Body is the impression of a wines weight, density, or its ‘mouth-feel’. Some wines feel weighty, or full bodied, while others feel light bodied. Wine runs the gamut from light to full, with most falling somewhere in between.
ACIDITY
Low
Moderate
Balanced
Crisp
High
Acidity is a foundational component in wine. In fact, low acidity, or ‘flabby’ wine (as the term suggests) is a negative. You can sense acidity mainly on the sides of your tongue. Acidity generally ranges from balanced to high. Crisp acidity adds freshness, making your mouth water. Acidity is a necessary element and helps to balance other components.
SWEETNESS
Dry
Off Dry
Medium Dry
Medium Sweet
Very Sweet
Most wines are characterized as dry to off-dry, but there are some grape varietals, like Riesling, that run the gamut from dry to sweet. The tip of the tongue mainly detects sweetness, which is why it is often the primary characteristic detected. Sweetness is derived from residual sugar that did not ferment into alcohol.
ALCOHOL
13%
Alcohol is the by-product of fermentation. Differing grape varieties have differing potential alcohol levels, but regardless warmer areas result in riper grapes resulting in higher alcohol. Alcohol level is an objective number, but its affect on its palate impression is largely determined with how well integrated and balanced it is with other components.
It defies the expression you get what you pay for.
GRAPE VARIETAL(S)
Chenin Blanc
50%Shuh-NAN BLON
Chenin Blanc is often overlooked, but makes some of the most compelling white wines across Palate Character, including bone dry to sweet in style. Some of the best expressions come from France’s Loire Valley, and South Africa, which at their best are concentrated, crisp, sometimes long-lived, mineral driven wines that deserve more recognition for their high quality age-worthy whites.
Viognier
50%Vyo-NYAY
Viognier almost went extinct in the 1960s, but has enjoyed a resurgence in popularity. Although grown around the word, it is most famous for the full bodied intensely aromatic floral white wines with a sometimes oily texture grown on granite terraces in Condrieu, and small amount to Syrah in Côte Rôtie, just north of Condrieu, adding aromatic complexity.
In 2008 cousins Hein and Adi Badenhorst purchased the Kalmoesfontein property in the Paardeberg area of Swartland, South Africa, inspired to make natural wines by traditional methods.
Now recognized as A.A. Badenhorst, these sustainably farmed and low-yielding old vines are planted and dry-farmed on mountainside granite slopes at various exposures, which brings variety to the terroir. The grapes are always picked by hand and fermented naturally in renovated cellars that date back to the 1930s.
A.A. Badenhorst also sources grapes from like-minded growers to produce the Curator White Blend, the definition of “bang for the buck.” The energy and balance of the Curator highlights thoughtful sourcing and talented winemaking at a fantastic value.
White Peach
Honeysuckle
Mineral
