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Wine > Tasting and Evaluating Wine > Flashcards

Tasting and Evaluating Wine Flashcards

1
Q

Describe a good tasting environment

A

Good lighting
No strong odours
Space to lay out wine glasses and take notes
Spittoons or spit cups available

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2
Q

How should you prepare yourself for tasting (including pouring the glass)?

A

Have a clean palate
Don’t wear strong perfume/aftershave
Have suitable glassware (odourless, colourless, transparent, no residues, rounded bowl with inward sloping walls)
Pour around 5cl of wine

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3
Q

Name the colour scale used to describe white wine

A

Lemon (most common) - gold (some orange/brown) - amber (very noticeable browning)

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4
Q

Name the colour scale used to describe red wine

A

Ruby (most common) - purple (some blue/purple) - garnet (some orange/brown but still red) - tawny (more brown than red)

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5
Q

Name the colour scale used to describe rose wine

A

Pink (very pure pink) - pink-orange (some orange) - orange (orange is dominant, very rare)

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6
Q

What is the origin of a primary aroma or flavour?

A

The grape and alcoholic fermentation

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7
Q

What is the origin of a secondary aroma or flavour?

A

Post-fermentation winemaking e.g. Yeast maturation (lees, autolysis, flor), malolactic conversion, oak

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8
Q

What is the origin of a tertiary aroma or flavour?

A

Ageing - oxidative (in oak) or non-oxidative i.e. bottling for a long time

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9
Q

What are the components of a wine’s palate?

A

Sweetness, acidity, tannin, alcohol, body, flavour intensity, flavour characteristics, finish

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10
Q

What contributes to a wine’s body?

A

The structural components sugar, acidity, tannin, alcohol

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11
Q

What would define a long finish over a short finish?

A

A long finish is usually where the desirable flavours linger in the mouth as long as or longer than structural components e.g. tannin or acid.

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12
Q

What does one assess when judging wine quality?

A

Balance, length/finish, identifiable characteristics/intensity of flavours, complexity

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13
Q

What would balance with a wine’s high alcohol?

A

Sufficient fruit flavour intensity

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14
Q

What would balance with a wine’s high acidity?

A

Sufficient fruit flavour intensity

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15
Q

What would balance with a wine’s sugar levels?

A

Sufficient acidity

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16
Q

How does sweet food affect wine?

A

More: drying and bitter, acidic
Less: sweet and fruity

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17
Q

How does umami food affect wine?

A

More: drying and bitter, acidic
Less: sweet and fruity

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18
Q

How does salty food affect wine?

A

More: fruity, body
Less: drying and bitter, acidic

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19
Q

How does acidic food affect wine?

A

More: sweet and fruity
Less: drying and bitter, acidic

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20
Q

How does highly flavoured food affect wine?

A

Overwhelms it

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21
Q

How does fatty/oily food affect wine?

A

Less acidic

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22
Q

How does spicy (chilli) food affect wine?

A

Chilli is accentuated by wines higher in alcohol, alcohol increases burning sensation of chilli

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23
Q

What should you check for when serving wine?

A

Appearance - wine is likely faulty if it is hazy, or bits are floating around.
Aroma - wine is faulty if it smells stale/has aromas of wet cardboard or vinegar

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24
Q

Recommended service temperature of sweet wine e.g. Sauternes

A

Well chilled i.e. 6-8C

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25
Q

Recommended service temperature of sparkling wine e.g. Champagne

A

Well chilled i.e. 6-10C

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26
Q

Recommended service temperature of light-, medium-bodied white and rose e.g. Pinot Grigio

A

Chilled i.e. 7-10C

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27
Q

Recommended service temperature of full-bodied white e.g. Oaked Chardonnay

A

Lightly chilled i.e. 10-13C

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28
Q

Recommended service temperature of light-bodied red e.g. Beaujolais

A

Room temp or lightly chilled i.e. 13-18C

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29
Q

Recommended service temperature of medium-, full-bodied red e.g. Shiraz

A

Room temp i.e. 15-18C

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30
Q

What are the most common wine faults, and what are their tell-tale signs?

A 
Cork taint (TCA - smells of wet cardboard, muted or less fresh fruit aromas/flavours), 
Failure of closure (oxidation, fruit aromas muted, less fresh, has aromas of honey, caramel or coffee), 
Heat damage (less fresh, less fruity, dull and stale)
31
Q

What elements does a vine need to successfully grow?

A

Sunlight, warmth, CO2, water, nutrients

32
Q

What are the key components of a grape, and their characteristics?

A

Skin (flavour, tannin, colour), seeds (tannin), stem (tannin), pulp (acids and flavours)

33
Q

List the order of grape formation and ripening

A

Flowering, fruit set, veraison, ripening

34
Q

What are the methods of concentrating grape sugars?

A

Extra ripening, botrytis/noble rot, frozen grapes, appassimento

35
Q

Climatic influences affecting grape growing/ripening

A

Latitude, altitude, seas, rivers, air, cloud, fog, mist, mountains, slope, aspect, soil

36
Q

Weather influences affecting grape growing/ripening

A

Cold vintage, hot vintage, drought, hail, frost, high rainfall

37
Q

Factors and methods to consider while growing grapes

A

Training/pruning, irrigation, spraying, yield, harvest

38
Q

What is yield?

A

The number of grapes produced per unit area

39
Q

How is harvest related to the final wine?

