Q: How do you manage tasting notes?

At the latest with a growing stock in the wine cellar , the question arises of how to manage it optimally. The aim is to systematically record the wines in order to a) find them quickly when you are looking for them, and b) not overlook them so that they do not become undrinkable at some point due to overaging. In addition, one can store the date of purchase, source and price as well as tasting notes. All this information can certainly be organised to a certain extent with index cards or slips of paper. At some point, however, you may wish to manage your wine cellar by computer. Then you can either use standard applications or special software programmes: An individual wine cellar administration can already be set up with a conventional spreadsheet system (e.g. Microsoft Excel) or database system. These have the advantage that you can flexibly adapt them to your own needs. The disadvantage of such standard applications is that they hardly reach the user-friendliness and scope of performance of ready-made solutions. Special software designed specifically for the purpose of managing cellar inventories and tasting notes is offered by several service providers. These can be found in the web catalogue under the heading "wine software" .

Question 1

What's in the wine?

Accepted Answer

The ingredients of wine influence sensory perception.

For the most part, wine consists of Waterusually between 78 and 85 per cent.

The second largest part is made up of Alcohol (mainly ethanol and glycerine). To convert: one percent alcohol by volume corresponds to about eight grams of alcohol per litre of wine. For fermentation, the rule of thumb is that one percent by volume (or 7.9 grams) of alcohol per litre of wine is produced from around 15 grams of sugar per litre of must (or vice versa: 10 g/l sugar ≈ 5.2 g/l alcohol ≈ 0.66 percent alcohol by volume).

Another essential ingredient is Sugar - the residual sugar that has not been converted into alcohol (ethanol) and carbon dioxide during fermentation. The main types of sugar in wine are fructose and glucose, with the glucose being fermented first; the residual sugar therefore usually has a higher fructose content. The residual sugar content can range from zero to over 250, and in rare cases even over 300 grams per litre of wine.

Acidity is also an important component of wine, with the acid content being composed of several different types of acid: primarily malic acid, tartaric acid, lactic acid and citric acid, as well as traces of other acids. During malolactic fermentation (also called biological acid degradation), the strong malic acid is converted by bacteria into the weaker lactic acid.

In addition - and this is particularly important for sensory perception apart from sugar and acidity - wine contains Colouring, Flavourings and Tannins. Chemically, these include phenols, esters, thiols, terpenes, pyrazines and tannins. These sometimes highly complex compounds shape the smell, taste and texture as well as, to some extent, the appearance of the wine.

Finally, minerals are relevant: mostly salts - especially of potassium, phosphorus, calcium, magnesium and sodium - as well as trace elements.

Question 2

What are primary aromas?

Accepted Answer

Primary aromas are created in the vineyard: they depend on the grape variety as well as the soil type on which the vines grow. Above all, fruity and mineral notes are primary aromas

Question 3

What are secondary flavours?

Accepted Answer

Secondary aromas are created during the winemaking process: during fermentation and ageing of the wine, the wine develops its own aromas; these include, for example, yeast and - particularly vivid - wood notes (vanilla, caramel, coffee, smoke) if the wine has been aged in barrels. Certain yeasts, which are often specially bred, produce clearly definable flavours that can override the varietal character of the grape variety. Very cool fermentation often leads to a distinct ice-candy flavour in the wine, which is referred to as "dropsy".

Question 4

What are tertiary aromas?

Accepted Answer

Tertiary aromas emerge during ageing: due to the chemical transformation during bottle ageing, new aromas emerge again after longer storage, such as the typical maturity notes in red wines (nuts, earth, damp leaves), the petrol tone in matured Rieslings or - in the negative case - oxidation and firn notes; the latter are signs of ageing.

Question 5

What factors influence wine quality?

Accepted Answer

To answer this question, it is first necessary to define what wine quality means, i.e. what characteristics a high-quality wine has.

The following characteristics make up wine quality:

A wine in which all these characteristics are strongly pronounced is of high quality. The expression depends on the following factors, which can be controlled in the vineyard and cellar.

Animation video: Oliver Ende, endes-welten.de

One of the most important factors for wine quality is the Extract of the grapes - technically speaking the Must weighti.e. the sum of all dissolved substances in the grape must. The easiest way to determine the extract is to limit the Yield influence: The fewer grapes hanging on the vine, the higher the extract of the individual berries and the more substantial, high-quality and storable the wine. With increasing ripeness, the must weight then rises, because more and more extract substances are formed in the grape. The age of the vines also plays a role here: the older the vine, the fewer and smaller, but more extract-rich berries it produces.

Another important factor is the Terroir: the interaction of climate, soil and cultivation of the vineyard. The climate includes factors such as temperature, solar radiation, precipitation, humidity and wind; with regard to the soil, the nutrient content and water supply are particularly important, which are largely determined by the geological composition. Taking these conditions into account, the vineyard must offer the grape variety planted there the most favourable natural conditions for growth and ripening. The winegrower influences this by choosing the variety and the cultivation method: the more nature-loving and environmentally friendly the vineyard is cultivated - for example in organic or biodynamic cultivation - the more stable, substantial, differentiated and balanced the wine. This also applies analogously to cellar work: the fewer chemical and physical measures are used during vinification (this begins with pumping the must and applies especially to fining the young wine), the more delicate, expressive and balanced the wine. Basically, it can be said: the more time a wine is given in the cellar (for fermentation, for stabilisation, for ageing), the better the wine lees ageingfor stabilisation, for ageing, for harmonisation), the higher the quality.

Closely related to the terroir is the narrowness of the Origin is closely related to the terroir. The highest quality wine is made from grapes that come from only one vineyard or even from only one parcel. The principle of this so-called origin principle is thus: The closer the origin, the higher the wine quality. The reasoning behind this is: The smaller the geographical unit in which the grapes grow, the more homogeneous and characteristic the terroir and the more strongly this is expressed in the wine - which is also a sign of quality. In the case of wines with a protected designation of origin, this is linked to certain, precisely defined quality specifications, which can range from the maximum yield to the minimum ripening period. This is where the various Quality systems come into play.

