A Final Presentation on Wine Tasting

I came into this class with a general appreciation for wine, but with very very little knowledge about it. Being present in the class and learning from all of you, I can now with confidence explain the major differences between types of wines, what "oaky" means, and why you hold a glass by the stem. To challenge myself to go from novice to expert, I did my final Public Speaking (ENGR 103) presentation on how to taste wine! I was quite surprised at the amount I learned about the process, even though that was not the main focus (only the treat at the end). Below is my script, a couple supplementary photos, and the questions I received from the audience. 

Script

Bee keeper Ibrahim had a problem… his honey kept being eaten by bears at night. This was annoying and he tried to find ways to prevent it. One night, he had an idea that the bear-intruder would actually serve a purpose: as a honey taster. He laid out 5 different honeys and waited in the night. 

The bear took the biggest liking for the royal Anzer Bali— by far the most expensive and rare one. The bear also gobbled up the other honeys, but he also stayed away from the grocery store varietal. 

Today, I will teach you that you are exactly like this bear. You don’t have to know anything about pricing or prestige, but you know a good snack from a bad one. We will apply the idea of tasting to an often mystified product: wine. I will teach you how to approach the art of wine tasting, so that even if you don’t know anything, you can still make some distinctions. First, you will evaluate the wine by seeing its color and droplets, then smelling it for identifying major aromas, and finally, the good part, tasting. 

I’ll be demonstrating the process with this Sonoma Cab.

1. Alright, we have this wine in front of you. What do you do first? The first step to the wine is Seeing it

Place against a white background: more intense means more flavorful 

Sav Blanc vs. Chardonnay
Evaluating droplets: swish the wine around and see how quickly droplets fall

Just by looking at wine you can see alcohol level

Viscous, taking longer to go down- then sweeter + more alcohol

Seems like we’ve seen enough. What do we do after?

2. Well, after seeing the wine we begin to smell it. 

80% of the experience is olfactory 

Try to find 3 fruits, 3 other flavors

Red wines: red fruits and berries

White wines: citrus and other light fruits like apple and pear

Other flavors: vanilla, flowers, oak, earth, minerality

HUGE range of different smells, the most helpful thing for me was having a wine aroma wheel in front of me. Takes time to learn how to do this since humans don't do it intuitively. 

Okay, now we’ve identified those aromas in the wine, it’s time to wrap it up. We have now officially earned our right to taste the wine. 

3. Tasting: Swish it around your mouth

Breath in to mouth, out through nose 

Retronasal olfaction

Dry vs. sweet?

Bold vs. Light

Acidic vs. soft

Smooth vs. tannic (sandpaper feeling)

Remember, it takes time. You don’t wake up an expert in something, but there is a basic intuition behind it. The best method of learning how to taste wine is get some really good examples. 

What you can do now is the consistent process of seeing the wine by evaluating the color and droplets, smelling it by identifying 3 fruity and 3 non-fruity aromas, and tasting it for four major wine taste criteria. 

The reality is, you are just like a honey bear: you probably can’t name all the smells and sights you’re experiencing, but you sure know which product hit your fancy the most. Thanks for having a listen, and I can’t wait for you to embark on your own wine tasting journeys!

Questions

I genuinely can't taste the difference sometimes when I have wines. It's all kind of the same. How do I start building out my palette and paying more attention to the stuff you were talking about, like smell?

I have no idea what kind of wine I like. How do you suggest I get started in identifying my preferences?

Do aged wines actually taste better? Why are they so much more valuable than not super old wines?