4 Ways to Build Your Tasting Vocabulary

David Ferrie

First things first, start reading. The backs of wine labels are a good place to begin.  Also wine blogs (like ours!) and publications like “Food and Wine” and “Wine Spectator”. Do this, not to memorize what certain wines taste like, but to become comfortable with the words used to describe the flavors and aromas of wines. The more you do this, the more you will begin to realize that certain flavor profiles attribute to certain wine varietals and regions.

Secondly, go to wine tastings. Here, the person who has selected the wines will suggest the flavors in the wine. You will find that, as the suggestion is made, the realization of that flavor will hit your consciousness. I like to sample my customers experiences at the tastings I conduct. It’s fun and surprising!

Afterwards, share the experience. Whenever you sit down and share a bottle with your spouse or friend or aquaintance, discuss the flavors you are experiencing. It will be difficult, at first, but stay at it.

Lastly, ask for help in the wine shop. That wine consultant is there to inform, teach and share the experience of wine – in words, of course.  Most are very approachable and eager to help. 

The more articulate you become, the more likely you will be able to select a wine you will love!

Dave's Tasting Tips

David Ferrie

A customer came into the wine shop the other day. As I always do, I went over to her and asked if I could help her pick out a good wine. She said, “No, I’m just looking.” About 10 minutes later, she came to the register with a bottle of Pinot Grigio. I jokingly said to her, “So, you lied to me. You weren’t just looking.” After a bit of banter, the customer revealed, sheepishly, that she didn’t have much experience with wine and was embarrassed to ask for help because she didn’t even know where to begin. With that we went back to the racks. After asking a series of questions, we selected an opulent Pinot Blanc that the customer later reported she loved.

 What this customer lacked was not the ability to taste good wines. She had, as it turns out, a very sensitive palate. What she lacked was the ability to describe in words the flavors and textures her taste buds were experiencing. Lots of people have the same difficulty. I think that if people could describe the types of flavors they like and dislike, a good wine consultant would be able to match them with a wine they will enjoy. It’s worth it to spend a little time developing your taste/word vocabulary. If you doubt me, think of all the wines that disappointed you that you may have selected based on how nice the label looked.

Dave's Tasting Tips

David Ferrie

Don’t assume you like one varietal and don’t like another varietal. When people come into my shop saying something like “I only drink Pinot Noirs,” I will always challenge them.

First of all, if they’re drinking Pinot Noir because it is a medium body wine and not very tannic (that’s the sticky residue left in your mouth after sipping some “dry” wines) I’ll try them out on a Grenache or a Tempranillo because it’s a shame to limit one’s self to such a narrow experience when the fun of wine tasting is the HUGE variety.

Second, there is an enormous selection of flavor profiles within each varietal so that a Cabernet Sauvignon could have that same soft, medium body that those people were looking for in the Pinot Noir.

Third, it could just be they have not yet had a really good wine in another varietal. When starting out in wine drinking, we tend to start out buying cheap. That’s understandable because you don’t want to plunk down a ton of money on something you’re not going to like. Unfortunately, it’s difficult (not impossible) to find really good cheap wines. They are out there. They’re just few and far between.

I’ve told people for years to find a wine guy and a wine shop they can trust and stay there. These are the guys who have tasted the wines you want to buy. Next time, tell your wine guy the flavors you like and see what’s suggested.

Dave's Tasting Tips

David Ferrie

My first rule is…throw out all the rules! Drinking wine is suppose to be fun; not pressure and intimidation, Drink what you like!  If you like Chardonnay, drink Chardonnay. Most of the time, I drink as big a red as I can get my hands on – even if I’m eating fish. If you feel as though you want to expand your sphere of the wines you like to drink, you need to do much more tasting. Always ask if the wine guy at your shop has anything open and then ask to taste it – even if you think you won’t like it. Any wine has the potential to surprise you.Go ahead and ask to try one or two wines at the restaurant before you order. It really is the only way you’ll know for sure if you like a wine. I’m not embarrased to ask friends at my table if I can taste their wines. In fact, on occasion, you’ll see evrybody at my table passing their wine glasses around. (Incidentally, we all have great immune systems.) Finally, go to wine tastings. It’s a great way to taste professionally selected wines and get an idea of what it is your taste buds are sensing. Now some wine bars offer tastes you can buy, so if the wine bar has 30 or so wines that they pour, you could buy 30 tastes. Just be sure someone is driving you home that night.