Nov 03 2009
Name That Smell
“Oh my Buffy, the bouquet of this Pinot is mahvalous.”
“Yes Winston, I agree. Fantastic notes of vanilla and raspberries.”
“I agree my dear, and is that a hint of tobacco?”
“AH, you are so right my love.”
Ahem… sound familiar?
If you’ve ventured out to a tasting room by now, than I’m sure you’ve had the pleasure of overhearing a similar conversation, and let me guess… you wondered what the heck those people were smelling. Perhaps you even plunged your nose into your own glass and took a long deep drag just to come up and say, “I smell wine”. Or, perhaps you did detect a familiar aroma, but just couldn’t place your finger on it. Don’t fret.
Recently some friends of mine received a gift of a “wine essence kit” from Wine Enthusiasts. I ogle this kit myself every time I get my newest Wine Enthusiasts catalog. So I was really excited when they invited my husband and I to join them in a, well I guess you could call it a “smelling party”. Together we sat around and sniffed the tiny bottles of over 30 different essences. Then took guesses at what it was. Trust me my friend… you are not the only one that simply “smells wine”. However, I have to say that this exercise went a long way in the start of helping us all identify those smells that waft up from a good glass of wine, and I look forward to trying it all again.
I would definitely recommend the purchase of this kit. You can find it at Wine Enthusiast’s website of course, and I’ve also discovered that it is available at Amazon.com. The kit is quite pricey, from an amateur wino’s perspective that is. So if it’s more than you want to spend, see if some of your amateur wino friends want to go in on it with you. The kit really isn’t designed to be a “party game”, but as we discovered, it is a lot of fun to experience with friends, and really does help to develop that nose for wine.
Want more learning fun? Here’s what I suggest…. Pick a wine to try, it can be one you’ve had often, or something new to experience. Then read the label. You know by now that most wine’s have a description on the label of it’s qualities, such as cherry, vanilla or currant. Choose two or three, or even all, of those qualities and purchase those items from the store. As you enjoy your wine take time to smell those items and then smell the wine. Taste. Then taste the items, and taste the wine again. By comparing the flavors and smells side by side, you’ll begin to identify the different qualities in your wine and in the long run develop your palate… and your nose.
That way on your next wine tasting visit you can confidently turn and say:
“Oh my dear Buffy… I don’t think that is tobacco…. I believe that’s black pepper you smell… Mahrvelous isn’t it.”
Until next time…… Happy Tasting~
