Wine Examiner
Wine: the elements of flavor
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How many senses are in use here? |
Wine tasting can be an occasional pleasant diversion or a time-and-resource-consuming passion. It can be conducted casually or formally. No matter what level of orientation or dedication is involved, some basic background knowledge and a logical approach can greatly increase individual enjoyment. Most American wine drinkers cheat themselves by not knowing how to taste; many talk the talk but fail to walk the walk, so a lot of ordinary-tasting wines gets sold at extraordinary prices.
Wine tasting is actually a complex proposition involving much more than simply sipping some fermented grape juice. There are many variable factors that affect an individual's perception of flavor in wine. There are chemical, physical, mechanical, physiological, and psychological variables.
The type and quality of the wine itself is only one aspect of tasting. Others are the size and shape of the wine glass... the individual's impartial physiological ability to smell and taste, as well as his individual flavor preferences... the temperature of not only the beverage itself, but also the ambient temperature and humidity of the tasting site... mental condition, how hungry, tired, and attentive the taster is can also affect relative judgment, as well as any preconceived notions and other psychological factors.
The FOUR ELEMENTS of FLAVOR
To understand these variables, let's first look at the phenomenon of taste from a physiological standpoint. Flavor, although it may have slightly differing meanings, depending upon who is using the term, always refers to food. A food chemist may use "flavor" only to refer to aroma, while a chef is likely to include taste, texture, temperature, appearance, and arrangement in his context. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) defines flavor as:
Complex combination of the olfactory, gustatory and trigeminal sensations perceived during tasting. The flavour may be influenced by tactile, thermal, painful and/or kinaesthesic effects.
While the senses of smell and taste are truly most important, flavor is not an experience limited to these, but a combination of experiences from the senses of smell, taste, touch, and, less obviously, sight.