Tasting III

David Rouault

At last the moment you were all waiting for: the third and final part of our tasting which is…the tasting.

After the look (https://macaudailytimes.com.mo/tasting-i.html) and the smell (https://macaudailytimes.com.mo/tasting-ii.html) we can now drink (which usually confirms what we already suspected with the nose) and refine the previous impression.

Take a sip of wine and swirl it around the mouth so that all of the taste buds and sensory receptors are solicited. Keep the wine in the mouth briefly and start breathing through it (avoid doing this in a quiet restaurant, library, or at church) to further open up the volatile compounds. Usually taste perception comes in this order: dryness/sweetness (from the tip of the tongue), saltiness (just past the tip), acidity (on the side of the tongue), bitterness (up the back) and astringency or tannins (side of the tongue and gums). If the tannins are too strong it makes the gums extremely dry and gives an unpleasant sensation, most likely meaning the wine is too young. With age comes smoothness.

The mouth-filling sensation comes from the alcohol content as it gives weight to the wine. Less alcohol (around 10% alcohol. vol or lower) it will be described as a light-bodied wine. Higher than this is medium-bodied (12-13%), and then full-bodied wine (14-15% or above). This can be distorted in the case of sweet or unbalanced wines.

From this moment we can already assess if the wine is balanced, if it is too young or old, at the right temperature, or if it needs to breathe more. We can also start to think about the food-pairing.

As described in the second step of our tasting, the nose, we go through the spectrum of flavours and clarify the different elements. After swallowing the wine we talk about length – how long the flavours linger and how pleasant. A longer finish usually means a higher quality wine.

What I personally like when doing a blind tasting is the feeling of being a detective. Each step – eyes, nose and mouth – gives us some clues, and by gathering these you can reach a conclusion. We could just replace “crime” with “wine”: where and how was it made, by who, and when. The motive normally being pleasure.

Here are two New World Wines, mono-varietal, exemplifying representative and distinctive flavours.

  Sherwood Waipara Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2016

Sauvignon Blanc has done so well in New Zealand that it widely contributed to putting them on the world wine map in the 80’s. It seems that to have a bad SB from NZ, the winemaker would have to do it on purpose.

This very affordable pale straw white wine displays at first the distinctive aromas of gooseberry and bell-pepper, very representative of SB and easily recognisable. Developing to blackcurrant leaf, passion fruit and mango. Fresh acidity on the palate with lime and green pepper flavours, crushed shells with a long finish on sea salt and lime peel. Perfect with cooked seashell, goat cheese quiche or steam fish to name few.

Chris Ringland Barossa Valley Reservation Shiraz 2014

Shiraz, or usually named Syrah in the Old World, has become one of the signature grapes of Australia. In particular the ones from McLaren Vale and the Hunter and Barossa Valleys, where the terroir allows the grape to thrive.

This deep garnet shiraz is also a school case showing black pepper and black fruits at first. Very rich and intense, with great complexity, the bouquet keeps evolving with a wide spectrum of aromas: bilberry, blackberry compote, crème de cassis, prune, charcoal, cocoa beans, old leather, sandalwood, cigar box… This full-bodied wine (15% vol of Alcohol) with smooth tannins (curiously and despite its young age it doesn’t need much decanting, very fine to drink now), is definitely not shy with a lot of flavours: black cherry marmalade, allspice, black olive, tar, blackcurrant leaf with long finish on mostly charcoal and spices. Perfect with red meat.

Wines available at www.wine118.com.

David Rouault is a professional classical musician, part time wine consultant and full time wine lover,
holding WSET Level 3, Certified Specialist of Wine and Introductory Sommelier diplomas. www.dionysos.com.mo