In order to maintain the quality of the wine for as long as possible and to ensure that the wine develops as well as possible during bottle age ing, it is essential to store it under optimal conditions storedark, rather cool, at a constant temperature and not too low humidity, and without the influence of oxygen or foreign aromas.

Question 6

What is the difference between aroma, flavour and texture?

Accepted Answer

The sensory testing of a wine is also known as organoleptic testing. It differs from analytical testing, which uses technical, physical and/or chemical tests to determine certain measured values (e.g. acidity, sugar content, alcohol content, etc.). Sensory testing, on the other hand, uses the senses to determine the quality of the wine. This involves the sense of sight (eye), the sense of smell (nose), the sense of taste (tongue) and the sense of touch (oral mucosa).

The appearance (visual test) assesses the colour and clarity of the wine.

The Odour (olfactory test) assesses the clarity, intensity, character and complexity:

Is the odour clean, i.e. free of off-tones?
How strong is the odour? (quantitative)
What does the wine smell of? (qualitative)
How many aroma components can be detected and how differentiated are they?

The Flavour (gustatory test) the same aspects are assessed, i.e. clarity, intensity, character and complexity:

Is the flavour clean, i.e. free of off-flavours?
How strong is the flavour? (quantitative)
What does the wine taste like? (qualitative)
How many flavour components can be identified and how differentiated are they?

Aromatics is the generic term for flavours and initially describes the fact that the wine has flavours, i.e. that it is aromatic. If a certain characteristic is attributed to the aroma, this indicates the basic category of aromas that the wine has (keyword: aroma wheel): If the wine has a "fruity aroma", this means that it smells and tastes (at least predominantly) of fruit (e.g. berries, cherries, plums, pome fruit, stone fruit, citrus fruits); if it has a "savoury aroma", notes of spices, herbs, tobacco or leather, for example, are in the foreground.

The majority of the Flavours is perceived through the nose. The tongue only registers the "coarse" flavours of sweet, sour, salty and bitter as well as umami (savoury, positively flavour-enhancing) and fatty (scientifically: oleogustus). The detailed flavour characteristics are registered retronasally, i.e. when the air rises from the oral cavity via the pharynx into the nose - smelling as you exhale, so to speak.

With the Texture(trigeminal/tactile test) assesses the characteristics of the wine that cannot be tasted or smelled but can be felt through the oral mucosa; examples include juicy, creamy, melting, soft, firm, pungent, cool or warming. Texture also includes criteria such as pressure, tang and length, and last but not least, alcohol is perceived tactilely: It doesn't taste like anything, but has a sharp effect - and that is not a flavour, but a sensation.

Question 7

What rating systems are there for wine?

Accepted Answer

Various rating systems have emerged or been developed to assess a wine professionally. Most are based on points (the higher, the better the wine), others on symbols, although the quantity also provides information about the quality of the wine.

Examples of symbols include the grapes of the "Gault&Millau" wine guide (1-5; full steps in black, half steps in red), the stars of the "Eichelmann" wine guide (1-5; full steps filled in, half steps not filled in), the Fs of the magazine "Der Feinschmecker" (1-5; full steps filled in, half steps not filled in) or the glasses of the Italian wine guide "Gambero Rosso" (1-3).

The most common scoring systems are those with a maximum of 5, 20 or 100 points.

In the 5-point system - here using the example of the German quality wine test - the following gradation applies:

Level 5 (4.50-5.00 points) - excellent
Level 4 (3.50-4.49 points) - very good
Level 3 (2.50-3.49 points) - good
Level 2 (1.50-2.49 points) - satisfactory
Level 1 (0.50-1.49 points) - unsatisfactory
Level 0 (0.00-0.49 points) - unassessable

In the 20-point system, the limit for a drinkable wine is 10 points, while in the 100-point system it is 50 or even 70 points, depending on the critic or medium. Robert Parker 's "Wine Advocate", for example, is known for its very generous use of the 100-point system, while the wine guide from wein.plus under tasting director Marcus Hofschuster applies the system much more strictly. In any case, the 100-point system is the most differentiated way to evaluate wines.

The following gradations and "translations" can be made:

100-point system wein.plus	Rating	Explanation	100-point system generous	20-point system
up to 69	faulty	Wine with more or less pronounced wine defect	up to 75	up to 9.9
70 to 74	acceptable	neutral, simple wine, without faults but with little substance and lacking varietal typicity; below 3 Euro acceptable	76 to 79	10 to 11.4
75 to 79	decent	clean, harmonious, appealing wine with a certain varietal typicity; recommendable for up to 5 euros	80 to 84	11.5 to 12.9
80 to 84	good	pure, harmonious wine with good structure, character and style, real drinking pleasure; a good buy for up to 8 euros	85 to 88	13 to 14.9
85 to 89	very good	remarkable wine with personality, expression, fullness and finesse as well as a certain complexity and depth that deserves the attention of every discerning wine lover; always an opportunity for up to 15 euros	89 to 92	15 to 16.4
90 to 94	outstanding	first-class wine that is one of the best of its kind, absolute purity, harmony, balance, depth and character; always a bargain under 20 euros, but not really expensive up to around 30 euros either	93 to 95	16.5 to 17.9
95 to 99	great	World-class wine whose depth, complexity and expression create an unforgettable sensory experience and which is able to completely captivate every wine lover; worth 40 euros and more	96 to 100	18 to 19.9
100	unique	Wine that can only be made differently, but not better, a very special, incomparable pleasure experience	100	20

The individual evaluation criteria can be broken down using the following scheme, which results in a maximum of 20 points:

Appearance
Colour (0-2 points)

0	inappropriate, faulty
1	appropriate
2	appealing and expressive

Clarity (0-2 points)

0	broken, milky, cloudy
1	clear and pure, but dull and lacklustre
2	brilliant, shiny, crystal clear

Odour
Purity, intensity and complexity of the aromas (0-4 points)

0	non-existent, faulty, bad, spoilt
1	weak, diffuse, neutral, restrained
2	adequate, clean, pure tone
3	exemplary, fragrant, fine
4	characteristic, particularly fine and distinctive

