How to Identify Wood Aromas in Wines

You first judge wine by sight. A wine's color is best judged by contrasting it against a white background. Tilt the wine glass is put at an angle in order to see variation in color. A wine color can give clues not only to the grape variety but at to whether the wine was aged in wood.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Wines
• A variety of wood chips

How to Identify Wood Aromas in Wines

1. 
   Wine wheel created by Ann Noble

   What is meant by Woody? When said of a wine Woody refers to the acquired aromas of wood during barrel aging or fermentation. Wine barrels, especially when made of oak make excellent storage for wine as it is aged.

2. Aging in oak typically imparts a number of flavors and aromas ranging from vanilla, butter and spice flavors. The aromas and flavors can also include toasted and roasted woods that evolve toward aromas of coffee, mocha and chocolate with time.

3. They may be characterized as vanilla, caramel, butterscotch, toast, smoke or charcoal which is often associated with imparting a higher tanning level than the wine might ordinarily have.

4. In order to understand the differences in the aromas of woods you must experience them. Take a tour of vineyards that use different casking methods. Smell and taste the wood and the wine to teach yourself the difference.

5. You will find that some woods will have a stronger aroma for instance cedar has a much stronger smell and is often used for Bordeaux and some Cabernet Sauvignons

Tips & Warnings

• Call around to local vineyards and ask about the types of cask they use. Visit a vineyards that use different methods to learn the difference.
• When tasting wine keep in mind that even if you don't swallow after a certain amont you may still find yourself impaired.

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