L2 & L3 - Class 1: Introduction, Wine Tasting Technique, Pairing Wine & Food Flashcards
What glass is suitable for tasting wine and why?
The ISO glass is suitable for evaluating wine because:
1) it has a rounded bowl which is good for swirling wine to release aromas and
2) the inward slopes capture aromas at the top of the glass
How should you pour a wine sample for tasting?
-WSET suggests pouring a 1.7 US ounce of 5 cL
-This is sufficient to assess the appearance, nose and palate of the wine , but small enough to swirl the wine without spilling it
What does intensity mean for the color of the wine and how do you assess it?
- Intensity is how much color the wine has
-For White Wines: Hold the wine at a 45 degree angle & look through the liquid from above to see how far the color extends from the core to the rim.
-All white wines appear colorless at the rim, but the intensity of color is assessed by how close to the rim the color reaches (broad watery rim is pale), almost reaching the rim is deep
-For Reds: Do the same, but also look straight down into the wine and assess how easily you can see the stem. Intensity depends on how easily you see the stem
What is the color scale for whites and reds?
White: Lemon, Gold (hint of orange or brown), Amber (noticeable browning)
Red: Ruby, Purple (noticeable blue or purple), garnet (more red than brown), tawny (more brown than red)
Pink: Pink Orange, Orange (Roses)
Why and how do we assess the “nose” aroma of wine?
-The nose can be an indicator of basic versus high quality wines
-To assess, swirl the liquid in the glass to release the aroma, then place your nose over the rim of the glass and take a short sniff noting the intensity (light to pronounced) and specific characteristics
-Each aroma is divided into clusters (Citrus, black fruit, red fruit, herbaceous) which include specific descriptors (cherry, lemon, lime, earth etc…)
What are the three types of aromas and what are they typically derived from?
-Primary - the aromas that come from the grapes themselves (typically the fruit or herbs smelled)
-Secondary - aromas created by post-fermentation winemaking. Oak barreling = vanilla/cloves/cinnamon, yeast (lees, flor) = bread, biscuit, cheese, malolactic conversion (butter, cream cheese)
-Tertiary -aromas created by aging process - aged in barrels = caramel/coffee notes, aged in bottle = mushroom, honey, petrol notes. Tertiary aromas change primary - fruit becomes less fresh and more like dried fruit
What factors should be considered when assessing the “palate” or taste?
-Sweetness (dry, off-dry, medium, sweet)
-Acidity
-Tannin
-Alcohol
-Body
-Flavor intensity & characteristics
-Finish
What does alcohol do to wine and what are the levels in regular and fortified wine?
-Alcohol adds body to wine
-low abv: 11%, med: 11-13.9%, high: 14% >
-(fortified) low: 15 -16.4%, med: 16.5-18.4%, high:18.5%>
What are the 4 primary factors for assessing the quality of wine?
BLIC
-BALANCE (sugar to acidity, alcohol to fruit)
-LENGTH (how long pleasant sensations linger)
-INTENSITY (concentration, identifiable & well-defined flavors)
-COMPLEXITY (Can be based on primary, secondary & tertiary flavors)
Outstanding wines =all 4 categories, Very good =3, Good =2, Acceptable=1, Poor=0
What two components typically make wine taste “harder” worse?
-Sweetness and umami flavors
(make wines more drying, bitter, more acidic, less sweet & less fruity)
What two components make wine taste “softer”, & better?
–Salt and Acidity
(make wines less drying, less biter, less acidic, sweeter & more fruity)
What does sweetness in food do to wine and how do you balance it?
-Sweetness make the wine taste less fruity and unpleasantly acidic
-A good rule is to pair sweet food with a wine with a higher sweetness level
What is umami’s effect on wine?
What foods are examples of bad pairings? Which foods can work as pairings?
Which wines can pair? Which wines cannot?
–Makes the wine:
more drying
More astringent and bitter,
more acidic
less sweet and fruity
Foods like mushrooms, asparagus, eggs and ripe soft cheeses have this quality.
Foods that have a balance of salt such as hard cheeses (Parmesan), cured meat/seafood are high enough in salt to counteract negative effects of umami
Wines that can pair:
Balanced high tannin reds may be able to balance bitterness
Wines that increase bitterness & imbalance when paired w/ umami:
Low tannin reds, light in body OR white wines either heavily oaked or with skin contact
What does acidity in food do to wine?
What types of foods pair well?
–Generally a good thing for a food and wine pairing
–it balances a wine with high acidity and brings out the fruitiness
-however if the wine acidity is low the high acid of the food will make the wine taste flat, flabby and lacking focus
-in addition to high acid foods which match or do not exceed acidity of wine- fatty and oily foods pair well with high acidic wines
- these wines are seen as “cutting through” the richness of food and cleansing the palate
What does salt in food do to wine?
-Salt enhances the flavor in wine and can make wine seem fruitier & soften the tannins
Increases perception of body in the wine
Decreases astringency, bitterness, and acidity in wine
What 3 points should be followed when storing wine?
1) Should be kept in constant & cool temperatures (avoid extreme heat or cold as it can damage wine)
2) Avoid strong sunlight or bright artificial light which can heat the wine & make it taste stale and old
3) Store wine on its side so that the wine is in constant contact w/ the cork to keep it from drying out and letting air in
What steps should you take before serving wine?
1) Check the appearance of wine for haziness which can indicate the wine is faulty
2) Check there are no bits floating in the wine
3) Check the aroma of the wine for faults, the wine should not smell stale or have aromas of cardboard or vinegar
What does a vine need?
Warmth, sunlight, carbon dioxide, water and nutrients
What are the steps to grape formation and ripening?
–Flowering - each flower cluster becomes a cluster of grapes
–Fruit set - once pollinated the flower grows seeds and swells, newly formed grapes are small, hard, dark green & unpleasant
–Veraison- mid summer grapes that have grown large enough to start ripening. Grapes change colors from dark green to golden (for white) and red & purple for (red)
–Ripening- grapes swell w/ water & become soft & fleshy, acidity drops & sugar in the grape rises. As the grape ripens herbaceous notes lesson & signature, green/stone/red/black fruit flavors develop. Tannins develop in red grape skins
What happens when grape are extra ripe?
-If grapes are left on the vine past the point they might normally be harvested they go into a state of “extra-ripeness”
-develop exaggerated ripe aromas & accumulate higher sugar levels
-This concentrates acids & sugars in the grape
-dried fruit aromas start to develop
-commonly used for sweet wines
What is botrytis/noble rot?
-A fungus that can grow on ripe grapes causing noble rot
-it causes tiny holes in grapes which causes the water inside the grape to evaporate
-To be beneficial the fungus must:
(1) grow on ripe grapes and
(2)mornings must be damp/misty to allow growth & spread of fungus, while afternoons should be warm & dry to avoid destroying grapes
-used for sweet wines
How is eiswein (icewine) made?
-In some regions healthy grapes are left on the vine from autumn into winter
-When the temperature drops sufficiently, the water in grapes freezes
-Grapes are picked frozen and pressed before they thaw
-Ice & skins are separated from the unfrozen juice
-the juice has high concentrations of acid, sugar & flavor
When is the growing season in the Northern versus Southern hemispheres?
-Northern: April to October
-Southern: October to April
What is a GI?
-Geographical indication
-The area where the grapes are grown which has an influence on the style of wine
