Chapter 2 Taste Basics and the Basics of Wine Evaluation

Chapter 2 Outline Aperitif: How important are wine service elements? Sensory Evaluation Basics of Wine Evaluation The look of wine - visual examination The smell of wine - olfactory examination The taste of wine- taste examination Psychological Factors Setting up a Tasting Session

Chapter 2 Key Concepts Sensory testing approaches 6-Ss of wine evaluation Wine serving temperature Identifying sweetness, saltiness, acidity, bitterness and tannin Varietals differences in primary wine components, texture and flavors

General Wine Service Psychological components: etiquette, customs, traditions, and fashion. To make guests feel comfortable and special. To provide education, knowledge and friendly service. Modern sommeliers are less intimidating. Key service elements: ensuring timeliness, at the right temperature, service is smooth, unobtrusive, and professional.

Opening and Pouring Wine 1) Present bottle with the label facing the host. 2) Place bottle on the table and remove the capsule. 3) Insert the corkscrew and remove the cork. 4) Tradition requires that the host is shown the cork. Just place it on the table next to the host’s wine glass. 5) To finish, wipe off the lip of the bottle with a clean and professionally folded cloth napkin.

Pouring Etiquette 1) To pour, stand behind the person to her or his right with bottle label facing left. 2) Hold the lip of the wine bottle just above and off-center of the wine glass. Tilt the bottle to pour a stream of wine into the glass (pour about an ounce in the host’s glass for approval). 3) Finish the process by giving the bottle a twist. Tilt it toward you before taking it away to minimize any drips. Service order: first is the most senior lady at the table, then, the other ladies are served, followed by the men, and finally the host.

Definition of Sensory Analysis A scientific discipline used to induce, quantify, analyze and assess the responses to products based on sight, smell, taste, touch, and hearing. These senses allow us to evaluate stimuli in the environment and provide analytical tools for evaluating food and wine.

Affective Testing Determines reactions related to product quality and consumer acceptance of a product. Requires a large number (75+) of individuals - representative of the target population segment. Requires little to no preliminary training for individuals involved. 3 common types: paired comparison, ranking, and rating.

Analytical Testing Used to discover detectable differences between or among samples. Used to learn the nature of any differences. Requires a smaller group (usually 12-20) with substantial level of training. Trained panelists are used as instruments to assess differences in color, odor, taste, texture, and other aspects of quality.

The 6-Ss of Wine Evaluation Seeing Swirling Smelling Sipping Spitting/Swallowing Savoring

Wine Evaluation: Visual Examination Seeing: Information about style, aging or fermentation method, alcohol, and other clues. Color: Clues on varietals, growing region, climate - all hints to the ultimate taste. Clarity: Indication of the quality of winemaking technique and handling. Clarity can range from cloudy, about clear, clear, crystal to brilliant.

Visual Examination - Continued Swirling: Looks at the consistency, opens up aromas. Consistency: Refers to how fluid or viscous – normal viscosity varies by the type of wine. Tears (legs) are primarily a sign of high alcohol. Effervescence: carbonation level or bubbles. Bubble size, number of bubbles, and persistency of bubbles are all considered.

Olfactory Examination Smelling: Perceived flavor is primarily driven from smells. Nosing Steps: 1). Fill glass no more than 1/3rd full, 2). Swirl, 3). 1st nose (1 long smell or several short), 4). 2nd nose Key elements: intensity, quality, and persistency of aroma. Bouquet: Embraces any physical and chemical changes that impact the wine smell once the wine is put into the bottle.

Taste Examination Sipping/Swallowing and/or Spitting: t echnique varies for each taster. To swallow or spit-out depends on the purpose of the tasting. Primary evaluation: balance between sweetness and acidity (and tannin in red wine). Savoring: Evaluates flavor intensity and persistence. Indicators of quality: flavor persistence, a balanced flavor and texture, complexity level, and clean taste.

Psychological and Physiological Factors Factors: taster’s personality, external elements, and biases. Preconceived notions of a particular winemaker, type of wine, or region. The methods used in sensory analysis are strictly controlled to maintain proper temperature, lighting and to minimize off-odors. Blind tasting attempts to negate biases about price and prestige.

Factors - Continued Adaptation and palate fatigue are important considerations No more than 6-8 wines should be evaluated at one setting. Odor blindness may be a pitfall in some tasters. Taste modifiers, serving temperature, and smoking are other physiological factors.

Setting Up a Tasting Session Time of day has impact on our ability. –late morning being the best. Physical setting has an impact. Sufficient natural lighting, a white background, unadorned glasses. Consider the sequence in which wines will be presented. Consider temperature – most wines are tasted within C/ F.

