you'll find you can guess the alcohol content from this practice quite successfully!

[Back to Top]

Sniff

Sniff the wine. What primary fruit characters do you pick up? Are there berries, plums, or tropical fruit, grassy characters? Can you detect the winemaking influences - like MLF, oak, carbonic maceration?

There are many "tasting or aroma wheels" on the market which provide lists of descriptors used with wine. CD2D will publish one on this site shortly if you can't find one.

Are there any "off" smells in the wine? Is it fresh [not vinegar-y or mouldy]. Is the wine corked? Contrary to popular misconception, corked wine doesn't always smell of wet-hession. Wine that is corked can have very little aroma or flavours at all. This is termed "reduced" character.

Rancio is a term used for an oxidative smell. Wine that is oxidised smells port or sherry-like. Rancio is a favourable aroma in those wines, but not in your Bordeaux!

Sniff again to confirm your assessments. But only twice in all. Afer a second sniff your senses are fatigued.

If you need or want to continue smelling the wine, a good way to "reset" your sense of smell is to smell something else - like perfume. Then you can get back to the wine again. Try it!

[Back to Top]

Sip

Sip a small amount - 20 to 30ml - of the wine into your mouth and swish it all around your palate, under and over your tongue and teeth.

What flavours do you detect? Do they match your aroma descriptors? Is there any buttery flavours from the winemaking processes? How does the wine feel in your mouth? Is it smooth and creamy, or drying? Is it heavy on the palate, or light and spritzy from bubbles and acids?

The warmth inside your mouth actually releases aromas and flavours and these can continue on for quite some time. More volatile compounds can be expired through the mouth by opening your lips a little and sucking in air over the wine. This is what makes that burbling noise when winemakers are testing their wines, or show judges are making their assessments.

When you swallow, or spit out the wine, notice how long the flavours and mouthfeel sensations [dryness, sweetness] last. This is the 'length' of the finish. If you're drinking a good wine, you'll notice the flavours morph and change across your palate even after swallowing the wine.

[Back to Top]

Sparklings are special

Sparkling wines and Champagne have a point of difference from other wines. Bubbles.

Here's a few hints on how to assess your bubbles:

  • It's important to serve Champagne and sparkling wines in clean, well-rinsed glassware or it will go flat. Ensure there's no soap residue.

  • What are you looking for in a sparkling? You want to see clarity, no residue from the grapes, no haziness, no clouding. You want bright straw and yellow colours, persistence of mousse [that's the layer of bubbles on top] and preferably small bubbles - indicating quality winemaking.

  • The path of bubbles is also important. They should all start from the bottom point of the glass. Lesser quality wines have bubbles coming from the sides at inconsistent levels. However, dirty glassware will also have this effect, if it doesn't flatten the wine altogether!

  • The bouquet of Sparklings should exhibit primary & developed fruit, as well as biscuity yeast characters from time spent in contact with lees and oak.

  • In the mouth, you are looking for a gas explosion [from the mousse], creaminess on the palate, sweetness, flavour length, freshness from acidity, and a dry finish.

[Back to Top]

Come back for more tips and pics in the future!

Last Updated: Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Further Reading:

Copyright © Debra-Jayne Kimlin 2006. All rights reserved. No text or imagery of this site may be used without prior consent. Disclaimer.