Flavour
Purity, fruit, sweetness, acidity, possibly tannin, body, structure (0-7 points)

0-1	hardly present, empty, thin, strange, spoilt
2-3	muted, lean, inexpressive, straightforward
4-5	pure-toned, expressive
6	aromatic, rich, full-bodied
7	full of character, stylistically outstanding, perfect

Overall impression
general quality, typicity, harmony, balance, finesse, finish, maturity (0-5 points)

0-1	inadequate, inharmonious, atypical
2-3	short finish, harmonious
4	medium to long finish, balanced, typical, delicate
5	long-lasting, exemplary, very harmonious, extremely fine, great wine

Half points can also be awarded in the evaluation. The sum of the points can then also be converted into the 100-point system, whereby - as described above - levels 11 to 20 correspond to levels 71 to 100. Each point above 10 in the 20-point system therefore corresponds to 3 points above 70 in the 100-point system. With 17 points, this results in a correspondence of 91 (70 + 7x3), with 18 points a correspondence of 94 (70 + 8x3); the steps in between make up exactly the higher differentiation of the 100-point system.

Finally, a few important notes:

Although a rating in points or symbols makes a statement about the quality of the wine, it does not explain it or describe the wine. Therefore, the rating and the sensory description of the wine must always be considered in combination with each other - because you cannot taste points.
The quality assessment of the wine says only a very limited amount about its enjoyment value in a particular situation. This is also (and considerably) dependent on the surroundings, the time of day, the ambient temperature, the food served, the personal mood and other factors.
Even an objectively very high-quality wine does not necessarily have to be enjoyable - especially not when you consider people's individual preferences, sensitivities and dislikes. For example, a young, powerful, tannin-rich red wine of very high quality will receive a high score because its character and potential are taken into account in the assessment. However, only people who like strong, tannic red wines will enjoy it, and only when the wine is ready to drink.

Question 8

What wine awards are there?

Accepted Answer

In the case of wine awards, a rough distinction must be made between the scores awarded by individual critics and wine guides and the results of wine competitions and tastings organised by relevant magazines, in which the wines are judged by juries of several members.

Some of the best-known international wine critics and media are (in alphabetical order):

Major international wine competitions are:

Certain wine guides, magazines and competitions are important for individual countries, whereby it is not primarily about the wines from these countries, but about the respective market. Different awards are presented: Medals ranging from bronze, silver and gold to grand gold and platinum, as well as titles such as "Collection of the Year", "Winery of the Year", "Winemaker of the Year", "Rising Star of the Year", "Discovery of the Year" or "Newcomer of the Year".

Germany

wein.plus (Marcus Hofschuster)
Golden Grape Awards
Gault & Millau
Eichelmann
Mundus Vini
Berlin Wine Trophy
Frankfurt International Trophy
The Gourmet
Vinum
Enos(Dr Eckhard Supp)

Austria

France

Guide Hachette
Gilbert & Gaillard
Bettane & Desseauve
Concours Général Agricole de Paris
La Revue du Vin de France

Italy

Gambero Rosso
Luigi Veronelli (Vini di Veronelli)
Luca Maroni
Daniele Cernilli (Doctor Wine)
Slow Wine

Spain

Guía Peñín
Guía Proensa

Question 9

How do you manage tasting notes?

Accepted Answer

At the latest with a growing stock in the wine cellar, the question arises of how to manage it optimally. The aim is to systematically record the wines in order to a) find them quickly when you are looking for them, and b) not overlook them so that they do not become undrinkable at some point due to overaging. In addition, one can store the date of purchase, source and price as well as tasting notes.

All this information can certainly be organised to a certain extent with index cards or slips of paper. At some point, however, you may wish to manage your wine cellar by computer. Then you can either use standard applications or special software programmes:

An individual wine cellar administration can already be set up with a conventional spreadsheet system (e.g. Microsoft Excel) or database system. These have the advantage that you can flexibly adapt them to your own needs. The disadvantage of such standard applications is that they hardly reach the user-friendliness and scope of performance of ready-made solutions.
Special software designed specifically for the purpose of managing cellar inventories and tasting notes is offered by several service providers. These can be found in the web catalogue under the heading "wine software".

Question 10

How do you taste a wine?

Accepted Answer

Tasting wine, tasting wine, tasting wine - three terms for the same process. A wine is usually tasted in order to judge its quality. Professional wine critics, sommeliers (wine experts who work in the catering trade) or tasters (who work as buyers in the wine trade, for example) do this full-time - but anyone can taste and judge wine. There is no need to make a science out of it, because drinking wine should first and foremost be a pleasure and a source of enjoyment. One of the essential elements of professional wine tasting is that you don't swallow, but spit, so that you remain sober and your judgement is not clouded by the intoxication that would otherwise set in.

When asked after a meal whether they liked it, nobody would think of answering: "I don't know. I don't know enough about food for that." Just as impartially as you say whether you like a meal or not, you can and should also say whether you like a wine or not. People who are more intensively involved with wine and wine tasting only go one step further and ask why they like or dislike the wine.

In this respect, it is helpful to know what you can look out for when tasting wine in order to recognise for yourself why you like a wine or not, to be able to discuss it with others and to know in which direction you want to continue tasting your way through the wide world of wines the next time you go to the wine merchant. Whether you like a wine or not depends on the following criteria:

Appearance

The visual impression alone determines whether a wine tastes good or not. After all, an attractively presented meal tastes better than one that has been carelessly thrown on the plate. The following criteria are important when it comes to appearance:

A clear or even sparkling and shiny wine makes a better impression than a dull or even cloudy wine.
The depth of colour - depending on the grape variety - allows conclusions to be drawn about the extract and therefore the intensity of flavour and quality: a wine that is deep red or a strong golden yellow is more promising than a wine with a pale, inconspicuous colour.
The colour gives an indication of the age of the wine: the darker a white wine and the browner a red wine is, the older it is, which means that the primary fruit has receded into the background in terms of aroma and taste.

