Advanced Wine Vocabulary: Taste Wine Like a Pro!

Hello, everyone, and welcome back to my wine diary. If you're looking to improve and expand your wine knowledge and wine language, then this video and this channel in general are for you. Today, we're looking into the specific and advanced wine vocabulary that sommeliers and wine pros use in order to sound like they were born in the vineyards and raised by oak barrels. So by the end of this video, you'll not only speak wine like a pro, but you'll also taste it like one with confidence, flair and maybe a little sass. So go ahead and grab your favorite glass of wine. Hit the like button. Subscribe to my channel if you haven't yet. And let's go ahead and jump in. First of all, what a sad world would that be if there was no wine. Honestly, I have no intention of stopping drinking wine any time soon. This is for fun only. Let's start with unlocking some sensory specificity, because let's be honest, most people, when they describe wine, sound like they describe a smoothie. They say that it's sweet, it's fruity and it's kind of dry. But pros go much further than this. They don't just say that a wine tastes fruity. They say things like blackberry compote. They say that it tastes like a cherry reduction, or they can say that it tastes like big plump tart with a hint of cinnamon. If you ever want to sound extra fancy, just say, I am getting a ripe cherry reduction note framed by some subtle oak influence and boom, all of a sudden everyone thinks that you work for a Michelin star restaurant. But let's talk about oak specifically, because I feel like people toss the oak descriptor around all the time. And it can actually mean a hundred different things when it comes to wine. So, for example, it can mean that it's vanilla bean. It can mean that it's toasted almond or cigar box or baking spices. Each descriptor points to different types of barrels, toast levels or even aging techniques. So we really need to be a little bit more careful with the term or the descriptor of oak in our wine. And finally, we have that magic French word terroir. Terroir driven descriptors actually connect our wine to its origin. So like saying a Chablis has flint and minerality from its limestone soils or a Rioja shows that dusty earth and dried herbs from its terrain. So that's how soil and climate literally become language. OK, now let's take a whiff and look at the aromatic spectrum because aromas of wine can be so different. They can be savory and earthy, floral, herbal or just straight up weird and all the best ways possible. So earthy notes, for example, we can use terms like forest, truffle, mushroom or even petrichor, which describes that wonderful damp earth smell, the scent of rain on soil, freshly turned leaves or maybe even your grandma's garden after a thunderstorm. But jokes aside, if you can describe petrichor in a sentence, you're probably a poet or a sommelier or maybe both. Now let's look at the savory and mineral notes, which mineral notes can be a little intimidating when describing wine. So flint, whetstone, iodine. But there are just ways to describe freshness and texture, especially in white wines like Chablis or Albariño. And then we have umami. So umami is another big one. That's that savory mouthwatering sensation you get from aged reds or certain whites like Chardonnay with leaves aging to them. So think of them as the soy sauce of wine descriptors, if that makes any sense to you. And then, of course, there's floral and herbal aromas as well. So if your wine smells like rose petal, lavender, eucalyptus or even dill, you're noticing compounds called terpenes. They're the same molecules that are found in flowers. So if your wine smells like your grandma's poultry, then don't panic. You're probably drinking a pretty high quality Gibert strominer. All right, now let's talk about what happens in your mouth, because wine isn't just about flavor or taste. It's about the feel as well. So when someone says that a wine is velvety or silky, they're describing how tannins interact with your saliva. A grippy wine might feel like your mouth got a gentle exfoliation. Astrogen, that's that pucker factor often found in young Cabernet Sauvignon. And then if your mouth feels like it's been vacuum sealed shut, then you probably are drinking some very high tannin Barolo. But that's not everything. Then we have acidity and its terms as well. So it's that zinc factor that can be described as racy and crisp. So think Sauvignon Blanc or Riesling. Bright means acidity adds freshness and food friendliness. Because remember, without acidity, wine tastes flat like a soda that literally just lost its fizz. And then we have tannins and the pro descriptors for tannins as well. So here we've got fine grained means elegant, refined tannins. Chalky means powdery texture, often in cooler climate reds. And then chewy. That's a very popular one. It just means dense, almost tactical tannins that you could bite into. And if you've ever tried a wine that tastes like that, you would know exactly