There are so many things to know when it comes to wine, it’s almost impossible to keep up sometimes! When describing wine, there are a million terms to consider, and they all mean different things! I recently came across the difference between wine bouquet and aroma and realised I had been using the wrong words all along. But this is the beauty of learning about wine. As you start to unlock the complexity behind the snobby wine terms, what you find is a beautiful language of tasty vino. Just know that it’s a journey that we are on together – and I’m still learning too!
We all love wine here, I think we can establish that much. But when we taste wine it can be really hard to describe what we like about a bottle of wine. Sometimes you’ll drink a wine and love it, but you couldn’t tell anyone why. It’s because there are so many different factors to the flavour of a wine, and when you don’t have the language you just don’t have the key. One of these terms is the difference between wine bouquet and aroma. I use aroma when I describe wines all the time, but I often don’t talk about wine bouquet. I’m thinking I might not be the only one, so I decided it was about time I wrote a post about what sets these wine terms apart. That way we can all start picking out the difference in wines a little more clearly.
So where do the terms wine bouquet and aroma come from?
Simply put: the terms wine bouquet and wine aroma are terms used to describe different smells that come from the wine. We covered the difference between smell and taste a while back, and how important smell is to wine. The smell of the wine comes from the alcohol evaporating into the air, and that’s about as scientific as I go. Through this smell, you can pick up an important element of the flavour of a wine. This includes smelling fruit vs savoury smells or vanilla.
But what is the difference between the two? Well, this is where it becomes slightly more complex. These terms are used as less scientific terms to describe the primary, secondary and tertiary aromas in wines. Wine aromas are used to describe primary aromas, and wine bouquet is used to describe secondary and tertiary aromas.
So what does this all mean? Well in simple terms:
- Primary aromas – those smells that come from the grape
- Secondary aromas – smells that come from fermentation
- Tertiary aromas – those smells that come from ageing
Wine Aroma
Wine aroma is usually described as coming from purely the primary aroma in a bottle of wine. These smells come from a variety of wine which offers a unique set of aromas when it is made into wine. These aromas are incredibly fragrant and are also often what the grape is known for such as raspberry in Cabernet Sauvignon. These aromas are usually things such as fresh fruit, herb and floral characteristics.
Commonly primary aromas are associated with young and vibrant wines. As the wine becomes older, the primary aromas lessen due to the chemical reactions happening in the bottle. The wine then develops new smells. So you’ll most commonly get these primary aromas when you are drinking your wines that you just had to open right now and couldn’t possibly wait to drink. I’m looking at you delicious drinking wines!
If you’re able to pick out some fruit, herb or floral smells in a bottle of wine – you are doing a great job! You are smelling the primary aromas in your wine, and these are the actual smells that come from the grape.
Wine bouquet
The way I like to think about it is that the wine aroma comes from the grape, and the wine bouquet comes from the winemaker. This might be simplifying it a little but it helps me distinguish the two. Wine bouquet is made up of the secondary and tertiary aromas, which aren’t all to do with the winemaker but do have a bit of a link.
The secondary aromas come from fermentation. They reflect decisions that the winemaker makes to create that bottle of wine. One of the most common impacts on the secondary wine aromas is the choice to use barrels to age the wine or not. You’ll hear a lot of talk about oak vs non-oak, and this decision really impacts the flavour in the wine. The wood influences the flavour and aroma of the wine greatly, and you’ll find a lot of difference depending on the type of wood used, whether the barrel has been used before and how old they are. Some examples of secondary aromas include buttery, toasty, vanilla, cedar, tobacco, nutty, bread, even sweaty saddle (sounds gross, but actually quite distinctive in Hunter Valley Shiraz).
The tertiary aromas are all about the age of the wine. This can also come from oak barrels and how long the wine is aged in them before bottling. However, more often it is used to describe the smells that come from wine as it ages in the bottle. The more aged the wine, the more it will affect the wine’s aromatics. As wine ages, it tends to get less primary aromas. You’ll find more smells such as coffee, caramel, cocoa and earthy tones such as smoke, leather and mushrooms.
How to use the terms wine bouquet and aroma
Ok so now you know the difference, how should you use these terms without looking stuffy? The best advice I can give is to remember that wine aroma refers to the grape, and wine bouquet refers to what happens in the winemaking, and ageing, process. Wine aromas tend to be fruit, floral and herb. Wine bouquet is deeper smells of butter, vanilla, coffee, leather and tobacco.
A good hint? If the wine is a young wine, it will mostly have qualities classified as wine aroma. The older the wine, the more of a wine bouquet it will exhibit. Also, look out for whether the wine has been oaked or not. If it has, it will have more of a bouquet.
So if you want to learn more about describing what you are smelling in wine, I hope this guide gives you some handy hints! Next time you’re sipping on a glass of wine, have a think about the smell and how you’d describe it. Better yet, compare a few bottles! In no time you’ll be finding the differences, and you’ll be able to explain them with confidence.
