Wine Parlance You Need to Know Part I

The first time you hear people talk about wine intelligently, it might feel as if they are talking about how to perform surgery, at least based on what you can understand of the conversation.All that talk of aroma, tannins, nose, and similar terms can have your head spinning.  But what does it all mean?  If you are just starting out in wine drinking/tasting or are just plain curious, here a few words you should know pertaining to wine.

1. Tannin.  This is a compound that is responsible for the astringent and bitter tastes found in wine.  Red wines contain a lot more tannin than their white counterparts which, in fact, have little of it.  Tannin is found primarily in the skin and seeds of a grape.
2. Astringent.  Some wines make a person pucker their lips.  These are described as astringent wines and is usually caused by the tannins found in the wine.
3. Nose.  The smell of the wine.  Note that this is different from aroma and bouquet, which will be discussed in a later entry.
4. Finish.  This refers to the taste of the wine after it is swallowed.

These are but a few terms you need to know if you want to get into the habit of drinking wine.  Be sure to keep your eyes peeled to this blog for more on wine parlance.