Wine Tasting Terms Pt. 1

Welcome to Vine to Wine this is your host Linda Moran. Over the past couple of weeks we focused on some of the terms used in reference to grape growing and wine making. Since harvest is about to begin and many of you enjoy visiting wine country during that time, I thought we’d refresh our memory for wine tasting terms and descriptions.

Every field of study seems to have its’ own vocabulary, and the wine industry is no different. When it comes to tasting wine the terms fly and very rarely does anyone stop to define them for us. One such term is “Body” as in light medium or full body wines. The term body is not really referencing the flavor of your wine – it is actually describing the viscosity of the wine. When describing a wine as having full body, you should be describing the thickness of the wine, not the intensity of the flavor. The analogy I use to help people understand this is to ask them to think of milk and the differences in texture or thickness and viscosity of milk. Nonfat milk is rather light and thin, whole milk is thicker, and cream or half and half is thicker or more viscose than whole milk. That is what the term “body” is referencing when describing a wine. "Legs" is a term that although I do not use it myself is often referencing the thickness of the wine as it streams down the inside of the glass after it is swirled. It is not an indication of quality but may be a clue to the body of the wine. Join me tomorrow as we continue to review the terms used in wine tasting, and thanks for joining me on today’s Vine to Wine.