A

Early harvest means grapes will have lower sugar, higher acidity with more herbaceous flavours. Later harvesting leads to higher sugar, lower acidity, and riper flavours. Leaving grapes on the vine for a long time leads to them shrivelling and concentrating sugars, leading to raisin and dried fruit flavours. Leaving grapes on the vine which are then harvested and pressed frozen also leads to high concentrations of sugar and acid (Eiswein)

40
Q

What is a Geographical Indication (GI)?

A

A legally defined vineyard area within a country.

41
Q

What two groups are GI’s in the EU divided into?

A

PDO (Protected Designation of Origin), PGI (Protected Geographical Indication)

42
Q

What is a PDO?

A

Covers relatively small areas and have tightly defined regulations, i.e. most prestigious wines.

43
Q

What is a PGI?

A

Covers a wide area and has less strict regulations than a PDO. Greater level of flexibility when it comes to grapes and winemaking (broader range of wine quality).

44
Q

What is vine age?

A

The physical age of a vine. Older vines tend to be more highly sought after as they tend to produce higher-quality wines. Winemakers can use the lable ‘Old Vine’ or vielles vignes, but note that this is not a legally defined concept.

45
Q

What is vintage?

A

The year in which the grapes were harvested. For wines not made for ageing, can determine when it is past its best. For ageing wines, it can indicate when a wine is at its best. Weather is important to consider for a particular vintage, i.e. the quality of wine it produces. Note that a vintage produced in the Southern Hemisphere was harvested half a year earlier than the same vintage in the Northern Hemisphere

46
Q

What is a Late Harvest wine?

A

Grapes have been left later on the vine to concentrate sugars and produce riper flavours.

47
Q

What is a Late Harvest wine called in Alsace?

A

Vendanges tardives

48
Q

French PDO’s

A

Appellation d’origine protegee (AOP), Appellation d’origine controlee (AOC)

49
Q

Italian PDO’s

A

Denominazione di Origine Controllata (DOC), Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita (DOCG)

50
Q

Spanish PDO’s

A

Denominacion de Origen (DO), Denominacion de Origen Calificada (DOCa)

51
Q

German PDO’s

A

Qualitatswein, Pradikatswein

52
Q

French PGI’s

A

Indication geographique protegee (IGP), Vin de pays (VdP)

53
Q

Italian PGI’s

A

Indicazione Geografica Tipica (IGT)

54
Q

Spanish PGI’s

A

Vino de la Tierra

55
Q

German PGI’s

A

Landwein

56
Q

List the common winemaking techniques

A

Crushing, pressing, alcoholic fermentation, storage or maturation, packaging

57
Q

List the typical process order for dry red winemaking

A

Crushing, alcoholic fermentation, draining, pressing, storage or maturation, packaging

58
Q

What are the methods for mixing the grape skins (i.e. mixing cap)

A

Punching down or pumping over

59
Q

What methods are typical of rose winemaking?

A

Short maceration period and/or blending of a white wine with a red wine

60
Q

List the typical process order for dry white winemaking

A

Crushing, pressing, alcoholic fermentation, storage or maturation, packaging

61
Q

How is a sweet wine typically made (winemaking process)?

A

Grapes with concentrated sugar (i.e. via botrytis or frozen) have too much sugar for yeast to ferment so it stops fermenting before all sugar is converted to alcohol. With ripe grapes, yeast can be removed via filtration before fermentation is complete, or killed by adding alcohol (fortification)

62
Q

What is an example of sweet wine made by removing yeast before fermentation is over?

A

Zinfandel from California

63
Q

What are some typical adjustments that can be made during winemaking?

A

Sugar, acid, temperature

64
Q

What sort of vessels can be used for fermentation and storage?

A

Inert vessels e.g. stainless steel or concrete, oak vessels e.g. old oak or new oak, small or large

65
Q

What temperature is typically used for red wine fermentation?

A

20-32C (helps extract colour and tannin from skin)

66
Q

What factors of oak vessels affect the final wine flavours?

A

The age of the barrel, the size, how the barrel is made (level of oak stave toasting)

67
Q

What oak alternatives are there?

A

Oak staves or chips can be added (cheaper option)

68
Q

What temperature is typically used for rose wine fermentation?

A

Similar to white wine i.e. 12-22C

69
Q

What temperature is typically used for white wine fermentaion?

A

12-22C (at lower end, can produce notable fruity aromas)

70
Q

What is malolactic conversion?

A

Use of bacteria to convert harsh acidic flavours into buttery flavours/aromas. Usually always used for red wine, but for white wines it depends on what flavours the winemaker wants to impart onto it

71
Q

What is lees contact?

A

Once fermentation is complete, the dead yeast forms a solid deposit in the wine. This may be removed or left in contact with the wine to impart extra flavours (bread, biscuit). Typically avoided for aromatic grape varieties.

72
Q

What is blending?

A

Can do this at any stage, defines the style of the wine. Each vintage may require a different wine blend to maintain consistency of style. Furthermore, a winemaker can impart complexity by blending.

73
Q

What does bottle maturation do to a white wine?

A

The colour changes from lemon to gold to amber, with more intensity in colour. Tertiary characteristics include dried apricot, honey, nut, spice

74
Q

What does bottle maturation do to a red wine?

A

The colour changes from ruby to garnet to tawny, and becomes paler in intensity. Tannins decrease and become softer and smoother. Tertiary characteristics include fig, prune, meat and wet leaves. Deposits can form, which means the wine should be decanted before serving.

Wine (3 decks)

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