Intro to Blind Tasting!

Welcome to our next video in the mini blind tasting series.

In this video, we’re working through red wines.

We’ll follow the same structure we used for white wines: sight, nose, and palate.

But we’ll dig deeper into red-specific clues that help us narrow down the variety.

Have your blind tasting guide ready.

Also have your Merlot variety guide ready, since we’ll use Merlot as our reference example.

Let’s start with sight.

Just like with whites, we divide sight into two categories: color and concentration.

With red wines, concentration becomes much more helpful.

Color refers to the hue of the wine.

On your blind tasting sheet, that includes purple, ruby, and garnet.

Color is mostly influenced by the DNA of the grape.

It relates to how much pigment is in the skins.

Thinner-skinned varieties tend to show more ruby tones.

Think Pinot Noir, Gamay, and often youthful Merlot.

Thicker-skinned varieties tend to show more purple tones.

Think Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah.

pH also plays a role.

Higher-acid varieties with lower pH often look brighter ruby.

Lower-acid wines with higher pH can lean more purple.

Age also affects color.

Over time, all red wines shift toward garnet.

Thinner-skinned varieties like Pinot Noir and Gamay lose color faster and show garnet earlier.

Thicker-skinned wines hold their color longer.

That’s a useful aging clue.

Now let’s talk about concentration.

Concentration, or intensity, refers to how see-through the wine is.

Deeply concentrated wines are opaque.

Medium concentration wines let you barely make out shapes through the glass.

Pale concentration wines are very transparent.

Concentration is influenced more by climate and winemaking than by grape DNA.

Warmer climates often increase skin thickness and pigment extraction.

That can deepen concentration.

That’s why Pinot Noir from a warm climate may appear deeper than one from a cool climate.

Skin contact during fermentation also matters.

Longer maceration extracts more color and tannin.

Shorter maceration extracts less.

Fermentation temperature matters too.

Warmer ferments often extract more color.

Fining and filtering at the end can also affect clarity and perceived density.

Now let’s apply this to our glass of Merlot.

This wine is ruby in color.

That aligns with Merlot’s medium skin thickness.

The concentration is medium.

I can see through it somewhat, but it’s not pale.

That fits Merlot well.

In warmer climates, Merlot can lean more purple and more concentrated.

But this example sits comfortably in the medium range.

Now let’s move to aromatic intensity.

This refers to how expressive the aromas are and how quickly they reach your nose.

If you can smell the wine from far away, it’s pronounced.

If you need to dig your nose in to get anything, it’s low.

Most red wines fall in the medium to medium-plus range.

Red wines are usually less perfumed than highly aromatic white wines.

Florality in reds often points to terpene expression.

Red flowers like rose or violet can be clues.

Pinot Noir and Nebbiolo often show floral notes more clearly.

Alcohol also increases aromatic volatility.

Higher alcohol can make aromas feel more pronounced.

Certain winemaking techniques can also increase aromatic intensity.

Carbonic maceration is one.

Whole cluster fermentation is another.

Both can create additional aromatic compounds.

For this Merlot, I’d call the aromatic intensity medium.

The aromas are present, but they’re not jumping out of the glass.

I’m mostly getting fruit and oak.

Now let’s talk fruit.

Just like with white wines, fruit is the easiest place to start.

In red wines, we think in camps: red fruit, black fruit, and sometimes blue fruit.

Red fruit includes raspberry, cranberry, cherry, and pomegranate.

These are often associated with thinner-skinned varieties and cooler climates.

Think Pinot Noir, Gamay, and Grenache.

Black fruit includes blackberry, black cherry, plum, and black raspberry.

These are often linked to thicker-skinned varieties and warmer climates.

Think Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah.

Blue fruit sits in between.

Think blueberry and boysenberry.

You often find this in Merlot, Syrah, Malbec, and sometimes Zinfandel.

In our California Merlot, I’m getting ripe red cherry and red plum.

I’m also getting black cherry and black plum.

There’s a mix of ripe red and black fruit, which is very typical of Merlot.

I’m also picking up some blueberry.

So fruit is dominant and layered in this wine.

Now let’s look at non-fruit aromas.

These include floral, herbal, vegetal, spice, and mineral.

Floral notes in reds often come from terpenes.

I like to group them into red flowers and purple flowers.

Red floral notes, like rose, often show up in thinner-skinned, higher-acid wines.

Purple floral notes, like violet, often show up in thicker-skinned varieties and sometimes with age.

Spice can be grape-derived or oak-derived.

Clove-like spice can come from certain grape compounds.

Black pepper is a classic marker for Syrah.

If I smell black pepper, Syrah is always in my mental list.

Eucalyptus or menthol can show up in Syrah, Grenache, or Cabernet Sauvignon.

Herbal notes can show up as fresh herbs or dried herbs.

Dried herbs often point to warmer climates or some age influence.

Vegetal notes are tied to pyrazines.

These are classic in Bordeaux varieties like Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Carmenère.

If I smell bell pepper or jalapeño, I’m thinking pyrazines.

Minerality in red wine is often associated with a lack of oak or a smoky freshness.