Odour

Smelling the wine involves checking the following questions:

All these factors determine whether the odour is perceived as pleasant or not. There are wines that smell of nothing, others have such an animating and complex aroma that you want to smell them forever, while others have a downright repulsive nose.

To enhance the olfactory impression, you can swirl the glass in your free hand or on the table surface to give the wine oxygen, which opens up the aromas.

Flavour and texture

To perceive the flavour and mouthfeel of the wine, take a sip and hold it in your mouth for a few seconds before either swallowing or spitting it out. At a professional wine tasting, appropriate containers are provided for spitting. These usually look like a champagne cooler with a removable lid that has a hole in the centre. In German, such a container is called a "Spucknapf", in English it is called a "spittoon", in French a "crachoir".

Oxygen can also be added to the wine in the mouth to open up the flavours. This is done by subtly slurping, but it is also sufficient to move the wine back and forth a little with the tongue. Even if you sometimes experience the opposite: a professional wine tasting is silent; the slurping or spitting should hardly be audible. A high slurping volume is therefore by no means an indication of a high level of wine expertise; rather the opposite.

When tasting, the following questions can be explored:

Does the wine taste intense and complex or rather neutral (like water)?
Does the wine have a perceptible Sweetness?
Does the wine have a perceptible Acidity? If so, is it harmonious, refreshing and stimulating or rather dominant, sharp and unpleasant?
Does the wine have Carbonic acid (like mineral water)?
Does the wine have perceptibletannins? If so, are they coarse or fine? Are they supple, harmonious and soft or rather furry, drying and bitter?
How strong is the Alcohol perceptible? Is it well integrated and supports the wine or is it warming or even pungent?

A wine will taste good and therefore be judged favourably if all these factors are in a balanced relationship to each other and none of them stand out inharmoniously.

Finish

The finish - or reverberation, persistence or length - of a wine refers to the time that the wine lingers in the mouth after swallowing (or spitting): how long the aromas and flavours can be perceived and how long the mouthfeel lasts. The finish can be measured in seconds and can last less than five (short), five to ten (medium) or over ten, sometimes even twenty seconds or more (long). The longer the finish and the more lasting the impression on the palate, the higher the quality of the wine.

Book recommendation

A recommended book for a practical and systematic approach to wine tasting is the guide "Wein degustieren" by Kurt Gibel (Hallwag-Verlag, ISBN: 9783774262522 - €9.90).

Short description by the publisher: "This little book is a completely new approach to wine tasting. You don't swot up on grey theory, but activate both hemispheres of the brain at the same time with the help of the pictorial representations on the fold-out wine maps. This holistic method helps the memory and the art of tasting is learnt in a fun and effortless way. The 120 most important tasting terms and around 120 flavours quickly become familiar to the user of the work. The second chapter explains how it is that wines sparkle, smell and taste so differently. Other sections of the book deal with food and wine as well as wine temperatures. They are intended to encourage readers to leave the beaten track and seek out their own flavour experiences."

Question 11

How do you judge the appearance of the wine?

Accepted Answer

The appearance of a wine can say a lot about its grape variety and origin, its maturity and its condition. When assessing the appearance of a wine, attention is paid to clarity, depth of colour, hue and viscosity.

Clarity

To judge the clarity of a wine, hold the glass up to a light source or a bright, white surface. The spectrum ranges from crystal clear to clean and matt to cloudy.

A permanent, uniform cloudiness (to be distinguished from sediment that settles over time) is always a sign of poor quality or over-ripeness.

Colour depth

To assess the depth of colour and also the hue of a wine, hold it at an angle against a white surface. With both white and red wines, an intense, dense colour can indicate a lot of substance and extract. These two factors usually result from the reduction in yield and are quality criteria for the wine.

However, the depth of colour also depends largely on the grape variety: In red wines, for example, a Trollinger or a Pinot Noir naturally has significantly less colour intensity than a Cabernet Sauvignon or Dornfelder. Not every "lighter-coloured" wine is therefore inferior - and not every darker-coloured wine is automatically of high quality.

With increasing maturity, the depth of colour tends to increase in white wines and decrease in red wines. Oxidation increases the depth of colour in both cases.

Colour tone

The colour tone can be assessed using the following - exemplary - scales:

White wine	Red wine
- Lemon yellow	- Cherry red
- Greyish yellow	- Purple red
- Greenish yellow	- Ruby red
- Golden yellow	- Garnet red
- Amber gold	- Brick red
- Yellow-brown	- Copper red

The colour is particularly indicative of the maturity of the wine. The colour at the edge of the glass is particularly interesting. The following basic statements can be made:

Viscosity

Viscosity is best recognised by first swirling the glass and then holding it against a white surface. Drops then begin to run down from the edge that the liquid has left on the inside wall of the glass, forming "stained glass windows". The later this drop formation begins and the slower the drops run down, the higher the viscosity and therefore the extract and quality of the wine.

Question 12

How do you judge the smell of wine?

Accepted Answer

Smell is used to judge the wine's aromas, i.e. their purity, intensity, expression and complexity. The questions are therefore:

Is the aroma clear and free of off-flavours? (Purity)
How strong is the odour? (intensity)
What does the wine smell like? (expression)
How many flavour components can be detected and how differentiated are they? (complexity)

In order to answer the last question and thus professionally describe the aroma of the wine, the aromas must be systematised. The easiest way to do this is with the Flavour wheel. The flavours are grouped together (e.g. fruity, floral, herbal, spicy, nutty, vegetable, roasted, earthy, microbiological, chemical) and then successively broken down into individual components (e.g. walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds in the case of "nutty").

In the representation of the wheel, the flavours become finer and finer from the inside to the outside, and this is also the way to proceed when describing wine: Depending on how detailed you can perceive a scent, the flavour naming becomes more and more differentiated and concrete. Two examples:

	White wine flavour description	Flavour description of red wine
Aroma group "fruity"	Fruity	Fruit flavour
Specification (subgroup)	yellow fruits	red fruits
Fruit category	Pome fruit	Berries
Single flavour	Pear	Strawberry
Development of the fruit flavour (stage of development or treatment of the fruit) Treatment of the fruit)	fresh / ripe / overripe / dried / preserved / candied	fresh / ripe / overripe / dried / preserved / candied

Simple wines will only allow rather rough aroma descriptions ("dark fruit"), whereas high-quality wines will allow very sophisticated ones ("partially dried blackcurrants and preserved blackberries").

