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First test
When the wine has just been poured, a few quick sniffs give the first
« coup de nez ».
Ten to fifteen seconds later, after five delicate rotations of the
wine in the glass to bring the wine into contact with the air, one
takes another sniff : this is the second « coup de nez ».
If one sees no difference between the two, there is no need to decant.
Otherwise decanting is essential.
The third « coup de nez », after giving the wine a good
swirl in the glass will bring previously detected defects to the fore.
A reference library in each nose
The sensations after the olfactory examination of a wine are bound
to be subjective, as they depend on those that are deeply embedded
in the taster’s memory. This is why amateurs are advised to
« awaken », then enrich their olfactory reference library.
When quantified, scents can be split into three main categories and
eight types :
Primary scents that remind one of the grapes are characteristic of
varietals. They are classified in three types : fruity (dried or fresh
fruit), floral (rose, tilleul, daisies…) and vegetal (grass,
moss, fern etc.).
Secondary scents are due to modifications of the scent of the grape
during alcoholic fermentation that bring out original fruity smells
(banana, apple…), and sometimes a yeasty odour.
The tertiary odours that come with ageing, make the wine’s bouquet.
The palette is broad and can be divided into a range of categories
: fruity, floral, spicy, woody (dry or wet wood, hardwood), balsamic
(resin, wax, incense), emphyrheumatic (tobacco, coffee, caramel, charcoal),
mineral and animal (leather, fur, musk…). |
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Who are we?
Domaine de la Vougeraie
