Although it may seem intimidating at first, wine tasting, particularly blind tasting, is a highly effective exercise for acquiring or refining your knowledge of wine. It can also be done playfully to enjoy an even more convivial time! Using clues such as the color, smell, taste, and length on the palate, the aim is to guess as many details as possible about the wine being tasted. What color is it? Which region does it come from? What is its vintage?
The objectives of blind tasting
The principle of blind tasting is simple: it involves guessing the origin of a wine with little or no information. Some people even go so far as to conceal its visual appearance, namely the color and appearance of the wine.
This type of tasting is used by both professionals and enthusiasts. In the first case, it may be part of a competition or simply used to select wines. In the second, this practice is increasingly popular for choosing new wines to add to one's cellar, in a completely impartial way. It is therefore certainly not reserved for professionals: it is an excellent exercise for learning to differentiate wines, recognizing their winemaking methods, and finding out whether you genuinely like them without being influenced by the label...
It is also an excellent way to forget preconceived ideas about wine, taste it without bias, and sometimes enjoy pleasant surprises as a result.
The steps of a blind tasting
These are the same steps as during a classic tasting, which engage three of our senses: sight (if we do not choose to conceal the wine's color), smell, and then taste.
Step 1: Visual analysis
The most effective technique is to examine the glass in daylight, against a white background, tilting it at 45°. Then position yourself above it and observe the edge of the wine closest to the rim of the glass. Its color will provide an indication of the wine's age. Red wine will be more purple when young and tend toward orange when older. White wine will be white or green when young, and will also tend toward orange as it ages.
Color intensity also provides an indication of the grape varieties used, as well as the presence of tannins, alcohol, and acidity. As for grape varieties, a light-colored wine will generally come from a region with little sunshine and cool temperatures. Conversely, a darker color is often synonymous with a wine from the South. For white wines, they will also be darker when it is a sweet wine.
You can finally observe the wine's tears, that is, the droplets that form on the sides of the glass when it is swirled. If there are many, this is often a sign of a high alcohol content (as is the case with many wines from the South). Conversely, if there are few, it will be a wine from a region with less favorable weather.
Step 2: Olfactory analysis
At this stage, there is no need to try to identify very specific aromas at all costs. To begin with, you can simply try to identify the "family" of aromas. They are generally divided into 6 main categories:
- Fruit: red, exotic, pome, dried, stone...
- Flowers: rose, violet, jasmine, honeysuckle...
- Vegetal: wood, mushroom, fern, pine, oak, lemongrass, verbena...
- Spices and aromatics: honey, nutmeg, vanilla, bay leaf, thyme...
- Animal: leather, fur, musk, game...
- Empyreumatic: tobacco, coffee, flint, toast...
Another category should also be added, bringing together all "abnormal" smells: when a wine is corked, when the smell of sulfur is too noticeable...
Aromas from the first two categories generally indicate a young wine, or a slightly older one when the fruit aromas are more candied than fresh. Animal or vegetal aromas (particularly wood and undergrowth) are, on the other hand, a sign of a much older wine. Aromas also provide clues about the wine's aging conditions, grape variety, and even the region it comes from (the more mature they are, the warmer the climate).
Step 3: Taste analysis
When tasting the wine, you will need to assess the balance between sweetness and acidity, as well as the level of tannins in reds.
For whites, a wine is generally considered:
- Sweet, if there is a good balance between sweetness and acidity.
- Lively, if acidity clearly dominates over sweetness.
- Rich or round, if richness slightly dominates over acidity and the wine has good length on the palate (the time during which the aromas remain in the mouth).
- Full-bodied, if richness clearly dominates over acidity. This type of wine ages very well in the cellar.
For reds, they can be characterized in four ways:
- Tannic, when the level of tannins dominates everything else. If tannins are not dominant, wines can be classified in three other ways:
If richness dominates over acidity:
⦁ Rich, when the wine's richness envelops the tannin/acidity axis.
If acidity dominates over richness:
⦁ Light, when the tannins are weak, the acidity is clearly present and there are fruity aromas. These wines are dominated by freshness and have a pale color.
⦁ Fine, when the tannins are present but not aggressive, the acidity can be felt and the nose is more complex.
Our tips for a successful blind tasting
Would you now like to organize your own blind tasting? Follow our advice to impress your guests, whether they are professionals or people close to you.
1) Conceal the identity of the bottles
If you want the tasting to be completely blind - in the original sense of the term - you will need to choose black, opaque glasses to conceal the color of the wine. Another option is to cover the bottle with a sock or an aluminum cover. It is also possible to decant the wine. A wine's color already provides a great deal of information: its grape variety, vintage, appellation...
In this case, be sure to remember the order in which you will taste your wines so that you do not confuse them. Also remember to wash or change the glasses between each tasting so that the flavors of the wines do not mix.
2) Select suitable wines
Two options are available to you. You can either opt for an open tasting where all types of wine are allowed, which is preferable when the guests are experienced tasters. Otherwise, it is better to focus on a particular theme.
For example, you could organize a tasting around a region (Provence, Burgundy...), or around single-varietal wines. It is also possible to organize a match between two appellations. In any case, don't hesitate to provide a brief explanatory guide for beginners, with information about the aromas, hues, and other characteristics specific to each grape variety.
You will then be surprised to see how easy it is for your guests to confuse a light red wine with a rosé or a white wine.
3) Provide tasting sheets
To make the tasting more convivial and leave room afterward for comments and discussion, we recommend using tasting sheets. They can be simple, with comments on: color, smell, taste, length on the palate, an overall rating, and any comments.
4) Organize a game
For an even greater challenge, it may be worthwhile to organize a game in which points are awarded based on whether or not the wines are identified. Depending on how difficult the information to be guessed is, candidates will receive more or fewer points (or points can also be awarded based on their level of wine knowledge). This game can be played in teams, for example if it takes place during a dinner with several tables. You can also provide a prize for the winner.
5) Choose the right time and the right accompaniments
Finally, if the tasting is to take place as part of a meal, we recommend scheduling it preferably before dinner. This is a good way to get the evening started and prepare guests for the meal. Don't forget to provide something to accompany the tasting: bread, or cheese (mild, so as not to affect the wine's taste).
Finally, it may be a good idea to have a bucket available so you can empty your glass if needed.
Now that you know everything about blind tastings, all that remains is to get started! And if you would like to ease into it, you can choose our wine Advent calendar, which offers an original treasure hunt for blind tasting.
