Sight
Your sense of sight will reveal a lot about a particular wine before smelling and tasting it. Savvy tasters can pick up certain characteristics simply by appearance.
The Role of Sight in Wine Tasting
Immediately after pouring, check to see how clear the core of the wine is. While haziness may simply indicate a full bodied, unfiltered red wine, in any other style it is usually a cause for concern. Wines will often taste the way that they look. For example, an unrefined core may indicate a clumsy, unfocused wine.
Viewing the color of the edge of a wine in a glass will give you an indication of its maturity. Mature, aged worthy reds will have a deep crimson, or even brownish look. Too much brown means the wine is oxidized and past its prime. The rim of a white wine will generally be light yellow in youth, and progress to an amber color with age.
After your initial visual impression, swirl the wine in your glass. While this may be tricky at first, you will pick it up quickly. Swirling the wine reveals its “legs.” The more a wine sticks to the side of the glass, the higher its alcohol content. Very viscous wines are also mouth filling and full bodied.
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