Tasting Wine
The tasting vocabulary for wines is very diverse. To
enologists a certain aroma will relate to a certain chemical or compound
constituent in the wine, but the best we mortals can do is to relate aromas
found in the wine to those we already know, such as fruit, flowers or nuts .Unfortunately
for communication purposes, one person’s blackcurrant is another’s blueberry,
so tasting notes differ widely between tasters according to their perception –
or interpretation. Fortunately, however, this means that everybody’s point of
view is valid – within reason. At the end of the day, all you need to become a
skilled taster is honesty, perspicacity and ultimately experience. There are those gifted with a special palate
or scientific knowledge, but mostly it is just learned, and the more you have
tasted the better. As they say in Spain: “Catar, catar y volver a catar.”
(Taste, taste and taste again).
Tasting is not about swallowing wine, it is about analysing
wine, and the condition it is in. It is not just about flavour; it is
principally about aroma, but also appearance, flavour, texture, structure, balance
and length. The ultimate taste of a wine is the guiding principle of those who
make it, and the least we consumers can do is to taste it carefully and give it
some thought. Personal taste should be irrelevant. Just because you don’t like
sweet wines (for example), doesn’t mean they are bad wines. One must learn to
judge a wine for what it is, whether one likes it or not. It is still interesting
and one can learn from it.
Tasting Sherry
To taste any wine, you need a proper glass, and the famous
“Copita” used in Jerez is ideal – in fact the International Standards
Organisation have enshrined the copita as the “standard” tasting glass for wine
(albeit in a slightly bigger version):
In order to get the maximum flavour and aroma from Sherry
(or any other wine) always taste at room temperature. Fino/Manzanilla is lovely
to drink at 7C with your tapas in a Jerez street, but chilling it obscures the aromas and flavour. Swirl the wine
around the glass, watch it, see if there are any legs (tears, or trails of
glycerol) down the sides of the glass. These indicate the glycerol content of the wine. Smell it carefully and note what you
smell. Many of the aromas you smell will continue when you taste it, as the
nose and palate are connected. The nose will tell you more about the wine, as
the tongue can only really pick out acidity, tannin, salts and sweetness.
One key quality of any wine is balance. All the sensorial
components should balance. While this can vary as (say a Claret) ages, its
tannins gradually precipitating along with some of its acidity, Sherry is ready
to drink when purchased, and should have perfect balance and stability. This balance is achieved when the sweet
flavours (glycerol, alcohol, sugar balance with the acid (mainly tartaric),
saline(flor) and bitter (flor, tannin) flavours, forming a harmony. Never be too quick to love or hate a wine,
always give it some thought. Writing tasting notes is a useful aide-memoire,
and concentrates the mind while tasting.
What to look for
Sherry is a white wine, and therefore has some descriptors
in common with others, but it is also a fortified wine and undergoes a unique
production process, and therefore has many descriptors not used for other
wines. There are three unique characteristics, namely the flor yeast, the
oxidation and the sheer (barrel) age of some wines. Then, of course, there are
various different styles of Sherry but the over-riding aroma however is that of
Acetaldehyde. This one word might be used to describe the smell of Sherry as a
whole, but in particular those wines where flor plays a part in their ageing.
Acetaldehyde in Finos/Manzanillas is formed by yeast
metabolism primarily during fermentation, but also where the wine is stored in
barrels which are not completely full and air has access- typical in Sherry. Oxygen
in the air oxidises the alcohol forming more Acetaldehyde and the flor yeasts
matabolise it further creating the pungent “punzante” slightly oxidised bitter
almond character of finos, Manzanillas and Manzanillas Pasadas, and to a lesser
extent the related Amontillados and Palos Cortados where Acetaldehyde manifests
itself as more hazelnutty. With these
wines, however, the yeast has gone and so the level of Acetaldehyde is lower.
In olorosos there is much less, but there is some, and negligible amounts in
the Moscatel and PX.
Finos and Manzanillas are generally the youngest wines to be
sold, anywhere from 3 years onwards, and often retain primary aromas (those of
the grapes themselves). This gentle fruit character is noticeable in younger
wines, having survived fermentation (which gives secondary aromas), but is
gradually overtaken by tertiary aromas, (those of crianza - ageing), after a longer
time in the solera system. A young Fino/Manzanilla smells of fruit as well as
flor, and is generally less bitter than an older wine. Manzanillas are often
possessed of maritime aromas due to the vines’ and bodegas’ proximity to the
sea: sea breezes, seaweed, aromas of a fishing harbour, and with more age,
tarry rope and fishy aromas. Older Finos/Manzanillas, will take on more flor
character – salinity, bitterness, almondiness, (acetaldehyde) and over time
absorb some of the autolyic (decayed yeast) aromas from the bottom of the butt
as well as some oxidation. In short, more complexity and concentration (Sherry
butts lose an average of 4% per year to evaporation – of water).
This loss of water naturally concentrates everything else,
including alcohol, so as the strength gradually rises in butts which are less
regularly refreshed, the yeast gradually dies off giving us Amontillado and Palo Cortado. These wines
originated as Finos/Manzanillas, and for quite a long time can retain some of
these characteristics, but as they continue to oxidise, they develop into their
own unique style. Genuine Amontillados are at least 8 years old, and produce delightful
aromas of hazelnut and toasted almond, often with a certain implied sweetness, as
the glycerine stripped out by the yeast starts to concentrate again. The Palos
Cortados, separated from the Fino family a little earlier, have the aroma of
Amontillado, but more body and breadth on the palate – more like Oloroso with a
more walnutty sort of flavour.
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