Recommended Temperatures: Reds with Food or Drinking Tannic Reds = 63-65°F / 17-18°C: Australian Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, Rhône Wines, Vintage Port, Bordeaux, Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Medium Bodied Reds = 58-61°F / °C : Southern French Reds, southern Italian reds, Rioja, Toro, Pinot Noir, Valpolicella, young Chianti. Red Wines with Light Tannin = 54–55°F / 12–13°C: Young Beaujolais, red Sancerre, Bardolino, young Spanish and Portuguese reds.

Recommended Temperatures: Whites with Food or Drinking Fuller-bodied and Aromatic Whites, Sweet Wines, Roses, Sherry and White Port = 48– 50°F / 9–10°C: Chardonnay, Sauternes, Tokay, white Rioja. Light, Crisp and Sparkling Whites = °F / 7-8°C: Alsace, Chablis, Riesling, Good Champagne and Sparkling wine, Sancerre, Sauvignon Blanc. Cheap Sparkling Wines = 36–39°F / 2–4°C

Temperature Importance Temperature greatly influences our senses. Most wine is tasted within the C (50-68 F) range. Temperature has a substantial impact wine smells and tastes. A variation of only 3-4 F can explain discrepancies in the amount of tannin perceptions in red wine.

Chapter 2 Lagniappe “Something extra” Additional Wine Evaluation Considerations

Evaluation Purposes The purpose of evaluation in this course is to assess wine sensory dimensions and compare with complementary food sensory dimensions. Asking the question: Do the levels of these dimensions predict a pleasant sensation when the food and wine is tasted together?

General Wine Evaluation Purposes Many times wine is evaluated to determine its quality: Is it good or bad? And may be as simple as “I like it” or “I dislike it” Two main aspects are used in evaluating wines: Descriptive Analysis Rating Tests

Descriptive Analysis Objective: create a common language to describe characteristics and quality. The first major effort occurred in the mid- 1970s in the brewing industry – creating a 2- tiered wheel to describe beer. In 1979, the concept was used to analyze whisky. In , the Wine Aroma Wheel was developed at the University of California, Davis.

Wine Aroma Wheel Starts with an inner circle with basic terms such as: fruity, spicy, nutty, vegetative, etc. The second level separates the terms into subgroups (e.g. vegetative is dvided into fresh, canned & dry). The outer level is more specific in describing smells (e.g., vegetative/fresh = stemmy, bell pepper, mint, etc.)

3 Levels of the Fruity Descriptions Fruity Citris Grapefruit Lemon Berry Blackberry Raspberry Strawberry Black Currant Tree Fruit Cherry Apricot Peach Apple

Rating Tests Rating tests are used in this text for evaluating food and wine. The tests ask the question: on a given scale, where would you place this sample? There are a wide variety of rating tests used in wine evaluation. Commonly, they use a 20-point or 100-point summed scale.

The principle of wine rating scores Break down the evaluation into major organoleptic parameters (e.g. appearance, color, aroma, body, etc). Evaluate these parameters separately for their contribution to the wine under study. Each parameter receives a score based on its assumed importance (weight) to wine quality. The sum of these scores provide a total quality rating.

A history of scorecards One of the most recognized is the Davis Scorecard. As the wine industry has changed over the years, the scorecard has been revised to reflect changing importance of parameters. Less weight on appearance and more weight on aroma/bouquet and flavor. Adding a general quality parameter to allow a judge to express overall opinion on wine quality.

More Recent Rating Systems Studies of the 20-point card indicated that many times the card point spread was limited to 12 to 16 by judges – thus not using the full scale. A new card was developed using total parameter weights of 20 and a 1 to 5 scale for each parameter. Thus, creating a 100 point scale (i.e. 20 X 5 = 100).

Quality ratings on this scale RatingQuality Superior 95-86Excellent 85-71Good 70-56Standard 55-41Below standard 40-0Unacceptable

Changes in this newer system Look of wine is less important in current industry and technology No separate assessment of acidity, sweetness, body – but part of balance indicator Harmony added as an integral impression Negative attributes are assessed separately and deducted from 100 point total if present. Example scorecard on next slide.

Date__________ Variety______________ Vintage____________ Wine No.__________ WeightCharacteristicsScore (1 5) Value Weight X Score Nose Varietal aroma Bouquet x7 Mouth feel Flavor Acidity, Body x7 Harmony Color, balance, Complexity, aging, after taste, uniqueness x6 Defects Color, acetic, oxidized, moldy, bitterness, corky, off-flavor, oaky -x7 Total _________

Additional Reading on Wine Evaluation Jackson, R.S. (2002). Wine Tasting: A Professional Handbook. San Diego, CA: Academic Press. Margalit, Y. (2004). Concepts in Wine Technology. San Francisco, CA: The Wine Appreciation Guild, Ltd.