Wine aroma and taste descriptors.

Under mineral I use some common descriptors such as steely, flinty, gunflint (Chablis sometimes has that flinty quality.)
I had a Muscat de Beaumes de Venise once that two of us thought had a quinine or juniper smell.

Berries can be anything from the common raspberry, strawberry, blackberry, etc. to less common lingonberries, pomegranate, mulberry, etc. And the berry note can be like fresh berries, mashed or muddled berries, cooked berries, a berry liqueur, berry essence, etc.

Autumn leaves and loam (earth)

lemongrass, orange pith or orange zest, blood oranges, olives, fruit cocktail, pie dough, yeasty rolls (food)

verbena (floral)

lanolin (chemical) peroxide nail polish, varnish ammonia

musky

pungent, astringent (here I think it is both a smell and a taste sensation)

Thanks a lot Tim! Hope you don’t mine if I add the term “soggy tannins” to my wine lexicon.

Hi Jack,
One thing about the UC Davis Wine Aroma wheel, not all the “specific” or “precise’ aromas are listed, but if you could create a “standard” and most people (or majority of people) no matter how they describe it could agree that it could more or less fit in the broadest of categories (and I mean broadest of categories), its on the wheel. Unless you plan to carry this list with you to every tasting you go to, I think it would be helpful if you list the aromas in categories such as “white wine” aromas and “red wine” aromas. This will enable you to create “standards” by using a “neutral” red or white wine. The advantage of this is you could test your perception threshold for a particular scent (or just get better at identifying it if you do come across it). If I were you I would try to get a hold of the UC Davis University Wine Course book Teachers Edition, it includes a slew of recipes for the “standards”. (If you can’t pick it up in the sample of neutral wine just make it “stronger”). If you have money to burn just go out and buy one of those expensive aroma kits. (Unless of course you are just trying to create your own “personal” wine aroma wheel).

Salute

Jenise, that review is priceless! Thanks for sharing.

JC - thank you I had thus far overlooked Juniper and Pomegranate. Two very useful aroma references.

Victor, I agree that most of the specifics I'm compiling could fit within the broader categories on the Wheel - except for one glaring omission and that's mineral. I don't see anywhere on the Wheel that would remind you to think of the possibility for sensing Slate, Chalk, Flint, Stone, Gravel etc.

I had thought about dividing my list into Red and White but I decided not to for a few reasons. For one thing - there is a lot of overlap and I want to keep it short and clean. Secondly, the more wines I taste the more I continue to be amazed and surprised to find elements in White wines that I thought were unique to Red and vice-versa. Lastly, what about Rose!?!?!

I will see if I can get my hands on that text book - thanks for the tip.

With all this emphasis on flavours, let me say than I think that description of the following aspects of the palate are just as important, if not more so.

Agree 100%. I don't intend it as a criticism of present company, but I detect an increasing trend to concentrate on aromas and ignore more structural elements.

Back to aromas though... I find I am increasingly simply describing wine aromas by grape varieties. IOW if a wine has what I consider to be typical Pinot Noir aromas, that is exactly what I say. In many cases it seems a waste of time, and can also be less precise, to start describing the wine in terms of a type of cherry. But I write mainly for myself - I am not so sure how it would work more generally - probably not much worse than any other system . Pinot Noir, Syrah, Gewurz and Sauv Blanc I think are the wines that most commonly get this treatment.

But I write mainly for myself - I am not so sure how it would work more generally - probably not much worse than any other system . Pinot Noir, Syrah, Gewurz and Sauv Blanc I think are the wines that most commonly get this treatment.

Steve, I like this approach which some would regard as a cop out. However, I wouldn't lump Syrah/Shiraz in with the others you mention. Syrah has quite different fruit tastes in the North-ish Europe, Rhône, Switzerland, etc., from Shiraz in South Australia. Even Southern France moves towards blackberry notes rather than the more northerly steely cherry

[David M. Bueker]

I don't intend it as a criticism of present company, but I detect an increasing trend to concentrate on aromas and ignore more structural elements.

I actually find thetrend to be moving the other way - towards more structural desriptors. Notes are still mostly a lexicon of fruits and veggies, but I see a change.

I don't intend it as a criticism of present company, but I detect an increasing trend to concentrate on aromas and ignore more structural elements.

I actually find thetrend to be moving the other way - towards more structural desriptors. Notes are still mostly a lexicon of fruits and veggies, but I see a change.

In my own note taking, I've found my descriptors for the nose almost invariably center on fruit, mineral and other aromatic elements, whereas my palate descriptors are all tactile and involve the stuctural elements.

