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Level 1 Sommelier Course > Deductive Tasting > Flashcards

Deductive Tasting Flashcards

Gain a working mastery of the subject.

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Introductory Sommelier Exam (CMS) flashcards
1
Q

The criteria of the Deductive Tasting Method (4)

A

1-Sight
2-Nose
3-Palate
4-Conclusion: initial and final (theoretical deduction)

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2
Q

What does SIGHT allow you to deduct?

A
  • Provides valuable information about a wine’s possible grape variety, age and/or condition.
  • During this phrase, you may develop suspicions but it is cautioned against making final confirmations.
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3
Q

How should you evaluate wine, sight wise?

A
  • Tilt the glass away from you against a white background in the best light you can find.
  • Hold the glass by the stem.
  • Utilize a cleaned and well-buffed wine glass.
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4
Q

Filtered vs. Unfiltered wine

A

Filtered: typically from New World, go through sterile filtration and bottling to remove bacteria and proteins that can cloud wine.

Unfiltered: some producers of high quality wine believe that only natural fining and filtration should be used, anything more strips wine of its flavors.

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5
Q

Define: Brightness

A

the capacity of a wine to reflect light - a function of clarity.

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6
Q

The brightness scale (6 levels)

A

Dull - Hazy - Bright - Day Bright - Star Bright - Brilliant

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7
Q

What does a wine’s color / hue all you to deduct?

A

-clues to a wine’s age, storage conditions or grape variety.

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8
Q

White and blush wines grow ______ with age. (generally speaking)

A

Darker

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9
Q

Red wines grow _____ with age (generally speaking)

A

Lighter

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10
Q

Pigments and tannin in red wines precipitate into _________ with age. (generally speaking)

A

Sediment.

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11
Q

What can secondary colors tell you about a wine?

A

-Age, climate or variety.

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12
Q

_________ in young or cool climate white wines (secondary colors)

A

Green

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13
Q

_______, _________, __________ in older red wines ( secondary colors)

A
  • Orange
  • Yellow
  • Brown
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14
Q

White wines (5) (color scales)

A

Watery - Straw - Yellow - Gold - Brown

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15
Q

Pink wines (3) ( color scales)

A

Pink - Salmon - Brown

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16
Q

Red Wines (5) (color scales)

A

Purple - Ruby (Red) - Garnet (Reddish Brown) - Orange - Brown

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17
Q

Rim Variation (what and why)

A
  • The difference in color between wine at the center of the glass and the wine at the edge (rim) of the glass.
  • A phenomenon of age.
  • The older the wine, the more rim variation.
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18
Q

What is sediment? (Sight)

A
  • Pigment and tannins that precipitate out of solution as red wine ages.
  • Sediment also found in young unfiltered red wines.
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19
Q

Tartrates (Wine Diamonds)

A

-tiny, crystalline deposits that occur in
wines when potassium and tartaric acid, both naturally occurring products of grapes, bind together to form a crystal.
-Excess tartartic acid
-Present in all wines
-Often removed through filtration or cold stabilization.

(less common in red wines, as their level of
tartaric acid is lower, and crystals tend to fall out naturally during the longer barrel-aging process. )

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20
Q

Legs/Tears - Viscosity

A
  • alcohol or presence of residual sugar in wine
  • —> Thin, quickly moving legs or sheeting in the glass = low alcohol and little or no residual sugar
  • —> Thick, slowly moving legs = higher alcohol or the presences of residual sugar.
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21
Q

What is the most importance aspect of the Deductive Tasting Method?

A

Nose, smell accounts for some 85% of taste

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22
Q

Why and how do we swirl a glass of wine?

A

Volatilizing (disperse in vapor) the esters - releasing the flavor elements attached to the alcohol molecules in the wine.

