This is the first of an ongoing series of wine facts and trivia presented by our Director of Training and Education, Greg Altieri. Please contact us if you have a specific question or topic you would like to see covered here.

1. The topic of sensory evaluation

• The tongue acts as a guide to what and how we taste – we sense the element of dryness/sweetness on the tip, the element of acidity on the front edges, weight in the middle and further acidity (usually tannin in reds) in the very back.
• The structural components of wine are: sugar and alcohol for the soft aspect (mouth feel) and acid and tannin for the hard aspect of wine.
• Those four components comprise the structure of wine, the aromas and flavors comprise the character of wine AND when you combine the structure and character you achieve the STYLE of that particular wine.
• Appearance and nose (aromas) are also important aspects of tasting in order to distinguish wines and grapes concerning their indigenous/typical aroma and appearance profiles.