It takes a well-trained sense of smell and a good memory to perceive a fragrance in all its facets and to name the individual components. A simple basic rule applies: you can only identify something that you know. For example, if you don't know what a banana smells like, you won't be able to recognise and name this aroma in a wine that smells of banana. However, anyone can distinguish between the broad aroma groups inside the aroma wheel (see above), and to get an idea of what a wine smells like, it is enough to describe it as "fruity", "floral" or "spicy". How you can train your sensory skills is described in detail in the corresponding entry for beginners: How do you train your senses?

Specific flavour wheels for white and red wines can be ordered from the German Wine Institute (shop.deutscheweine.de).

Question 13

How do you judge the flavour of the wine?

Accepted Answer

As with the smell, the purity, intensity, character and complexity of the wine 's flavour are also assessed:

Is the flavour clear and free of off-tones? (Purity of flavour)
How strong is the flavour? (intensity)
How and what does the wine taste like? How does the wine feel in the mouth? (Characterisation)
How many flavour components can be detected and how differentiated are they? (complexity)

The flavour characteristics of a wine are divided into different dimensions:

Several senses are therefore involved in the perception of flavour: the sense of taste (tongue), the sense of smell (nose) and the sense of touch (oral mucosa).

Flavours

The tongue only registers six flavours:

The last two flavours "umami" and "fatty" hardly occur in wine. Therefore, the relevant questions are:

Does the wine have a perceptible sweetness? If so, is it rather subtle and discreet or does it dominate all other sensations?
Does the wine have a perceptible acidity? If so, is it harmonious, refreshing and stimulating or rather dominant, sharp and unpleasant?
Does the wine have perceptible bitterness? (This can be the case with red wines in particular, as the tannins they contain taste bitter)
Does the wine have perceptible salty notes? (This can be the case with particularly mineral wines, as minerals are salts)

Aromas

Flavours are perceived through the nose when the air rises from the oral cavity via the throat into the nose - in a sense, this means smelling while exhaling. The technical term for this is retronasal.

The systematic determination of flavours is aided by the Flavour wheel. The flavours are grouped together (e.g. fruity, floral, herbal, spicy, nutty, vegetable, roasted, earthy, microbiological, chemical) and then successively broken down into individual components (e.g. walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds for "nutty"). In the representation of the wheel, the flavours become finer and finer from the inside to the outside, and this is also the way to proceed when describing wine: Depending on how detailed you can perceive an aroma, the flavour naming becomes more and more differentiated and specific.

Mouthfeel

Mouthfeel or texture refers to the characteristics of a wine that can be felt rather than tasted or smelled. Terms used to describe the texture of a wine include juicy, creamy, melting, soft, firm, pungent, cool or warming.

The body and criteria such as pressure, tension and length are also part of the texture and, last but not least, the alcohol is perceived tactilely: It tastes like nothing itself, but seems sharp - and that is a sensation, not a flavour.

Exemplary questions about texture can be:

Does the wine stimulate salivation, does it have a mouth-watering and stimulating effect?
Does the wine have a perceptible melt (like ice cream or pudding), is it soft and smooth like velvet or silk?
Does the wine have an astringent effect so that the oral mucosa contracts?
Is the body of the wine rather lean or rather strong?
Is the wine rather opulent and full-bodied or rather taut, cool and firm?
Does the wine have perceptibletannins? If so, are they coarse or fine? Are they supple, harmonious and soft or rather furry, drying and rough?
How strong is the alcohol perceptible? Is it well integrated and supports the wine or is it warming or even pungent?
Does the wine have perceptible carbon dioxide (like mineral water)?

Finish

The finish - or reverberation, persistence or length - of a wine describes the time that the wine lingers in the mouth after swallowing (or spitting): how long the aromas and flavours can be perceived and how long the mouthfeel lasts. The finish can be measured in seconds and can last less than five (short), five to ten (medium) or over ten, sometimes even twenty seconds or more (long). The longer the finish and the more lasting the palate impression, the higher the quality of the wine.

Question 14

How do you recognise wine faults?

Accepted Answer

It is estimated that five to ten percent of all wine bottles are defective. The faults can manifest themselves in very different ways; in most cases they are caused by microorganisms. However, some phenomena that may seem unusual are not wine faults.

What you can see

Especially with young wines, a Cloudiness is often a sign of a defect. Cloudiness may appear as a fine haze or in the form of flaky or cloudy precipitates. In older red wines, however, temporary turbidity can also be caused by swirled up Deposit swirled up. However, this settles again and is not a wine defect. Cloudiness is also not necessarily a defect in the case of unfiltered Wines.

Also Tartar is not a wine defect. These are salts of tartaric acid that precipitate in the form of small, transparent crystals. Tartar is completely harmless to health.

With older wines, you should pay attention to the Fill level of the bottle. Over the course of several decades, liquid gradually evaporates through the cork. Bottles of very old wines are therefore sometimes no longer completely full. However, this should not happen with wines that are less than 15 years old and is a sign of a faulty closure; the wine may then already be heavily oxidised.

If the cork has Mould if mould has formed on the cork, this alone is no cause for concern; it rather speaks for an intact cellar flora. However, the cork should not stick out of the bottle. If the cork has already been driven out of the bottle by a few millimetres, the wine has probably been exposed to too high temperatures and may have suffered damage.

On the other hand, it is harmless if there are cork crumbs floating in the bottle or glass after opening because the cork was not pulled out completely. This is not an indication of a cork defect(cork taint), and the crumbs can simply be fished out.

What you can smell and taste

One of the most common and most prominent wine faults is cork taint. It manifests itself in a dull, musty, musty smell and a dull, bitter taste. It is mainly triggered by the chemical compound trichloroanisole(TCA), which is formed when microorganisms break down certain chlorine-containing substances from wood treatment. Typical of the cork defect is that the smell in the glass becomes stronger and more unpleasant. If in doubt, let the glass stand for about ten minutes and then smell it again. If the smell has then disappeared, it was not a cork taint.

