In this video, John Jackson, DipWSET a/k/a Attorney Somm explains how to determine the quality of a wine. While there is some correlation between price and quality and the wine labels may provide some insights, Attorney Somm explains how to determine the quality of a wine while you are tasting a wine and the factors that go into that determination!
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The next question is how I tell the quality of a wine other than price and taste and I’ll start out by saying that price is not always a reliable indicator of quality for example Kus cabernet from Napa now sells for around $100 a bottle but I think that there’s many wines from
Nava that sell for half the price yet offer better quality so there’s often times a correlation between some basic quality level in the price but it’s certainly not proportional some times the label will give you some indication about the quality of a wine this is especially true in Europe in Italy for
Example kianti Classico Reserva is subject to more strict production requirements than kianti Classico and so oftentimes Kean Classico Reserva will have a higher quality level than Kean Classico that’s not always the case however but it would give you something to go on if you’re going to take a flyer
On a wine in general the Kean Classico Reserva has a better chance of being a quality wine than a Kean Classico but for me personally the primary way that I evaluate wines is by tasting and it’s not just tasting the wine and saying thumbs up or thumbs down this is either
Good or bad there’s a lot more that goes into it than that in many instances I’m even tasting these wines blind and so I won’t know what’s on the label nor will I know the price point when I’m evaluating a particular wine but there’s really four considerations that I take
Into account when I’m trying to assess the quality of a particular wine first is the flavor and aromatic intensity A Thin wine will rarely be a high quality wine while flavor and aromatic intensity is necessary to have a quality wine it’s by no means sufficient I’m also looking for balance
You could have for example a situation where a wine had intense flavors but was flabby because it didn’t have enough acidity so what I’m looking for is a wine that has balance between the FL flavor intensity the acidity levels and also the structure or the tannins that are associated with that wine everything
Should be in Balance the next factor that I’ll consider when determining the quality of a particular wine is if there’s evidence of complexity there’s a whole host of considerations that can go into this factor and I don’t want to get too bogged down but one thing that
Everyone can consider is whether or not the wine that you’re experiencing is a simple wine or whether it’s more complex and one way to do that is by the descriptor profile if for example you’re getting nothing but fruit and the fruit is just generally red fruit or black
Fruit and you’re not really able to determine particular types of fruit rather it’s just kind of like muddled red fruit then it’s probably a simple or a basic wine in contrast if you’re getting lots of discreet red fruit such as cherries raspberries strawberri rhubarb and others and especially if
You’re also getting things like floral notes Wet Stone or other types of categories of descriptors then you can probably bet that that’s going to be a more complex wine one of the very most important considerations that I take into account when evaluating the quality of the wine is the length of the finish
So when I’m tasting a wine I’m always considering how long the Finish will last when I’m doing that I’m considering only the positive characteristics ICS of the wine and not the negative characteristics and so if you get kind of like a nasty robotussin bitter aftertaste on the wine you don’t want to
Count that is that certainly does not mean that the wine is good quality even though it has a long lasting finish if the Finish will last for around 15 seconds then I know it’s probably an acceptable wine of good quality if it’s less than that then that’s probably a
More basic or entry-level wine and to the extent it lasts longer than that perhaps as long as 45 seconds to a minute then it’s potentially a world classwide
15 Comments
Wow…small and simple video but very important key features on evaluating wine…My New Year’s resolution is to evaluate all wines I drink and create a book …
to me, best indication of quality, is how memorable wine is. it can be made perfectly, it could have a 9 minute finish and it can be as forgettable as that $5 cab from the mini market.
Good tips, even though I still don't get your 'wet stones' description. Fine wine needs time, effort and some like minded people to get the most out of the experience, imho. I agree with your four criteria, although I tend to separate colour, nose and palate when I have wine tastings at home with friends.
Wow, that was well explained. and spot on..
I’m so glad you chose to discuss this specific topic and post this video. Short but very interesting and informative. Those are exactly the same qualities that I look for when tasting, evaluating, and appreciating wine. I have definitely learned a lot from you! Thank you for expounding on this particular subject and, in the process, reflecting your expertise and experience in wine-quality evaluation. It’s amazing how much I can learn from just a little over four minutes of content. It’s something I don’t get from other content creators hence it’s quite understandable that your wine channel is the only one I subscribe to here on YouTube. I may have other comments and thoughts but I’d like to watch your video again before writing them. Santé, John!
Thank you so much for the pin, John! Greatly appreciated!
Having worked in a winery I taste for clues on how it is made, and degree of difficulty. Many but not all benefit from oxygen and are their best the next day. Price, reputation, and venue are routinely red herrings. I was also a professional taster for six years as a Butler in Silicon Valley. You don't want to polish 30 extra glasses in a rush because you poured a flawed wine with six courses of food with matched wine on the way. Five digit price bottles can easily be junk.
Good video!
Congrats!
Once you get more experienced with wine you can separate your own taste preferences and quality. A wine can by a high quality example of a style which you don’t particularly enjoy. I think everyone should taste various styles of wines from various producers to better understand what they like. This is in my opinion the best way to learn how to taste and evaluate wine.
Hi John, I'm finding myself confused as the WSET3 book says that it is possible to describe a wine simple despite identifying "simple aromas of lemon, apple, grapefruit and pear".. you said that if the aromas are a bit muddled up "eg. Red berries" then the wine is simple? Your explanation to me makes more sense as otherwise I don't understand what makes a simple wine simple but… can you maybe help? Many thanks for the video ❤
You know that many of us laughed when you mentioned Caymus ! That wine serves its purpose. Me for example when I started drinking wine I loved Caymus because it is delicious and fruity. If 25 years ago I was introduced to wine like Viña Tondonia or Chateau Musar I would have never started my love for wine. Its been 10 years since I bought my last Caymus and I would still buy it if it were $60 or so, but now I enjoy much more my beloved pomerols. John, next week is my bday and I want to buy a great bottle of a recent Bordeaux to be opened in 10 to 15 years. Something below $300. Please recommend me something special. Cheers!
Not sure if you’ve already done a video like this, but would love to see a video of how you would classify Bordeaux wines if the 1855 classification happened today
Thanks, appreciate you putting your cards on the table, and I think you 4-part assessment (intensity, balance, complexity, finish) is really good.
Really good content! And finding someone with experience like yours to share the process is great. Thank you.
@2:56–I know that 2004 is a rather average vintage, but I hope that's not Leroy in the glass!😳