Among the most technical and also hilarious wine words is "vinoso". What does it really mean to say that a wine is vinous? Let's try to clarify, even if it involves dispelling a myth in the specialists' lexicon.
Among the most imaginative descriptors of wine you may come across "vinous", a term that projects into a very particular semantic field, the apparently tautological one of "a wine that smells of wine". Let's clarify a curious wine term.
1. What does vinous mean?
The term “wine” is used to describe the aromas of wine . It serves to indicate the organoleptic characteristics of wines characterized by a set of aromas rich in hints that recall winemaking and more precisely the solid parts of the must (the pomace, i.e. skins and seeds). Therefore a wine that smells of must or, if we want, that recalls the typical aroma of the cellars during racking.
2. What does it mean if we use the term vinous ?
Using the term vinous to describe a wine implies saying that it is simple and direct because it has no peculiar odorous notes , lacking a more precise olfactory identity.
3. Is a wine described as vinous a truly quality wine?
Generally not, if the term is used with awareness. In fact, "vinosity" is a scent common to all wines because it indicates a basic "olfactory skeleton": in the case of quality wines these basic characteristics are discreet and covered by more particular and even more pleasant notes.
In short, a great wine must not smell like wine .
– Read also: all the terms to speak like sommeliers
4. Which wines can the term vinous be associated with?
You may come across the term vinous in the description of some young, particularly simple red wines.
5. Can vinosity be described in mathematical terms?
Let's look at it this way: the finesse and elegance of a wine are inversely proportional to its vinosity.