what I'm talking about. Remember that texture and terms that are used for describing a texture in wine is sommelier's secret weapons, because anyone can say that a wine tastes delicious. But to say that a wine tastes silky smooth with bright acidity, that will give you a sommelier's street credit right away. Next, let's take a look at the sommelier's language of evolution and wine, just like people evolves and some wine and people mature gracefully and some just peak at college and don't age well at all, regardless of how well a wine ages. The terms to describe flavors and aromas go from fruity to now tertiary. So here you can hear terms like nutty or leather, tobacco or even rancio. That's a fancy term for oxidative richness, by the way. So these are all very mature. They're complex notes that just show how wine is very worldly. It's wise and very good tasting for the most part. Now, you guys, not every aroma is a blessing. And we absolutely have to talk about some flaws and the terms that wine pros and sommeliers use to describe those flaws. So here we have corked, which is the TCA taint. It smells like a wet cardboard. Then we have oxidized, which is a very common term for wine being exposed to air for too long. And it just tastes kind of vinegary. Brettanomyces is another very famous one. You probably might have heard the word Brett, which is just a short for Brettanomyces, which is that funky barnyard smell. A little of it can be charming, but too much smells like a wet horse in a thunderstorm or a wet dog. So not a good smell, but you have to know those terms for sure. One more quick thing to add to our flaws and the descriptors of flaws is if you feel like you're smelling any of those smells when a wine is offered to you, but you're just not sure what's something cold or you don't want to feel embarrassed. I 100% always recommend for you to talk to the sommelier, let them smell that wine, which if you buy a bottle, especially an expensive bottle, they always do the smell test for you. Some sommeliers try the wine when they open it for you. Some just smell or they smell the cork. That's exactly what we smell the cork for, is just to see if the wine has been spoiled, if it has any flaws. And when wine is poured for you for the first time after you order the bottle, when they do that little pour in the glass and offer it to you, technically speaking, I want you guys to know that's not for trying it and seeing if you like it. Technically speaking, that first little pour that's offered to you at a restaurant, it's for you to smell it and recognize or catch any faulty aromas of that wine. So you can potentially send it back if it's not good. So just remember that you can absolutely try that wine when they give it to you. But just know that technically speaking, it's only for smelling. And that's perfectly enough. If you just smell the wine, if it smells great, then you keep it. Now that your wine vocabulary is overflowing, let's put it to practice. I can't let you go without giving you a very short three questions. Wine vocabulary quiz. So question number one for you is, you taste a white wine that smells like whetstone, lemon zest and a green apple. What word describes its style? The answer is mineral and crisp like a Chablis or Albariño. Number two, a red wine feels chewy. It smells like leather and tobacco. What does that tell you? Yes, the answer is it's tannic and aged, probably a Cabernet Sauvignon or Tempranillo. And question number three, you get truffle and forest floor aromas. Where are you? Well, here the answer would be probably Pinot Noir country, so I would say Burgundy, those are the very typical smells for that area. See, you're already talking like a sommelier. Now you've learned a couple of extra terms to describe the smell and the taste of wine, just like us sommeliers and wine pros do. So now you've got that up your sleeve. And here's the challenge. When you open the next bottle of wine, I'd like for you, I'd love for you to use three or five new words that you learn, some descriptors for that wine that you're tasting and play with it, because I think playfulness is something that keeps this interesting and alive. Don't just try and remember the exact term for something all the time. I always tell that people should just use their own words when describing the smell and the taste of wine. That's what really makes it fun. And don't worry about somebody smiling or laughing at what you're saying at the table, because frankly, who cares what people think you do? You enjoy your wine and practice your wine vocabulary and use it wisely. You guys, if you learned anything in this video or if you found it entertaining, give it a thumbs up and then subscribe to my channel for some weekly wine content coming your way, and then Instagram will give you a little glimpse of my personal life together with my wine content. So make sure to follow me on Instagram, too. Life is way too short to drink bad wine, so please don't. Stay curious, stay sipping. And until next time, cheers, everyone.