Have you ever been to a wine bar or restaurant and decided to try a wine that was available by the glass? A wine that she would have wanted to try without committing to an entire bottle? Maybe it was a wine someone recommended. Or, you found a wine that you really like: the aroma and taste were unexpected. Then, on a next subsequent trip to her wine store or Costco, she purchased the identical vintage produced by the same winery. You take it home, light the candles, and open the same cheese and bread you enjoyed at that memorable tasting, only to be completely disgusted that the aromas and taste of the wine were not what you remembered from that restaurant or wine bar when that moment. ah-ha hit.
About every two weeks I go to wine country and San Francisco to make sales calls and, when possible, visit the Ferry Plaza Wine Merchant in the late afternoon to get a feel for what’s new in wines. Because they have such a great selection of wines by the glass, I get to experiment. I recently tried (they aren’t cheap by the way) a Zinfandel with some cheeses and bread and really enjoyed the flavors of the wine. I was so impressed with the Zin that I bought a bottle of Zin on the spot, along with the cheese and bread, and went back to the hotel to continue the wonderful flavors. Guess what? It wasn’t going to be replicated, even within a few hours. What happened?
To try to find out what happened, I contacted my friend Go to Master of Wine. I explained in detail the dilemma I faced regarding my experience in changing the taste of a good wine in a wine bar (a public place) versus my hotel room. My question was: What happened to the wonderful experience between Ferry Plaza Wine Merchant and my hotel? It has probably happened to all of us; a fine wine experience at a time and place that cannot be replicated later in a casual home. So I’ll try to merge what I’ve learned on the subject into a semblance of a neat explanation.
It seems that the taste and pleasant reaction to a wine is affected in 4 ways: psychological, physiological, the properties of the wine itself, and the setting or environment. There may be iterations of these or even a whole new category, but let’s focus on these because they seem to explain why wine tastes different when consumed in a public setting than it does at home, even with similar/exact garnishes (cheese, bread and grapes, etc). Below are the problems in each of the categories that can affect the flavor of the wine, in various places, which is identical in vintage, varietal and cellar.
Psychological
- Attitude plays a critical role in how we approach most events. Return to the Ferry Plaza Wine Merchant experience. I noticed some people were drinking wine as they waited for their ferry to board destinations across the bay; they just weren’t in a hurry, they had a relaxed attitude. Others went through the motions of having a glass of wine perfunctorily without concentrating on anything to do with the wine itself. It’s probably hard to replicate a specific wine experience if one’s attitude isn’t consistent, and it rarely can be.
- It is clear that stress impacts attitude: the stress of the moment or the ebb and flow of residual stress from the daily work routine. Don’t forget that stress affects us physiologically, affecting how we process flavor profiles and aromas.
- Wine seems to be a conscious drink that is best enjoyed with a clear focus. Are aromas, color and flavor approached with positive anticipation or casual appreciation? The mind forms the definition of the experience of that wine, including the exact wine you are tasting a second time.
- We also approach wine with a preconceived expectation. Any variation on that, for whatever reason, exposes us to disappointment in trying to replicate a given wine experience. It seems that nothing is repeatable.
- Relaxation is critical and there are degrees of relaxation. A relaxed state of mind opens up the senses of smell and taste and regulates how wine is perceived.
- A master sommelier told me about a time when a middle-aged couple walked into his restaurant and, when they were seated, it wasn’t long before an argument broke out. He said that he was concerned that an enjoyable meal will dictate how customers judge the restaurant. “At that point it was imperative that I try to defuse the situation,” he said. Yes, even sommeliers are aware that the psyche can direct a person’s attitude toward wine and food, even over the course of an hour.
Physiological
- Supposedly 90% of taste comes from our sense of smell. If something changes the way we perceive the smells around us, the taste will also change.
- Nothing is constant except change. Therefore, the possibility of accurately repeating the utopian experience of wine is, by definition, difficult, if not impossible, because our bodies are in a constant state of change.
