How to read tasting notes (dry white wines)

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Tasting notes are useful tools to give you a hint of what you should expect before you try a wine. Let’s look at some examples of wine tasting notes and how to read them.

Image credit: Patrick Grabham
Image credit: Patrick Grabham

Dry white wine from Meursault, Burgundy

•limpid - literally transparent, like clear water, while retaining its colour

•rich - showing ripeness and viscosity, usually from the legs or "tears" that form on the sides of the glass than from depth of colour

•new wood - the vanilla-vanillin aroma of new oak, whether French or American

•melony -signifies ripe, slightly exotic fruit, usually referring to Chardonnay. More exotic fruits could be pineapple, guava

•expressive - expressive of either its grape variety, terroir or both. Stylish + expressive would be a finely turned out wine with character

•floral - usually on the nose, but on the palate means the blend of florality and flavour

•honeysuckle/hazelnut - typical expressions of a the Chardonnay grown in Meursault, rounded and attractive

•buttery - the impression of ripeness with a certain fleshiness, often the result of barrel fermentation or barrel ageing

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