Wine tasting is the art to be able to recognise and distinguish a wine's colour, aroma, flavours and aftertaste while using your senses. In order to examine the colour, the wine should be poured in a clear glass and held, slightly tilted, in front of a white background, while the room should be amply illuminated. The aroma of the grape as well as that released during the alcoholic fermentation determines the aroma of the wine. Finally, it can be further developed during cask and bottle ageing.
In order to taste the wine, the glass is brought close to the nose for a quick whiff to formulate an initial impression while the wine is still calm. Swirl your wine and this will allow you to smell the aroma. Sometimes a certain smell will be very strong with underlying hints of other smells. While tasting the wine, your taste buds respond to sensations.
Certain regions on the tongue detect specific flavours such as sweet, bitter, sour and salty. A quality wine is characterised by its balanced components (tannins, alcohol, sugar, acid) that are in the right proportion.
