I am consistently intrigued by the various descriptions, instructions, and functions of wine tasting. The Wall Street Journal published this video recently, showing how it’s done at Wine Enthusiast.
While all of the technicality has it’s place, I have deep appreciation for the approach of Susan Kostrzewa, Senior Editor. As she clearly states, most wine drinkers do not get so technical. So she makes an effort to think beyond mere technical specs, to consider how this wine fits into real life scenarios. And that is what leads, in my opinion, to the most helpful notes.
Of course wine tasting (even the technical part) is largely subjective, and tasting notes are even more so. But if we, as tasters, can think of ways in which this wine might play out in everyday life, then perhaps we can make more tailored recommendations to buyers. That does not mean I ask for line after line of poetic notes, but rather for simple, straightforward suggestions for well suited contexts for a consumer’s maximized enjoyment of said wine.
How do you taste wine?
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
cool post. thanks.
Thanks for this, Amy! We’ve had this debate amongst the members of the AmericanWinery.com tasting panel – because we want our reviews to be helpful to consumers. Even though primary flavor characteristics are helpful, everybody’s palate is different… one person’s “vegetal and earthy” is another person’s “garbage and poop.” That’s when real life scenarios can be very helpful – for both wine reviews, and consumer reviews of other kinds of products.