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Evaluating White Wine Terms

List of Evaluating White Wine Terms
When evaluating white wine we look at its appearance, aroma, and the taste of the wine. We will find the most revealing aspect of a wine in the aroma and flavors.

The table below has a list of evaluating white wine terms that are used for the various flavors of fruits, vegetables, herbs and spices that are found in white wines. There are more than 400 complex compounds found in wine and this table lists some of the most used terms to describe these compounds.

Evaluating Wine Terms to Categorize White Wine
Body - Compare light to medium to heavy (as if skim milk to whole milk to heavy cream)

Acidity - Pleasant = crisp; High Acidity = mild heartburn;
or Lacking acidity = "blah"

Floral - Honeysuckle, jasmine, peach blossom

Tree Fruit - Apple, pear, apricot, peach

Citrus Fruit - Lemon, lime, grapefruit, orange, tangerine

Tropical Fruit - Pineapple, kiwi, melon, star fruit, banana, coconut

Oak Flavors - Toast, smoke, spice, vanilla, butterscotch, caramel, nut

Other Flavors - Yeasty, mineral, herbs, white pepper, grass, cat urine

Finish - Length of time taste lingers (usually the longer the better)

Balance - All factors are well integrated

Primary aromas of a wine come mainly from the grape variety, but there is a secondary characteristic when evaluating white wine which comes from the type of fermentation process, and aging.

Some favorite and popular white wines are listed below with the terms used to evaluate them.
white wine with corks

Chardonnay

Body can be light to medium or heavy
Fruits can be any combination of citrus; apple; pear; melon; pineapple; fig; mixed tropical fruits.
If malolactic fermentation: aromas/flavors can be creamy; butter; buttered popcorn.
If aged in oak: aromas/flavors can be toast; vanilla; butterscotch; nuttiness; oaky.
If aged in stainless steel: Chardonnay will be crisp, fresh; tart.

Pinot Grigio

Body is light.
Fruits can be pear; apple; lemon.

Sauvignon Blanc

Body is light.
Fruits can be grapefruit; fig; lemon; melon.
If unoaked: Sauvignon Blanc aromas/flavors can be of grass; herbal; cat urine
If oaked: Sauvignon Blanc aromas/flavors can be of spice; vanilla; smoke; musk; nuttiness

Viognier

Body is light to medium.
Fruits can be peach; apricot; honeysuckle; orange blossom.
Aromas can be of spice; nuttiness; musk.

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Tasting Progression
Red Wine Evaluating Wine Terms

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Did You Know?

Sauvignon Blanc put New Zealand on the wine map in the 1980's with the release of this wine.

The Marlborough region of New Zealand produces a Sauvignon Blanc with herbal and tropical fruit flavors of litchi, pineapple, some minerals and notes of peach.

Saluté