Wine vocabulary

When descibing a wine it is typical to describe the appearance first, followed by the nose (aroma and bouquet) and then the taste (flavour, mouthfeel).

Appearance
White wine - colourless, green tinged, straw, yellow, gold, amber, brown
Rosé wine - rose, pink, salmon, amber, brown
Red wine - purple, violet, ruby, red, garnet, brick red, brown red, brown

Clarity - turbid, cloudy, hazy, dull, clear, bright, brilliant

Nose
Chardonnay
apple, cucumber, citrus (lemon, grapefruit, lime, mandarin), stone fruit (nectarine, peach, apricot) melon, tropical fruit (mango, banana, pineapple), honey, straw, tabacco, bready, toast, buttery, butterscotch, vanilla, coconut, cashew, almond, nutty, pencil shavings, sawdust, cedar, smokey, charred, leesy, yeasty, chalky, mineral, lanolin

Riesling
green apple, citrus (lemon, grapefruit, lime), blossoms, floral (rose), perfumed, confectionery , pear, stone friut (peach, apricot) tropical friut (pineapple, mango) honey, toast, leesy, yeasty, steely, mineral, lanolin, kerosene

Taste
Flavour
All smells above may or may not be carried over to the palate, in addition, the taste of a wine includes

Sweetness, acidity, balance, astringency, bitterness and tactile descriptors like body, length, structure, finish and intensity.

Return to wine tasting