Getting the most of wine testing – Evaluating Wine

Gloria Maroti Frazee, director of Wine Spectator School

FRAMEWORK

After you taste and describe a wine, it’s time to put it into context. Like the art historian who can point to paintings that exemplify specific styles of art, the wine expert can describe benchmark wines. An expert can also tell you the characteristics associated with individual grape varieties, the wine styles of famous (and notso-famous) growing areas and the effects that various winemaking techniques can have on a given wine.

That’s a lot of detail to file away. Most experts organize all the bits of information into a framework based on grape variety. This framework provides a context that helps with wine identification.

For example, suppose we pull the cork on a bottle for a blind tasting and pour one glass for a novice taster and another for an expert. Each immediately detects the pungent aroma of freshly cut grass. The novice keeps sniffing, searching for other scents found in the universe of wine aromas. In contrast, the expert knows that freshly cut grass is a classic descriptor for Sauvignon Blanc. This narrows the search down to the short list of aromas associated with that variety. If some of these other characteristic aromas are present, the expert quickly identifies the wine.

The context provided by this varietal framework also helps with wine recall. Remembering the wines you’ve tasted in the past provides a context that helps you identify or evaluate the wine you are currently tasting. It’s amazing to hear an expert compare wines they’ve sampled on different occasions, sometimes decades apart.

EVALUATING WINE

Every person has a unique set of wine and food preferences. These are determined by our experiences and our individual thresholds for perceiving each of the hundreds of aromas and flavors that exist in wine. Two people may taste the same wine and come away with different descriptions of its aromas and tastes.

Several factors contribute to individual variations: the number of aroma and taste receptors you have, your saliva production rate, the impact of age on your senses, gender and hunger level. Finally, experience counts. Take a moment to recall the scent of a ripe peach. Are you remembering the delicate scent of a peach ripened on a supermarket shelf? Or is it an extremely aromatic, tree-ripened peach from the farmers’ market? Your recollection of “ripe peach” is influenced by your experiences.

When it comes to wine, some people prefer lighter, crisper styles; others go for bigger, more powerful ones. Some people enjoy the vanilla and spice flavors added by new oak; others don’t. Identifying your favorite wine styles comes down to trusting your palate.

But when it comes to wine scores, these reflect wine quality judged using the objective parameters described below:

BALANCE

A wine is balanced when the fruit and all the other components are in harmony. The main idea is that no single element overwhelms the rest.

COMPLEXITY

A complex wine has many aromas and flavors. It is layered and nuanced. It keeps unfolding in your glass, revealing more over the course of a meal. (However, straightforward wines can still be good; easy on the palate and the pocketbook, they are great for everyday enjoyment.)

FINISH

This describes the length of time that flavors and tastes linger after the wine has been swallowed or spit out. Great wines have long, lingering finishes. In addition, the nature of the finish is important. In white wines especially, the effect of acidity can be felt at this point; a wine with moderate to high acidity may have a clean, crisp and refreshing finish. In red wines, tannins and astringency usually reveal themselves on the finish, which may be described as “smooth and silky” or “rough and coarse.

AGEABILITY

Most wines are best drunk in their youth, when they are fresh and fruity. Only a tiny fraction of wines have the ability to mature and improve after five years in the cellar, or even decades. To age well, a wine must have plenty of extract—flavor compounds, alcohol, tannins, sugars, acids, pigments—and these components must be found in balance with each other. For example, a young wine with lots of tannins but not much fruit will not age well; the fruit will fade long before the tannins soften.

TYPICITY

Is this wine typical of its grape variety and growing region? In great wines, the answer is usually yes, and descriptors may include “classic,” “textbook” and “hallmark.” For example, the aromas of tar and roses are hallmarks of Barolo, but would be atypical for red Bordeaux.

At a minimum, wine should be clean, and the aromas, flavors, tastes and mouthfeel should be pleasing. However, the best wines are not only pleasing, they are complex. They have long finishes and reflect their grape variety, origin and vintage, as well as the winemaker’s skill. Simply put, they are unforgettable.

Wine scores are based on these parameters, but remember your individual preferences. A highly rated wine may not be of your preferred style, so it’s important to consider the description in addition to the score when purchasing a bottle.