- The tongue is going to tell the brain how to process the taste of the wine. If the taste buds change from one tasting to another, the differences will be recognized. Too much of a good thing is a recipe for failure. That also applies to wine because the tannins and acids will have a negative impact on the flavor if they burn. Taste is subjective, so technically taste is always truthful.
- The age of the consumer will also affect how the wine is experienced. Although we focus on why the flavor change, in as little as 60 minutes with a change of venue, if you wait a year to experience the exact same bottle of wine, you might be disappointed based on age factors.
wine properties
- There may be different batches of the same vintage which will slightly affect the flavor. The time of day a specific vintage and varietal was harvested and processed can affect wine from bottle to bottle. The fermentation tanks themselves can add some subtle differences and even the oak profile of the barrels between barrel vendors.
- Does the time and distance a box of wine travels compared to another exact vintage/variety make a difference (remember the movie Bottle Shock) or was a different box exposed to heat?
- How long did that special wine breathe that produced that great flavor you are now trying to reproduce? Remember, you’re trying to find that magic in a bottle again; Hard to do.
- Did the temperature of the wine change between your big bottle of wine and the one you bought hoping to find that magic again? Temperature is a fundamental element in their attempt to match flavors, even within the same vintage, varietal and cellar.
- Now ask yourself if the vintage has been aged in the bottle since the first time you tasted the wine.
- There could be some odors from a “stoppered” bottle of that same vintage and from the cellar due to cork contamination.
Environment/Settings
When trying to duplicate the same great taste of a wine that you experienced at a wine bar compared to being at home, the settings are different. The environment is recognized as an important element in the wine experience.
- The temperature in the room will affect how you perceive the wine you are drinking.
- Sometimes even a subtle difference in how the wine is stored can affect the flavor, even if the wine is from the same vintage and from the same cellar.
- Like golfers repeating a routine/ritual, when trying to get the most pleasure out of a wine, stick to a ritual you follow when tasting the wine: let it breathe, don’t handle the bottle too much before opening and decanting.
- Where were the wine glasses kept? New cabinets (if the wine glasses are stored in a cabinet) may still have a woody smell that will linger in the glasses. It is suggested that they be rinsed, dried and aired to remove inherent cabinet odors.
- The lighting of an environment will create a mood that can change the way wine is appreciated. You don’t need a mood ring, but keep in mind how lighting will even change the look of a fine wine in the glass.
- If you’re trying to reproduce a flavor you previously got from a good wine, the food should be the same. For the sake of this discussion, we are assuming identical cheese and bread.
- Earlier we said that smell drives taste, so in your environment, what scents are you sensing and what perfume scents are present? Some tasting rooms will ask people to leave if the perfume is too strong.
- As a penultimate statement: the recommendations of a friend or sommelier will definitely place you in relation to what you will expect from a wine. So don’t let people dictate your taste standards.
- Never underestimate the impact that the company has around us when we drink wine. The social environment of friends impacts us a lot.
- Music. This is a topic that has received some research in recent years. In a 2011 article in the British Journal of Psychology, it was reported that wine tastes better with music. Adrian North, from Heriot-Watt University in England, said: “The research…looks at the possibility that the emotional connotations of music may function as a symbol influencing the perception of the taste of wines. The reported results … indicate that independent group ratings of a wine’s taste reflected the emotional attributes of the background music played while they drank the wine.” The connotations it refers to are descriptive attributes such as: bold, sparkling, light and airy, well-developed, etc., that apply to wine. Mind you, he is talking about people who subconsciously interpret the characteristics of music and use those characteristics to describe the wine they were drinking, especially if they like music.
Regarding the two bottles of wine that started this whole discussion; You tried the first one and fell in love with it and now the second identical bottle you expect to be the same and it is not. We’ve discussed many reasons why the second identical bottle won’t give you the same stimulation of flavor profiles. But have you ever thought of “music” as a component of a wine experience; in private or in a wine bar?
It is nearly impossible to replicate the taste of wine from one bottle to the next identical bottle, even if the wine is from the same vintage, varietal, and cellar. There are simply too many factors that come into play that can and will affect the taste. The old adage is: you can never get back exactly what it once was.
Health!