Descriptors like granite or graphite can show up in certain regions and varieties.

In this Napa Merlot, fruit and oak dominate.

I do get a slight violet note.

There’s a small herbal edge.

There might be a faint hint of pyrazine, but it’s subtle.

Overall, fruit and oak are the main story.

Now let’s talk secondary aromas from winemaking.

In red wines, oak is the biggest factor.

Most red wines see some oak aging.

Red wines can handle more heavily toasted oak than whites.

That’s why you often get chocolate, mocha, or coffee notes in red wines.

French oak usually gives subtle vanilla and spice.

American oak often gives more intense notes like coconut, dill, caramel, and butterscotch.

If I smell coconut or dill, I consider American oak.

Certain regions and varieties are known for using American oak.

That can be a useful clue.

New oak is powerful and usually used on more robust varieties.

Neutral oak gives less obvious flavor impact.

Carbonic maceration is another red-specific winemaking clue.

It often produces candied fruit notes like cherry candy, banana, or bubble gum.

You’ll most often see this in Gamay from Beaujolais.

In our Merlot, I’m clearly getting oak.

There’s vanilla, chocolate, and spice.

I also get coconut and a touch of dill.

That suggests some American oak, which fits California Merlot.

Now let’s consider tertiary notes.

These come from aging.

Red wines show tertiary character more often than whites.

Common tertiary notes include forest floor, dried leaves, mushroom, leather, and dried fruit.

Leather and tobacco often point to age.

Cedar and smoke can reflect oak aging or oxidation over time.

Some wines also show barnyard or meaty notes linked to brettanomyces.

That can be a fault in high levels, but subtle amounts can show up in certain regions.

Certain varieties are legally required to age.

Barolo, Barbaresco, Brunello, and some Rioja wines have aging requirements.

Those wines often show tertiary character on release.

This Merlot smells youthful.

I’m not getting much tertiary character.

Now let’s move to the palate.

First, compare nose and palate.

Are the flavors consistent?

Then focus on structure.

For red wines, structure includes sweetness, acidity, alcohol, body, and tannin.

Most red wines are dry.

Residual sugar is uncommon in quality red wines.

Lower-end, high-volume wines may have noticeable sweetness.

But in general, assume dry unless proven otherwise.

Next is acidity.

Higher-acid reds often include thinner-skinned varieties from cooler climates.

Think Pinot Noir, Gamay, Sangiovese, and Nebbiolo.

Lower-acid reds often include thicker-skinned varieties from warmer climates.

Think Merlot, Grenache, Syrah, and Zinfandel.

Alcohol in reds works similarly to whites.

Warmer climates and riper fruit mean higher alcohol.

Cooler climates and earlier harvests mean lower alcohol.

In red wines, “low alcohol” usually still means medium.

Very low alcohol reds are rare and often unripe.

Body is closely linked to alcohol, ripeness, oak, and tannin.

Full-bodied reds often include Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and some Malbec.

Lighter-bodied reds often include Pinot Noir and Gamay.

Now tannin.

Tannin is found in skins, seeds, and stems.

When you taste wine, tannin binds to saliva proteins and dries out your mouth.

The more tannin, the drier and more grippy your tongue feels.

High tannin can feel like sandpaper.

Nebbiolo and Cabernet Sauvignon are classic high-tannin varieties.

Maceration time increases tannin extraction.

Whole cluster fermentation can also add stem-derived tannin.

Some tannins feel firm and aggressive.

Others feel velvety and smooth.

Merlot often has softer, rounder tannins.

In this Merlot, the wine is dry.

Acidity is around medium-plus.

Body is medium-plus.

Alcohol is slightly elevated, which fits Napa.

Tannin is medium to medium-minus and very smooth.

That smooth tannin is a key Merlot clue.

Now let’s do a bonus blind example.

This wine is pale garnet in color.

It’s pale in concentration.

That immediately points me toward thinner-skinned varieties.

Garnet suggests some age.

So I’m thinking Pinot Noir, Gamay, Grenache, or Nebbiolo.

On the nose, aromatic intensity is medium-plus.

I’m getting lots of red fruit.

Mostly cranberry and raspberry, slightly dried.

Fruit isn’t overly ripe.

I’m also getting strong floral and herbal notes.

Rose stands out.

There’s dried herb character, suggesting some age.

There’s a bit of neutral oak, maybe French.

I also get tertiary notes like dried leaves, tobacco, and leather.

On the palate, it’s dry.

Flavors match the nose.

Tannin is high and grippy.

Acidity is high and mouthwatering.

Alcohol is noticeable but not overwhelming.

Body is medium to medium-plus.

Now for elimination.

High tannin eliminates Gamay.

The floral and rose notes push me toward Nebbiolo.

The combination of high tannin, high acid, pale garnet color, and strong rose character fits Nebbiolo best.

Specifically, this is from Barolo.

The key standout for me was tannin.

That’s the structural marker that confirmed it.

Blind tasting isn’t instant.

It’s built through repetition and pattern recognition.

The more you taste and create personal profiles, the faster you narrow possibilities.

Next, we’ll continue practicing this process together so you can build confidence with repetition.