Wine dates back thousands of years and a drink with such a long history will naturally develop variations and cult followers.
But have you ever wondered what all those terms we often hear from wine connoisseurs actually mean?
I have, so I decided to find out. I came across an interesting article on QZ.com which answered these questions and providing definitions for the most common wine terms.
- Body – This is one used often that I’ve been quite curious about. Well in the post on QZ.com it compared wine to milk. Like whole milk tastes thicker that skim milk, some wines have a thicker feel in your mouth than others. Within this category there is light bodied, medium bodied and full bodied which is as thick as heavy cream. Examples of full bodied are cabernet sauvignons whereas pinot noir is a light bodied wine.
- Tannins – This is how QZ.com explains tannins,
If you’ve ever had over-steeped black tea, you know exactly what tannins feel like. Tannin is a compound in the wine that causes your mouth to feel dry and can taste slightly bitter and/or astringent. In right doses, tannins contribute to the wine’s longevity by enabling it to age. Nebbiolo (e.g., Barolo), cabernet sauvignon, syrah, and petite sirah are all prime examples of high-tannin wines. On the other end of the tannin spectrum, we have pinot noir, merlot, barbera, grenache, gamay, and ainfandel, all of which have softer tannins.
Source: http://qz.com/727790/learning-the-language-of-wine-will-transform-the-way-you-taste-it/
3. Acidity – If you’ve ever tasted a lemon, you know what something with alot of acidity tastes like. Wines with acidity are refreshing and after a few glasses it can begin to taste quite tarte. Experts also say that acid allows wines to age better and this helps with the balance of the wine. Examples of high acid wines include Riesling and Zinfandal. Now more about Balance.
4. Balance – Well we’ve all tasted drinks that were too much of one thing, for example too sweet, too much alcohol etc. Those drinks were unbalanced. That is what balance is, “harmony between the different sensations (alcohol, tannin, acidity etc),
5. Structure – The writer goes on to explain:
We can all appreciate the difference between a 2D image and a 3D image. The former is flat, like a wine that lacks structure, while the latter has shape and depth — a wine with excellent structure. Structure is the texture and mouthfeel, or lack thereof, of the wine on your palate, which is determined by the wine’s level of acidity, alcohol, tannin, and sugar.
Source: http://qz.com/727790/learning-the-language-of-wine-will-transform-the-way-you-taste-it/