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exploring taste—santa margherita gruppo vinicolo

The heart of the matter lies in the peculiar archi- sommeliers and aspiring wine tasters, and even “Odors have a power of persuasion stronger than words, appearances,
tecture of our perceptual system, as pointed out we do not want to miss out on this entertaining emotions or will. They enter into us like breath into our lungs, they fill us
by the substantial difference between the “rec- and refined game (game in the highest sense of
ognition” of a scent and its “identification”. Any the word). Therefore, below we propose an image up, imbue us totally… He who ruled scent ruled the hearts of men.”
of us can recognize a previously encountered of the typical fragrances belonging to four white
fragrance, in the sense of being aware of having grape varieties that represent the main “fra- Patrick Süskind—Perfume
smelt it before, whereas it is far more challenging grance families”, namely:
to be able to identify it, or give it its proper seman-
tic label. This is because the smell is imprinted at • (Distinctly) aromatic grape varieties – those
the time of perception, indelibly and permanent- with an intense floral/spiced flavor already
ly in the limbic system, the area responsible for perceptible when tasting the fruit, caused
emotions and instincts, while the name – provid- by specific volatile molecules present in
ed a minimum amount of knowledge on the sub- high concentration that are unbound in the
ject – is deposited in a specific area of the cerebral grape. This group includes various types of
cortex, thus remaining not only separate but in- Moscato, Gewürztraminer, Torrontes and
evitably susceptible to being lost forever, unless aromatic Malvasia.
frequently recalled. The way smells are stored in • Semi-aromatic grape varieties – certain va-
the instinctive part of the brain and suddenly rieties such as Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling,
resurface is a phenomenon with many examples Müller Thurgau and Vermentino have a high
in art, from the famous Madeleine anecdote in concentration of flavor precursors (poten-
Proust’s In Search of Lost Time, to the astonished tially odorous molecules). These compounds
face of the critic Ego when tasting Ratatouille in are present in the grape in bound form and
the animated film, a past sensation that suddenly only become perceptible when freed by pri-
and vitally explodes but is often difficult to match mary yeast fermentation or bottle aging phe-
with an image, let alone a name. nomena. The aromas of these varieties range
The same goes for wine; how many times do we from hints of wildflower to herbs, spices,
enjoy a scent, recognize it (“I’m sure I know this tropical fruits and hydrocarbons (Riesling). grapes). This category refers to white wines pleasure. What could be more enjoyable for wine
from somewhere!”), but then feel disappointed • Non-aromatic grape varieties – these repre- fermented and aged in barrels, mainly oak. enthusiasts than tracing a group of aromas back
when we are unable to identify it (“I can’t quite sent the majority of varieties whose aromas The aromas are thus influenced by the pro- to the likely grape variety or region of origin, in
remember – the name escapes me!”). Linking an in wine mainly originate from yeast action cess, conferring them floral and ripe fruity a virtuous circle that links personal emotions to
olfactory sensation to its correct semantic label and esterification reactions during alcohol- notes, especially vanilla, caramel, roasted cof- nature and culture.
is something that requires attention, experience, ic fermentation. They are characterized by fee, with the addition of butter and hazelnut So let us venture into fragrant wine country,
and above all imagination. This can be under- classic fruity aromas, ranging from citrus following (likely) malolactic fermentation. equipped with these few useful facts, then it will
stood as the ability to let your thoughts wander fruits to white fruit (pear, apple), yellow fruit be up to unexpected assaults by ancestral scents
and summon the memories that the scents inev- (peach, apricot) and very mature fruit (ba- These are just four examples that in terms of or sudden ambushes by unknown aromas to
itably evoke, delicately recovering the semantic nana, pineapple). quantity probably add little to our knowledge, gradually develop our knowledge over time, pro-
reference, be it a place, a face, a situation, a com- • Oak-aged wine varieties – this is not so much but are worth more in terms of quality, if viewed vided we are driven by curiosity, passion and iro-
parison with another wine already tasted or a di- an ampelographic classification as it is a pro- as an incentive for realizing how much delight ny – the magical qualities of those who, wanting
rect reference to an object, fruit or flower. duction philosophy, used for the above three the mind can add to the senses alone by giving se- to discover more about a wine, end up learning
This last exercise is especially appreciated by (but mostly frequently for non-aromatic mantic shape to the already fascinating aesthetic more about themselves.

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