Tasting Bordeaux wines

Coulour, bouquet and taste

A few simple rules on how to taste

Three stages of tasting and what they tell us

Appreciating the wine's colour

In order to have the best possible look at a wine, bring the glass up to eye level and look through it towards a light source. Then lower the glass and tilt it slightly angainst the pale background to notice the wine's sublte colour. This can be either deep ( a sign of strong personnality ) or light. A bright, brilliant hue indicates a vigorous wine. You can also judge the wine's clarity at a glance. These signs are all indicative of the overall quality !

The nuances in red Bordeaux wines vary according to their origin and age. The youngest are often deep in colour, with tinges of violet or crimson. With age, this changes to ruby, cherry or garnet-net. The oldest wines have an orange or brownish brick-red colour.

Bordeaux rosés provide a subtle range of colours : raspberry, orange and salmon pink.

The colour of white Bordeaux wines often gives you a clue as to the type of wine. Dry white wines range from virtually colourless to straw-coloured. Sweet and semi-sweet Bordeaux wines are deeper in colour from pale gold to amber.

Smell : the language of aromas

Violet, blackurrant, vanilla or truffle ? Smelling a fine wine opens up a vast universe of aromas that are reminiscent of nature, as well as an infinite number of familiar or exotic smells. There are two steps to appreciating a wine's bouquet. First of all, smell the wine as it sits still in the glass. Next, swirl it around to release the full bouquet. Complicated ? No, not at all ! Here are the 11 main families of smell :

Flowers

• Red wines : violet, peony, rose, iris...
• White wines : acacia, orange, blossom, honeysuckle, etc.

Fruit

• Red wines : strawberry, raspberry, blackberry, blackcurrant, red currant and cherry.
• White wines : lemon, grapefruit, tropical fruit, peach and dried fruit : prune, fig, walnut, almond, etc.

Ehtereal

Apple or green banana, pear drops, wax, yoghurt, cream, etc...

Plants

Hay, fern, boxwood, eucalyptus, tea, herb tea, tobacco leaf and green pepper. Moss and fresh mushrooms.

Toasted

Smoke, toast, caramel, cocoa, fresh roasted coffee and chocolate.

Wood

Green wood, dry wood, pencil shavings, cigar box and sandalwood. Pine trees, fir tress, resin etc...

Animal

Game, leather, fur, ambergris, musk, etc...

Herbs and spices

Dill, cinnamon, nutmeg, pepper, clove, licorice, thyme, bay leaf and truffles.

Tasting : the palate

Considering that our tastebuds can distinguish just four sensations ( sweet, salty, acid and bitter ), it is amazing that wine can provide such a hudge number of sensations ! The secret ? Take a small sip, swill it around in your mouth and ( discreetly ) take in some air at the same time to bring out the aromas.

During the tasting process, the wine will gradually reveal all : the velvety, silky or more rustic quality of its texture, the strength or finesse of the taste, and especially the impression of overall balance.

The final stage of tasting consists of swallowing the wine and concentrating on the "memory" it leaves on your palate. A good long aftertaste is as important to a fine wine as its colour and its bouquet.

All you need to do is to "store up" your tasting memories gradually to become a connoisseur of Bordeaux wine !

Now that you know about Bordeaux wines tasting, why don't you go and learn about Dry White or red Bordeaux wines or other ones.
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