Mark Lipton

I don't intend it as a criticism of present company, but I detect an increasing trend to concentrate on aromas and ignore more structural elements.

I actually find thetrend to be moving the other way - towards more structural desriptors. Notes are still mostly a lexicon of fruits and veggies, but I see a change.

In my own note taking, I've found my descriptors for the nose almost invariably center on fruit, mineral and other aromatic elements, whereas my palate descriptors are all tactile and involve the stuctural elements.

Me too. For the palate I often cover the aromas with something like "as nose", or merely note any surprising differences between the aromas detected on the nose and while the wine is in the mouth.

As to the direction of the trend, you might well be right if you are talking about the last few years, David. I was thinking in terms of a decade or two, and would admitedly find it difficult to back up with statistics.

But I write mainly for myself - I am not so sure how it would work more generally - probably not much worse than any other system . Pinot Noir, Syrah, Gewurz and Sauv Blanc I think are the wines that most commonly get this treatment.

Steve, I like this approach which some would regard as a cop out. However, I wouldn't lump Syrah/Shiraz in with the others you mention. Syrah has quite different fruit tastes in the North-ish Europe, Rhône, Switzerland, etc., from Shiraz in South Australia. Even Southern France moves towards blackberry notes rather than the more northerly steely cherry

FWIW (probably not very much!) I use "Syrah" as a personal shorthand to describe a very specific aromatic characteristic that I find pretty much unique to the variety, but certainly do not get on all wines made from that grape. I find it difficult to describe, which is partly why I use the shorthand. It is high-toned, and reminiscent of a workshop - oil and swarfega I think. I don't find it unpleasant, despite my description. If anyone understands what I am saying and could put it in more-standard winespeak, please let me know!

And of course there's this gem of a descriptor from Terry Theise:

"geese farts on a muggy day."

Theise is obviously a fan of early recordings by Leo Kottke.

More from Philip White, writing in The Independent Weekly, 7 May 2010 edition. White goes over the top with some extravagant notes.

Penfolds Grange 2005.
$650; 14.5% alcohol; cork
95+++ points

I gave the 2004 Grange a point more than this, because of its seductive streamlining and silky feminine sheen: Morticia Adams stuff. This is more a cross-dressing Heathcliff. My notes: "Pretty Polly! Wet hessian. Sap: raw sawn wood. Cordite. Incredible bowl of fruits: currants, blackcurrants, redcurrants, raspberries, nectar, strawberries, cranberries, medlar berries, salmonberries and watermelon. Musk. Civet. Banana lollies. Paper. A chip off the old block. Shit. Cowshed. Milk. Chaos!! Perfection!! Fractal!! In this church, they're still trying to recognise the congregation." Which is not to say this wine will not eventually mellow to become one of the best ever.

P White must have had a veritable riot going on in his mouth.
I haven't tasted this wine, so I can't confirm or challenge in any way. Just interested by the over-the-top notes.

More from Philip White, writing in The Independent Weekly, 7 May 2010 edition. White goes over the top with some extravagant notes.

Penfolds Grange 2005.
$650; 14.5% alcohol; cork
95+++ points

I gave the 2004 Grange a point more than this, because of its seductive streamlining and silky feminine sheen: Morticia Adams stuff. This is more a cross-dressing Heathcliff. My notes: "Pretty Polly! Wet hessian. Sap: raw sawn wood. Cordite. Incredible bowl of fruits: currants, blackcurrants, redcurrants, raspberries, nectar, strawberries, cranberries, medlar berries, salmonberries and watermelon. Musk. Civet. Banana lollies. Paper. A chip off the old block. Shit. Cowshed. Milk. Chaos!! Perfection!! Fractal!! In this church, they're still trying to recognise the congregation." Which is not to say this wine will not eventually mellow to become one of the best ever.

P White must have had a veritable riot going on in his mouth.
I haven't tasted this wine, so I can't confirm or challenge in any way. Just interested by the over-the-top notes.

He very eloquently makes the case for the abolition of the tasting note IMO.

Mark Lipton

I am compiling a categorized list of all the descriptive words we use for both the aroma and flavor of wine. Please help me make this list as comprehensive as possible by sharing some of your favorite, less common descriptive words and comparative items that help pin down those peculiar essences we love so much about wine.

Jack,
Glen Green has made a pretty good effort of this with his Essential Wine Tasting Guide.
http://www.essentialwinetastingguide.com/
Cheers,
Sue

Adjectives, so many adjectives. Sigh.