Have you ever wondered why connoisseurs and wine lovers are looking for high quality? And above all, how does it recognize itself? What are the determining factors in this case? In a fine wine collection it is really important to take into consideration different aspects that together determine the goodness of a wine and its quality.
A real journey that leads to the creation of a good fine wine collection that passes through an in-depth knowledge of the product, important choices, decisions, tastes and taste. Fundamental in this case is the personal taste, essential for those who want to create a fine wine collection to keep for themselves.
A number of elements are at stake in this perspective from which to check that these are really fine and quality wines. The bottle considered from time to time will pass through a series of tests to which the expert will submit from time to time. First of all, to choose the ones that will go into our collection of fine wines, we focus on DOP and DOC recognition brands. Secondly we must go back to all the possible defects of the wine in question, which can be of different types: from the olfactory to the actual visuals and tastings. A fine wine will never appear cloudy, for example, and will not have color changes that can be symptomatic of excessive oxidation.
Among the important aspects to consider the color that the nectar of the gods leaves on the glass. In the moment in which the container remains stained we are certainly in front of the presence of certain sediments, probably we will talk about polymerization of tannins. An effect that immediately determines its cause: incorrect conservation that has led to obvious changes in temperature. So, for your fine wine collection our advice is to always pay a lot of attention to the product and not to dwell exclusively on what you are told by those who are selling it to you.
Yet, we wonder: isn’t it enough to say a wine is good if I like it? We don’t think so, even if there are so many kind of wine that you will surely find your best one. Yet, if it’s pleasing to you is a matter of personal preference, but determining if the wine is a good one takes looking at various elements to determine its objective quality. When it turns out to be a good wine and you like it, that’s a real satisfaction.
There are few aspects of a wine to consider when deciding if the wine is of good quality or not, starting from the smell. Sticking your nose in the glass you should smell a “wine” flavor, the taste of it. If so, it’s passed the first test. However, if it smells like something you really don’t understand, or “di tappo” as said in Italy (when the cork is “tainted”) it is not a good wine at all, pour it down the sink and open another bottle.
The second aspect is the balance among the components: acidity, tannin, alcohol, or fruit should not stand out alone as the main event.
You may have heard wine experts talking about a “balanced wine” and thought that is something they say to let people think they are important. Yet, balance does really exist! Is an important aspect of a wine. If you had a bottle that was out of balance, you probably wouldn’t like it even if you didn’t know what balance it. When a wine is in balance, none of the components of acidity, tannin, alcohol, or fruit stand out as the main event. If you notice a nice freshness to the wine, the tannins are supple and proportioned, the fruit is plentiful and you don’t perceive the alcohol, you have a good wine on your hand.
The third is the depth of flavor in the wine. Just think about what you’re tasting as you hold the wine in your mouth. The wine will almost certainly taste of fruit or have one main flavor, yet, are you able to detect other layers of flavor beyond the main one? This would suggest a multi-faceted wine with several layers of flavor. Wines with depth of flavor are the best, if you are sipping one with a meal, you will notice how the wine changes because it develops in your glass and more and more aromas and flavors grow depending on what you are eating.
Lastly, and maybe most easily, another way to determine if your wine is good is to consider its finish, called also lengths. Just see how long the flavor lasts on your palate after swallowing it, the longer it lingers, the better the wine is.
On the contrary, if the flavor drops right off and goes away in a split second, it’s probably not such high quality. Yet, if you can still taste appealing characteristics 2, 3, or 4 some seconds after, it could be a good one anyway. When you can still taste the wine after 10 or more seconds, you should pay attention because it must be a very good one.
Therefore, next time you want to know if a wine is good, open the bottle and consider smell, balance, depth of flavor, and finish and you’ll know immediately if it’s a good wine or not. Tasting is the better school you could attend, invest money and time in good (or presumed good) wines and you will soon understand the difference between a very fine wine and a wine not-so-fine for you.