Cork taint, by the way, can be treacherous and cannot be detected immediately or clearly. Sometimes the wine appears to be flawless in aroma and taste, but in the reverberation (the smell that comes directly from the throat to the nose after swallowing) a musty tone then appears. It is also possible that only in the course of time - a quarter or half an hour after opening the bottle - a "hidden" cork taint becomes noticeable. Sometimes a wine simply smells and tastes peculiarly "muted" without one being able to precisely fathom the impairment; a cork defect can also be the cause of this - especially in the case of agglomerated corks. On the other hand, a musty, musty smell can also occur with wines that are not sealed with corks.

Another defect is the "atypical age tone" (UTA). This is caused by the chemical compound aminoacetophenone (AAP), which produces a dull, soapy-bitter smell and taste reminiscent of mothballs, floor polish, dirty, damp rags or wet cardboard. UTA often occurs when the vines have suffered from a lack of water, nutrients and/or nitrogen, as well as with high yields and early harvests.

The third common wine defect is sulphur boil. It is caused by hydrogen sulphide and its smell is reminiscent of the exhalations of a billy goat (hence the name) or of rotten eggs, decaying meat, cooked cabbage or burnt rubber. Possible causes for the formation of Böckser are insufficient nutrient supply of the vine, high fermentation temperatures or hygiene deficiencies. Since hydrogen sulphide reacts with copper, you can put a copper coin (e.g. a penny piece) in the glass and swirl it a little to get rid of the gust; but it is better to simply buy a new bottle of wine - as with all other wine faults.

Question 15

How do you organise a wine tasting?

Accepted Answer

Wine tasting in a private setting is an excellent way to combine wine enjoyment, wine experience and socialising. Even without the tasting serving the analytical judgement of wines, you can broaden your wine horizon in an interested group.

The following utensils should be prepared:

Number of wines and guests

The number of wines to be tasted depends on the wine experience of the guests and also on how serious the tasting is. In a cosy group of less experienced wine drinkers, six different wines are completely sufficient, otherwise the guests will be sensory overloaded. For experienced wine drinkers, the guideline is 10 to 15 wines - a higher number only makes sense if experienced tasters come together.

There is also the problem of leftovers to consider: if a very small group (four people) tastes a total of ten different wines, you will end up with ten almost full bottles. The ideal number of guests for a wine tasting is eight to ten - with this number of people, one bottle per wine is sufficient and is emptied in reasonable quantities.

Selection of wines

There are no limits to the imagination when selecting the wines. You can choose a theme for the tasting, e.g. specific grape varieties, growing regions or countries. Comparisons are also always interesting: stainless steel versus wood maturation, New World versus Old World, Riesling chardonnay or Pinot Noir from Germany against other countries, etc.

The host can provide the wines, but he can also ask the guests to each bring a wine for the tasting - either according to the predetermined theme, or you can organise a surprise tasting where each guest brings a wine of their choice. In this case, it makes sense to agree on an upper price limit.

Further ideas and tips for organising wine tastings can also be found in relevant books.

Preparing the wines

Young, full-bodied wines need sufficient air before tasting so that the oxygen can break down the flavours. However, it is a challenge to decanting - who has five or even ten decanters in the house?

A simple solution is to pour the wines into the carafe and then pour them back into the bottle (for which a funnel is essential). Before refilling, it is advisable to rinse the bottle with clear water for wines with sediment. This allows you to serve several wines aerated with only one carafe in the house - whereby the carafe should of course also be rinsed thoroughly with water between the wines.

Order of the wines

The correct order of the wines is important for a successful tasting. There are several rules for this, which should be sensibly combined based on the selected wines:

Handling glasses

Glasses can be rinsed with water between each wine. However, this is not necessary if the tasting sequence is correct. Once wetted with wine, the glass is "avinated" or "wine-green", i.e. it has a certain basic wine aroma (because wine is clearly identifiable as wine even beyond all aromatic details and differs from fruit juice or beer in sensory terms). This allows many specific, subtle flavours of the individual wines that are tasted afterwards to stand out better. Between very different wines or after a faulty wine and also before the first wine, the glass should always be rinsed with water.

A tried and tested method of rinsing the glass before each new wine - and especially before the first one - is to simply rinse it with water to rinse with wineit is also a good idea to simply rinse the glass with a sip of water: pour and swirl the glass so that the entire inner wall is wetted with wine. This first sip can also be passed from one glass to the next, as it will be poured out at the end anyway.

Blind tasting or open tasting

In social gatherings, wine tasting is usually done openly, i.e. all guests know exactly which wine will be poured into each glass. This has the advantage that the sensory impressions can be directly related to the grape variety, the origin and the winery.

A professional tasting, on the other hand, is usually a Blind tastingi.e. the bottle label is concealed and the guests either know nothing at all about the wine or at most the grape variety(ies) or the origin. To cover the bottles, there are sleeves made of fabric or corrugated cardboard that can be put over the bottles. Alternatively, aluminium foil can be used to wrap the bottles. The capsule and cork should also be removed before the bottle is brought to the tasting table, as they can also provide clues about the producer. If you want to be really precise, you even have to decant the wines into neutral bottles, because the shape or colour of the bottle can also reveal something about the contents.

During a blind tasting, all bottles must be numbered so that they can be clearly identified.

Question 16

How do you train your senses?

Accepted Answer

Everyone can train their sensory skills. This is done first and foremost by consciously tasting wine. When tasting wine, one should try again and again to analyse and describe the smell and taste. Only through one's own experience does sensory experience set in, and only through continuous training have even professional wine tasters and critics gained their expertise.

