How Do You Use a Wine Journal?

Keeping a wine journal is a great way to remember which bottles you liked best.

Every bottle of wine offers its own color, flavor and aroma. For a wine connoisseur keeping track of brands, bottles and flavors becomes essential. A simple but powerful tool to keep it in order is a wine journal. There are many different journals available to keep track of your favorite bottles, and how they looked, smelled, and tasted. They are a great addition to your tour of Sonoma Valley, Calif., or just to keep at home to note which bottles you really enjoyed, and why. Does this Spark an idea?

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Wine journal

Instructions

- 1
  
  Write down the brand name of the wine and the vineyard at the top of the page. Note the variety of grape and the year right below that. Note the alcohol by volume if it is marked on the bottle. Lastly, note the date that you are tasting the wine.
- 2
  
  Look carefully at the wine once it is poured, and describe the color in a word or two in your journal. Keep it simple.
- 3
  
  Swirl the wine in the glass and then sniff. Describe the aroma in a few words in your journal. Write only descriptive words and not complete sentences. Don't waste the space.
- 4
  
  Taste the wine. Describe the flavors that you taste on your tongue, how the wine feels in your mouth, the taste that's left when you finish and how long it lingers. Focus on what you experience. There is no right or wrong answer to what you're tasting in a glass of wine.
- 5
  
  Give the wine a rating, either with stars or a number system. Make it clear which wines to come back to and which wines to skip next time.

Tips & Warnings

Some wine journals have charts that help you describe the taste and color of a wine that can help you save time when making notes.
Some smart phones have wine journal apps available.