How to take wine tasting notes

How to take wine tasting notes

How to take wine tasting notes

Taking wine tasting notes is a brilliant way to improve your wine skills. It is a great wine to learn about wine. So pop open a bottle of wine, pour a glass and get to work taking wine notes. Follow these how to take wine tasting notes steps.

• What’s your first impression? Is it the aroma, the acidity, the oak, the fruitiness of the wine or what? Write down anything that comes to mind.
• With each sip of the wine, dig deeper into the components of the wine. Is the wine light, medium or heavy in texture in your mouth? How about the level of sweetness? Is it dry or sweet? What about the tannins? Too much, too little or just right? What is the acidity of the wine? Too little, too much, or just perfect for this style of wine?
• Is the alcohol in this wine balanced or is it “hot” when swallowing? Once you swallow the wine, what kind of finish does the wine have? A long and lingering finish is the mark of quality wine. Is the wine in balance overall or does one component overpower the rest of the flavors?
• What about the complexity of the wine? With each taste do you discover something different, or is the wine just flat and one dimensional? What foods do you think will pair with the wine?
• Finally, how much do like this wine? Would you buy it again? Was it worth the cost? Rate it using whatever rating system that suits your fancy: 100-point scale, five stars, or whatever system you like.
• One good thing about taking your own notes, there is no pressure. The notes are for your own wine enjoyment and education. If you want to learn more about the techniques of tasting wine, turn to this page for a list of some of the top-rated books on wine.
• I posted an article about a useful technology App for taking wine tasting notes. It is called “Evernote,” and I described in detail how it can be used for taking wine notes and then storing them in the “Wine Cloud.” See Evernote article. There are other wine specific Apps like Vivino and Delectable. Try those out if have a smartphone. They are quite nifty.