The basis for being able to recognise and name aromas is the conscious sensory perception of the environment: What do flowers, plants, fruits, vegetables smell like? This applies to as many individual species as possible. What does the forest smell like - in spring, in summer, in autumn? What do earth and rocks smell like - dry, warm, cold, wet? What do herbs, nuts and spices smell like - again, as many individual species as possible? How do fruits and herbs smell and taste when they are fresh and when they are dried? What do preserved or pickled fruits or vegetables taste like? How does fresh wood smell, how does burnt wood smell? What are roasted aromas, what are smoky notes? How does food smell and taste when it is fresh and when it is cooked (boiled, stewed, roasted, grilled)? Many of these questions are already easy to pay attention to every time you prepare food.

In addition, you can train your sense of smell and taste through exercises and references.

Train your nose

With the help of olfactory references, you can refresh your memory for certain scents. For this purpose, there are various aroma sets in different versions from several suppliers, such as Le Nez du Vin, Aromaster or Aromabar. According to the manufacturers, these sets contain the most important aromas found in wine in small vials so that they can be "sniffed" at any time. Such sets are available for both typical white wine and red wine aromasand even specifically for wine faults. At around 300 euros each, however, these sets are relatively expensive, and the aromas that are prepared here are artificially produced, which is noticeable in some cases.

More true to nature and significantly cheaper are therefore references produced in-house. Below are some examples that can be added to as desired; the production principle is always similar.

A base wine is required for these recipes. This should be a neutral, simple wine; for example, a dry Müller-Thurgau or a passable northern Italian Pinot Grigio for about three euros per bottle is quite sufficient for this.

Recipes for white wine smell references

Lemon
mix freshly squeezed lemon juice 1:2 with the base wine
Grapefruit
mix freshly squeezed grapefruit juice 1:2 with the base wine
Apple, pear
Cut the apple or pear into small pieces and steep for 3 hours in the base wine
Peach, Apricot
Mix peach or apricot nectar (e.g. Granini) 1:1 with the base wine
Pineapple
steep 1/12 of a fresh pineapple in 200 ml of the base wine
Honey
dissolve 2 teaspoons of honey in 30 ml of base wine
Mushrooms
cut 30 g mushrooms into small pieces and let them steep for 3 hours in 200 ml base wine
Grass
cut fresh grass into small pieces and steep for 2 hours in the base wine

Recipes for red wine aroma references

Strawberry
steep 30 ml strawberry preserves and one fresh strawberry in 70 ml base wine
Raspberry
steep two crushed raspberries in 100 ml base wine for 1 hour
Currant
add 10 ml cassis syrup to 90 ml base wine
Prune
cut two prunes into small pieces and steep for 3 hours in 100 ml of base wine
Herbs
add 0.5 to 1 ml of herb liqueur to 100 ml of base wine
Clove
infuse two cloves for 3 hours in 100 ml of base wine
Pepper
crush two black peppercorns and steep in 100 ml of base wine
green pepper
a 10x10 mm piece of fresh paprika infused for 30 minutes in 100 ml of base wine
Vanilla
add 1 ml vanilla extract to 100 ml base wine
Oak wood
roast 1 g of oak wood shavings in the oven at 60 °C for 1 hour and then steep in 100 ml of base wine for 3 hours
Coffee
steep a crushed coffee bean in 100 ml of base wine
Cocoa
steep 2 pinches of cocoa in 100 ml of base wine

If you want to try to recognise the aromas blindly, you should fill the finished mixtures into neutral containers and number them (note the key for the resolution!) or you can colour them with food colouring.

Training the tongue

Taste training is essentially about experiencing the tastes of sweet and sour.

Sensation of sweetness

The basis for the following references is a sugar solution in a ratio of 50 g of sugar to one litre of liquid. The liquid used can be a base wine (see above) or simply water.

Then the following mixtures are created in glasses placed next to each other; it is easiest to count out the proportions in each case with teaspoons and pour them directly into the corresponding glass:

neutral	32 parts liquid
3 g/l	2 parts sugar solution to 32 parts liquid
6 g/l	4 parts sugar solution to 28 parts liquid
12 g/l	8 parts sugar solution to 20 parts liquid
etc.	etc.

Then a third person replaces two of the glasses in secret and the test person must then taste which two glasses were replaced. Depending on the individual threshold values, the concentrations can also be varied accordingly.

Acid sensation

Here, the basis for the following references is an acid solution in the ratio of 10 g citric acid to one litre of liquid (base wine or water).

Then, again in glasses placed next to each other, the following mixtures are created:

0	broken, milky, cloudy
1	clear and pure, but dull and lacklustre
2	brilliant, shiny, crystal clear

Then a third person again replaces two of the glasses in secret, and the test person must then taste which two glasses were replaced. Here, too, the concentrations can be varied according to individual threshold values.

Interaction between sweetness and acidity

The next level of sensory training is to learn how sweetness and acidity influence each other's taste perception and to learn to separate the two tastes in perception.

To do this, a series of reference solutions is built up in which acidity and sweetness occur simultaneously:

Sugar (g/l)	Acidity (g/l)	Proportions of sugar solution	Proportions of acid solution	Proportions of neutral liquid
3	0	2	0	30
3	0,9	2	3	27
6	0	4	ß	28
6	0,6	4	2	26
6	0,6	4	3	25
12	0,3	8	1	23
12	0,9	8	3	21

The task now is to correctly order these samples according to sweetness or acidity. (The values in the table can also be varied as desired)

Question 17

Which wine is good?

Accepted Answer

Whether a wine is good or not is first of all a question of personal taste. If you are sensitive to acidity, you will not be happy with a dry wine, for example Rieslingwhich is naturally acidic, no matter how highly rated or how expensive it is.

An important indication of the quality of a wine are the assessments of wine critics, wine guides, trade magazines or wine competitions. (For details see questions "What wine awards are there?", "What rating systems are there for wine?", "What wine guides are there?" and "What wine magazines are there?")

Apart from that, the quality of a wine can also be narrowed down on the basis of the label. Basically, the lower the yield, the closer the geographical origin and the higher the quality of the terroir (climate, soil, topography as well as methods of vineyard cultivation and winemaking), the better the wine. These factors are reflected in the respective quality level or protected designation of origin that the wine bears on the label. ( For details, see the question "What factors influence wine quality?")

