Tasting Step #2: "The Nose"

In "wine-speak" the nose is nothing more than the smell of a wine...the combination of aromatics. And oh, what aromatics there are. Over 500 unique aromatic compounds have been found in wine. As these different chemical compounds mix in varying ratios, we get the overall complex smell of the wine: The nose.

When experiencing the nose of a wine, the first act is to swirl.

Hold the glass by the stem or base, swirl the glass to get the wine moving. This does two things to enhance our enjoyment of the wine, as well as increase our knowledge about the wine's character before we taste the first sip. First of all, note the physical behavior of the wine as it runs back down the side of the wine goblet. The way that wine clings to a glass and then trickles down tells you something. It is referred to as the "legs" of the wine. A wine that runs slowly back down the glass in distinct streams is high in alcohol, sugar, or both. A wine that falls back into the bell of the glass quickly and raggedly may be old, light, or dry. Be careful that you have an absolutely clean glass. The smallest amount of detergent or lint can interfere with the surface tension of the wine. To ensure that all detergent is removed from the glass, you may want to do what is known as "seasoning the glass". This means that a small amount of wine is poured into the glass, swirled around, and then discarded before the wine tasting process even begins.

Now onto the nose, or the smell of the wine.

Raise the glass to your nose and sniff while noting the distinct aromas. Next, swirl the glass again and inhale more deeply with your mouth open over the glass. Smell with your mouth open? Indeed. Smell and taste are complimentary senses and wired very closely together in your brain. You may be surprised at how the intensity and character of the nose will change between the initial sniff, and the mouth-open one. The most common scents in wine are floral, fruity, spicy, vegetative, or wood odors. The fruity aromas usually come from the grapes themselves. The more complex aromas such as yeast, butter, or oak come from the fermentation and aging processes. The aromas produced as wine matures are often very subtle and difficult to describe, but that's the joy of it all. Each bottle...each sip offers a unique and new experience.

Here is a fantastic Aroma Wheel that will help with categorizing the nose of nearly any wine.

For further tasting information, please refer to the tagging map under "Tasting Steps"