Nose and Tasting Tips

Ever tasted a variety of wines and thought “wow, what fruit is this?” At the same time wondering how wine could smell like vanilla but taste like cherries? One of the most exciting things about wine is all of the taste and smell possibilities. You could try a different bottle of the same varietal, region or AVA, every day for a month and come up with a completely unique flavor profile for each. Many factors influence the smell and taste of wine, from fermentation, soil, production and even how the wine is aged. Understanding these elements can help you quickly recognize these wine flavors and the more you practice…the more you’ll learn! A few helpful tasting tips to get you started! Move from taste to smell if you are getting confused by alternating between small, short sniffs and slow, long sniffs. Swirl that wine to aerate and add depth to smells and flavors. Try coating your mouth with larger sips of wine followed by smaller ones, so that you can isolate flavors and get more specific. Focus on one flavor at a time. Write them down and keep going. It is also best when first learning to compare different wines in the same settings, as it will help improve your palate faster. These are just a few tips to get you started and there are NO wrong answers! Enjoy the wine ride! Join us on A Great Oregon Wine Tour – www.agreatoregonwinetour.com