For the most important European wine-growing countries, the following indications suggest that the wine in question is of high quality:

In addition, organically or biodynamically produced wines are in many cases better than conventionally produced wines. The seal of an organic association(Demeter, Ecovin, Bioland, Naturland etc.) or at least the EU organic seal on the bottle provides information on this.

Question 18

Which wine tastes best?

Accepted Answer

How good a wine tastes is a matter of personal preference. Even the most expensive and highest-rated wine does not automatically taste good to everyone - on the contrary, these wines are often particularly demanding from a sensory point of view.

The taste of a wine essentially depends on the aromas and the content of residual sugar, acidity,tannins and alcohol. Ideally, all these components are in a harmonious balance. Some people prefer dry wines, others residually sweet wines, some people like fresh acidity, others are sensitive to it, some people appreciate powerful, full-bodied wines, others prefer slender, light wines.

To find out one's own preferences, only one thing helps: try it! You can then pay attention to which flavour, which grape variety and/or which region of origin you like the most or don't like at all. In this way, you gradually gain a feeling for which wine or type of wine you like best.

"Objective" quality

If the question of which wine tastes best should rather be understood in terms of which wine is best (i.e. objectively of the highest possible quality ), other criteria can be consulted. Basically, the lower the yield, the closer the geographical origin and the higher the quality of the terroir (climate, soil, topography as well as methods of vineyard cultivation and winemaking), the better the wine. These factors are reflected in the respective quality level or protected designation of origin that the wine bears on the label. ( For details, see the question "What factors influence wine quality?")

For the most important European wine-producing countries, the following indications suggest that the wine in question is of high quality:

In addition, organically or biodynamically produced wines are in many cases better than conventionally produced wines. The seal of an organic association(Demeter, Ecovin, Bioland, Naturland etc.) or at least the EU organic seal on the bottle provides information about this.

Question 19

What percentage of alcohol does wine have?

Accepted Answer

The alcohol content of the wine is expressed in Percent by volume (vol.-%). This unit of measurement denotes the volume fraction of a substance in the total volume content of a mixture - in the case of wine, the volume content of the alcohol measured in the total volume content of the wine. This calculation is necessary because alcohol has a lower density than e.g. water, of which wine consists of about 80 percent.

Wine has a legal minimum alcohol content of 7 to 8 percent by volume depending on the growing region (depending on the wine-growing zone in which it is located). The maximum alcohol content depends on the ripeness of the grapes and indirectly on the grape variety and origin and can theoretically be over 16 percent by volume.

Most dry wines have an alcohol content of between 12 and 14 percent by volume; in the case of residually sweet wines, it can also be less than 10 percent by volume. Dry red wines often have a higher alcohol content (on average 12-14.5 percent by volume) than white wines (on average 11.5-14 percent by volume).

By the way, the article: How many calories does wine have? explains how the alcohol content can be converted from percent by volume to grams of pure alcohol

Question 20

Which wine has little acidity?

Accepted Answer

The acidity of a wine depends on various factors, including the location of the vineyards and the weather pattern of the vintage. Low temperatures promote acid production in the grapes.

However, the grape variety is also a significant influencing factor in any case. Certain grape varieties (e.g. Riesling, Elbling, Sauvignon Blanc nebbiolo, Sangiovese) produce naturally acidic wines. Grape varieties that produce wines with moderate or low acidity are basically the varieties of the Burgundy family: Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Auxerrois and Chardonnay as white wine varieties and Pinot Noir and Pinot Noir as red wine varieties. Other grape varieties with comparatively low acidity are Müller-Thurgau, Silvaner, Dornfelder or Merlot.

Wines from warmer, southern growing regions often have somewhat less acid than wines from cooler regions(cool climate winegrowing).

Since acidity is reduced as a wine matures, older wines also generally have somewhat less acidity than young wines.

Question 21

What are sulphites in wine?

Accepted Answer

Sulphites are the salts of sulphurous acid. They are formed when sulphur combines with water, which happens when the wine is sulphurised.

The addition of sulphur is a very effective method of preservation, stabilisation and sterilisation in winemaking. Sulphur is added to wine in the form of sulphur dioxide, sulphurous acid (sulphur dioxide dissolved in water) or potassium pyrosulphite (the potassium salt of sulphurous acid, abbreviated KPS).

Sulphurisation has three main functions:

Sulphur binds oxygen and thus protects against Oxidationwhich can impair the flavour of the wine.
Sulphur inhibits Enzymeswhich can have a negative influence on the development of wine.
Sulphur removes Microorganisms(yeasts, bacteria, etc.) that can negatively influence wine development and spoil the wine.

Already in the vineyard, sulphur is used as the most effective remedy against fungal diseases such as powdery mildew - also in organic viticulture.

In the wine cellar, sulphur is used in various production steps. For example, the must or mash is already sulphurised to prevent uncontrolled fermentation or oxidation; after fermentation or pressing, the young wine is sulphurised to stabilise it; in the course of ageing, it is sulphurised again if necessary; and before bottling, it receives its final sulphurisation to preserve it.

How often and how much sulphur is added depends on a variety of factors - from the grape variety to the quality of the grapes, the production process, cellar hygiene and the desired ageing style. Through its reductive and antiseptic effect and its reaction with other chemical elements, sulphur also influences the smell and taste of the wine.

Many natural wines are treated with minimal or no sulphur. But if the winemaker does not add sulphur, the wine changes its aroma under the influence of oxygen and microorganisms. This is then characterised less by fruity notes and more by earthy and nutty tones.

The indication "contains sulphites" is required by law for wines that have been treated with sulphur. Sulphites are harmless to health in the quantities permitted by wine law. According to current scientific findings, they are not responsible for possible headaches after (excessive) wine consumption, but biogenic amines (e.g. histamine), which are also contained in wine.

Wine quality and sensor technology

Everything about wine tasting, the organisation of wine tastings, the aromas in wine and wine evaluation

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Wine quality and sensor technology

Everything about wine tasting, the organisation of wine tastings, the aromas in wine and wine evaluation

Categories

EVENTS NEAR YOU