The origin of aromas in wine

When tasting a wine, as well as enjoying the pleasure of drinking it, you can also have fun discovering the different aromas, and the least we can say is that these are extremely numerous and form an integral part of the wine's identity card.

They also help us understand the history of wine, as well as its origins.

But understanding and unmasking all the aromas can be more complicated than expected. There are a lot of them, and an untrained palate can have trouble recognizing them. 

Here are a few tips to help you classify and identify them. First of all, you need to know that aromas fall into three distinct categories: primary aromas, secondary aromas and tertiary aromas.

These come from the very basis of wine production: grape variety and terroir. Grape pulp and skin contain numerous organic compounds, some of which are aromatic, giving the wine a certain taste. But that's not all. It's also accentuated by the soil and climatic conditions, which influence the aromas already present in the wine and give rise to new ones. As a result, two categories can be distinguished
- free-range varietal aromas, already fragrant 

 - aroma precursors, which develop during fermentation 

Once this first stage has been completed, secondary aromas are born. These are created during alcoholic or malolactic fermentation, thanks to the activity of yeasts and bacteria. They assimilate nutrients from the must (sugars and amino acids) and transform them into alcohol, giving rise to new aromas. For example, and without doubt one of the best-known, banana is a fruity aroma born of alcoholic fermentation. The same is trueof Burgundy wines: malolactic fermentation brings roundness to the wine, with the appearance of brioche and butter aromas.

This is the final stage that gives the wine its final taste, when the wine is aged in barrels. When they come into contact, wood and wine give rise to other aromas, the best-known of which is vanilla, but also empyreumatic notes such as coffee, caramel or toast, or even spicy notes. This will depend on the degree of toasting and the length of maturation. A lightly toasted barrel will develop vanilla aromas, while a more intensely toasted barrel will develop toasted almond aromas.

Bottle ageing also has an impact on aromas. If aging takes place in the bottle, fresh fruit aromas may emerge.