Although taste and flavor are mostly used interchangeably, more often than not they mean very slightly different things to our senses.
It is true that flavor and taste are related but the knowledge and separation of these ideas is more important than you think. As we have stated, flavor and taste are not the same, nor is aroma, lest you do not throw the latter into the mix. Learning the conceptual difference among flavor, taste and aroma is key to achieving a higher awareness of wine’s characteristics.
Gaining Insight into Taste and Flavor Differences
To understand where taste and flavor in wine diverge, we need to understand what aroma is; hence we must start studying fermentation. The byproduct of grape fermentation is carbon dioxide, alcohol and over 200 aromatic esters. Think of an ester as the specific aromatic earmark of an item, in this case, wine or its compounds. Aroma helps recognize something by conjuring an image from previous associations in your mind. An aroma is way to describe odors which are tiny volatilized compounds our nose receptors identify. Alcohol evaporates quickly, therefore, it carries aromas easily. See where are getting at?
Each grape variety affords a unique aromatic make-up mostly undetectable until the grape is fermented, which magnifies the aromas.
When you taste wine, you also smell the aromas created during fermentation. That’s why many times people come across a wine by scent thinking they will like it but finding out it is the opposite. Over the years we have associated certain aromas with visual or taste/tactile sensation. If neither the aroma nor the visual or tactile sensation match, the brain has trouble processing the discrepancy. That’s why some people new to wine are unable to identify the subtleties of their drinks. The brain simply gets overloaded with information it is not acquainted with yet.
To grasp the key differences between taste and flavor in wine you must retrain your senses. This is possible by acknowledging that what you taste is not always what you smell and viceversa.
What Is Taste and What Is Flavor?
Taste happens only inside our mouths; it has everything to do with how our tongue and mouth perceive food and drink. The tongue has two kinds of receptors. Once receptor type is known as ‘tastebud’ and generally pertains the sweet, bitter and sour sensations of food and drink. Mouthfeel on the other hand has more to do with the texture of edibles. We “touch” win in this way and that’s why texture, body, and tannins in wine are such an important characteristic as far as winemaking goes.
As we have already mentioned, when we’re sniffing a glass of wine, we perceive its aromas through the back of our throat and our nostrils. Thus, flavor in wine is the overall impression of that wine, the sum of both aromatics, taste, and mouthfeel. Flavor is related to how our brains interpret aromas, taste, and texture into an overall feeling or experience. Hence why it is so difficult to communicate the idea of flavors sometimes. There you have it wine folks, the differences between flavor and taste in wine might not be that clear cut; however, if you keep these concepts in mind, you will become adept at winetasting and it will get easier over time to work out any flavor.
Explore Different Types of Flavor, Explore VenToSpain
Do you love a particular flavor profile in wine? Suddenly, you have a whole world of wine and food to explore! Apply the newfound knowledge of flavors, taste and aromas to your everyday winetasting experience.
And while you are at it, have you never tasted Spanish wines before? Are you curious about Spanish wine flavors? Check out our international wine line VenToSpain. Put your good taste to test with a collection of VenToSpain! Do not miss out on discovering what VenToSpain has in store for you.
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- Entre Tapas Restaurant
- Madrid Tapas y Vinos
- Mobile Sunny Isles at Collins 18300
- Chevron Miami Beach at 401 71st St, Miami Beach, FL 33141
- A&G Mini Mart at Chevron Doral 2498 NW 87th Ave, Miami, FL 33172
Find out what VenToSpain has in store for you!
Sources: www.winefolly.com, www.thestowawaywinebar.com