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23
Q

Wine Flaws (Nose)

A
  • TCA (corkiness)
  • Oxidation and Heat Damage
  • Volatile Acidity (VA)
  • Excess Sulfur Dioxide (SO2)
  • Brettanomyces
  • Hydrogen Sulfide (H2S)
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24
Q

TCA - Corkiness ( Wine Flaws)

A
  • from taint corks - wet moldy cardboard and mustiness
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25
Q

Oxidation and Heat Damage ( Wine Flaws)

A
  • from age or poor storage conditions - dull fruit, cooked fruit, secondary and tertiary aromas and flavors (leather), vegetal notes, flat finish
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26
Q

Volatile Acidity (VA) ( Wine Flaws)

A

-vinegar aromas (acetobacter) or varnish/fingernail polish aromoas (ethyl acetate or EA)

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27
Q

Excess Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) ( Wine Flaws)

A

-added during the wine-making process - matchstick or wet wool

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28
Q

Brettanomyces ( Wine Flaws)

A
  • varying yeast strains
  • aromas range from smoke, clove, spice to band-aid and manure.
  • Due to high pH available from nutrients such as residual sugar, inadequate topping, and infected barrels.
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29
Q

What is the flaw scale?

A
  • Sound/Clean OR Unsound/Faulty

- If faulty, then say what fault.

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30
Q

Intensity of flavor (3) (scale)

A

Low (Delicate) / Medium / High (powerful)

31
Q

Why do we blind taste /. use deductive tasting method?

A

1- Tasting with purpose rather than just for pleasure.
2- Paying attention to what is being tasted and developing olfactory and taste memory.
3- Improving your ability to describe and sell wine.
4- Understanding classic and new archetypes of regional wines of the world.

32
Q

Tasting vs. Drinking

A

1- tasting is a learned skill, not innate.
2- After tasting 100’s or 1000’s of wines, you will start to understand the language of taste.
3- Drinking = “I like” or “ I don’t like”
4- Tasting = evaluating wines on established characteristics for a particular varietal / style.

33
Q

Define Clarity:

A

related to the amount of solids or sediment in the wine.

34
Q

Clarity Scale (3 levels)

A

Clear / Slightly Cloudy / Cloudy

35
Q

Define concentration of color:

A

the intensity or depth of color

36
Q

Intensity scale (3 levels)

A

Pale / Medium / Deep

37
Q

Concentrated can indicate _________ for white wines.

A

age and/or barrel use

38
Q

Concentrated can indicate _________ for red wines.

A

grape variety and/or color extraction

39
Q

Gas Evidence ( what and when does it happen)

A
  • Usually in young wines that are bottled early.

- Excess Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) trapped in bottle.

40
Q

Hydrogen Sulfide (H2S) ( Wine Flaws)

A

Onion, rubber, rotten egg

-inadequate nutrition during fermentation.

41
Q

Intensity of Aroma (Scale)

A

Low (delicate) / Medium / High (powerful)

42
Q

Aromas in youthful wines

A

fruit will be clear, direct, and primary

43
Q

Aromas in wines showing age or vinosity

A

fruit fades and drives out and more interesting secondary and tertiary non-fruit aromas develop - the wine gains a “bouquet”

44
Q

Why can blind tasting older wines be more difficult than younger wines?

A

Older wines can be very difficult as they shed obvious varietal aromas of youth.

45
Q

White Wine Fruit Descriptors

A
  • Tree Fruits: Apples, Pears
  • Citrus: Lemon, Lime, Grapefruit, Tangerine
  • Pitted Fruit: Peach, Nectarine, Apricot
  • Tropical Fruit: Pineapple, Mango, Papaya, Passion Fruit
  • Melon: Cantaloupe, Honeydew
46
Q

Red Wine Fruit Descriptors

A
  • Red Fruits: Cherry, Raspberry, Red Plum, Cranberry, Pomegranate
  • Black Fruits: Blackberry, Black Cherry, Black Plum
  • Blue Fruits: Blueberry
47
Q

Fruit Condition

A

We can take the describing of the fruit character even further and talk about the condition of the fruit.
-Baked, cooked, stewed, dried, peels, skin, pith, flesh, fresh picked, preserved, jammy

48
Q

Non-Fruit Describing Aromas

A

Flowers, spices, herbs, vegetal, animal, fermentation, butter, honey, leather, tobacco, and much more!

