I’ll try to put my snobby suit on to talk about the science of tasting wine. It doesn’t fit very well.
Professional wine tasters work through four stages. The results of the investigation of these stages are combined to establish further properties in the wine. Things like “complexity,” “potential,” and “possible faults.” We won’t go that far.
I will give you a “very expert” discussion on the first four stages.
Stage One: Appearance
A professional taster will describe the color (not red, but ruby or garnet), the brightness of the color (how it reflects or refracts light), the clarity (is it cloudy, is there sedimentation or oxidation).
There are many ways all of these things can be described. I’m not going to do that.
Stage Two: Aroma
The aromas of wine have greater diversity than the flavors. While the tongue may distinguish something sour or sweet, vintners add a wide array of fruit, floral, herbal and other flavors that will be better sensed by the olfactory. Perusing the aroma before the flavor widens the senses.
Stage Three: In Mouth Sensations
Taste is made up of four flavors. (Some cultures identify five.) Sweet, acidic, salty and bitter. (And savory.) Some flavors linger longer than others. When tasting wine, you are supposed to recognize the taste that has “the greatest persistence.” I could explain more about these individual tastes, but you could go to a professional website to get that information first hand. (!)
Stage Four: Finish Or Aftertaste
The finish can be bitter, persistent, short, sweet, smooth, or non-existent. This will combine with the aromas that are still present after swallowing. According to experts, high quality wines have “long finishes” accompanied by “pleasant aromas.”
In Closing
Use what I’ve given you or forget about it. Go to a winery that will allow several tastes at a time. Ask the staff to direct you to types you might like, depending on your propensity for dry or sweet wines.
Note on me: A very good friend once told a server that I like it so dry, he should just get something that tastes like it has been soaked in shoe leather. (Leather is actually one of the flavors you can smell and then taste.)
If you think you might not remember what you like, make a note of the name of the winery and the reds and whites you liked. A Chardonnay or a Cabernet at one winery will not be the same at another.
That’s the fun way.