49
Q

Earthiness /. Minerality Aromas are often dominant in ______________ wines

A

Old World

50
Q

Organic Earth Describing Aromas

A

forest floor, compost, truffle/mushrooms, potting soil, barn yard, fresh turned earth

often descriptors for red wine.

51
Q

Inorganic Earth Describing Aromas

A

wet rock, mineral, limestone, chalk, slate, petrol, flint, volcanic

often descriptors for white wine

52
Q

Wood/Oak Describing Aromas

A

a new, toasted oak barrel may imbue scents of vanilla, baking spices, grilled toast, smoke, caramel, and other tones in wine during maturation.

53
Q

Old Oak vs. New Oak

A

old oak, soaked with wine permits less oxygen ingress than a brand new barrel.

54
Q

French Oak vs. American Oak

A

French Oak is more porous that permits a greater exchange of oxygen
American Oak is less porous

55
Q

Large Barrels vs Small Barrels (Barrique)

A

The effects of oak aging on a wine are more noticeable when a wine maker employs smaller vessels. The inference of oak is more prominent with smaller barrels.

56
Q

What part of the deductive tasting process is used to confirm what you have already smelled?

A

The Palate

57
Q

Palate: Sweetness/Dryness

A

The presence of residual sugar in the wine, often sensed on the tip of the tongue.

58
Q

Sweetness Scale (Palate)

A

Bone Dry, Dry, Off Dry, Sweet, Dessert Sweet

59
Q

Palate: Tannin

A

Sensed as bitterness and/or astingency

60
Q

Tannin Scale (Palate)

A

Low / Medium - / Medium / Medium + / High

61
Q

Palate: Acidity

A
  • Focus on the salivary glands and the finish

- Accumulated (delayed) experience for many tasters

62
Q

Acidity Scale (Palate)

A

Low / Medium - / Medium / Medium + / High

63
Q

Palate: Alcohol

A

Sensed as heat in the nose, throat and chest

64
Q

Alcohol Scale (Palate)

A

Low / Medium - / Medium / Medium + / High

65
Q

Body/Texture (Palate)

A
  • the weight of the wine
  • from the amount of alcohol, glycerine and grape solids in the wine

Glycerine increases the wine`s mouth-feel giving it a fuller, more pleasant texture.

66
Q

Body/Texture Scale (Palate)

A

Light / Medium / Full

67
Q

Finish (Palate) Definition and Scale

A

The length of time the entire wine stay on the palate after swallowing

Scale: Short / Medium - / Medium / Medium + / Long

Quality of the finish: astringent, silky, bitter

68
Q

Complexity (Palate) Definition and scale

A

The number of aromas and flavors in the wine and how they interact

Low / Medium - / Medium / Medium + / High

69
Q

Deductive Tasting Process: The Con

clusion

A
  • Broken down into initial and final conclusion
  • Take “evidence” gained from the sight, nose, and palate to form the best possible conclusion
  • LISTEN TO YOURSELF
70
Q

Initial Conclusion: Old World vs New World

A

ID keys: levels of acidity, oak, alcohol and earthiness

71
Q

Initial Conclusion: Climate: Cool, Moderate or Warm

A

ID keys: acidity level and alcohol level, color extraction in red wine

72
Q

Initial Conclusion: Grape Variety or Blend

A

ID Keys: knowing markers for grapes varieties and styles of wine

73
Q

Initial Conclusion: General Age Range

A

1-3 years, 3-5 years, 5-10 years, more than 10 years

- ID Keys: color, rim variation, youth vs. vinosity, quality of texture and finish

74
Q

Final Conclusion

A

Grape varietal or blend, Country, Region, Appellation, Appellation quality level if appropriate , Vintage

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