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How to taste wine like a sommelier, step by step

The deductive tasting method sommeliers use, in order: sight, nose, palate, then the conclusion, with the exact words the Court of Master Sommeliers' grid uses at each step.

Alper Billik · Advanced Sommelier

Updated October 2026 · 5 min read · Edited with AI

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On this page

1. Sight
2. Nose
3. Palate: structure
4. Palate: flavour and finish
5. Initial conclusion
6. Final conclusion
Three habits that make the method work
Quick quiz: the tasting order
Questions people ask

The short answer: taste in the same order every time: sight, nose, palate, then an initial conclusion and a final conclusion. Describe first, decide last. The order matters more than any single note, because it stops you guessing the grape before you have looked at the evidence.

The steps below follow the Court of Master Sommeliers' deductive tasting grid, the one candidates use from Certified to Master. The words in each scale are the grid's own.

1. Sight

Clarity: clear, slightly cloudy, cloudy. Some unfiltered wines are naturally hazy.
Brightness: dull, bright, brilliant.
Concentration: pale, medium, deep, opaque. Hold the glass over white paper at an angle.
Colour: white wines from straw to yellow, gold and amber; reds purple, ruby, garnet.
Hue and rim: the tint at the edge. A purple rim says young; a garnet or brown rim says age.
Gas and sediment: any bubbles, crystals or deposit.
Viscosity (tears): slow, thick tears suggest more alcohol or sugar. Nothing more.

2. Nose

Clean or faulty: check first for TCA (cork taint), H2S, VA, Brett and oxidation. See wine faults explained.
Intensity: delicate, moderate, powerful.
Fruit condition: tart or unripe, ripe, tropical, overripe, jammy, baked. A strong clue to climate.
Age assessment: youthful (fresh, primary) or vinous (developed).
Primary fruit: for whites citrus, orchard, stone, tropical; for reds red, black, blue. Then name one or two specific fruits: lime, peach, cranberry, blackcurrant.
Primary non-fruit: floral, herb, vegetal, mineral, spice.
Secondary (winemaking): oak (old, new, American), malolactic (butter, cream), lees (bread dough), carbonic maceration (banana, bubblegum).
Organic and mineral: forest floor, mushroom, fresh soil, farmyard; limestone, chalk, slate, flint.
Tertiary (age): leather, truffle, tobacco, dried fruit, petrol, honey, nuts.

Not sure where a smell comes from? Read the secrets behind wine aromas.

3. Palate: structure

Element	The grid's scale	What to feel
Sweetness	Bone dry, dry, off dry, sweet, dessert	Sugar across the whole tongue; ripe fruit can seem sweet in a dry wine
Acid	Low, med-, medium, med+, high	How much your mouth waters after you swallow
Tannin	Low, med-, medium, med+, high	Drying grip on gums and tongue, from skins, seeds, stems and oak
Alcohol	Low, med-, medium, med+, high	Warmth at the back of the throat and on the chest
Body/texture	Tart, light, medium, full, creamy, round	Weight in the mouth, like skimmed milk against cream

Sweetness: The grid's scaleBone dry, dry, off dry, sweet, dessert; What to feelSugar across the whole tongue; ripe fruit can seem sweet in a dry wine

Acid: The grid's scaleLow, med-, medium, med+, high; What to feelHow much your mouth waters after you swallow

Tannin: The grid's scaleLow, med-, medium, med+, high; What to feelDrying grip on gums and tongue, from skins, seeds, stems and oak

Alcohol: The grid's scaleLow, med-, medium, med+, high; What to feelWarmth at the back of the throat and on the chest

Body/texture: The grid's scaleTart, light, medium, full, creamy, round; What to feelWeight in the mouth, like skimmed milk against cream

4. Palate: flavour and finish

Flavours: confirm the nose. Do the same fruits, oak and earth appear? Is anything new?
Balance: does any one element stick out, such as hot alcohol or hard tannin?
Length: short, med-, medium, med+, long. Count the seconds the flavour stays.
Complexity: low, moderate, complex. How many layers, and do they change?

5. Initial conclusion

Climate: cool, cool/moderate, moderate, moderate/warm, warm. Tart fruit and high acid point cool; ripe or jammy fruit and high alcohol point warm.
Grape variety or blend: two or three possibilities that fit everything you wrote.
Possible countries: an Old World and a New World option. Earth and restraint lean Old World; bright, ripe fruit often leans New World. It is a clue, not a rule.
Age range: 1–3, 3–5, 5–10 or 10+ years.

6. Final conclusion

Commit: vintage, grape, country, region or appellation, and quality level (for example AOC, Grand Cru, Reserva). Choose the one answer that fits all your notes, not the wine you hoped it would be.

Three habits that make the method work

Use generic, then specific words. On the Certified paper you tick up to three fruit families, then write one or two specific fruits under them. Name the most expressive notes, not everything.
Taste the same way every time, so the grid becomes automatic. Then put it to work on the classic exam wines.
Speak to guests in plain words. The grid is for you. At the table, "fresh, citrusy and dry" sells better than a list of compounds. See describing wine without sounding weird.

Quick quiz: the tasting order

Question 1

What is the first thing to check on the nose?

a)Fruit intensity
b)Whether the wine is clean or faulty
c)Oak
d)Alcohol

Show answer

b) Whether the wine is clean or faulty. The grid starts the nose with clean or faulty: TCA, H2S, VA, Brett, oxidation.

Question 2

A purple rim on a red wine usually suggests:

a)Old age
b)Youth
c)Oxidation
d)High alcohol

Show answer

b) Youth. Young reds show purple at the rim; age brings garnet and brick tones.

Question 3

Butter and cream aromas usually come from:

a)Carbonic maceration
b)Malolactic conversion
c)Botrytis
d)Pyrazines

Show answer

b) Malolactic conversion. Malolactic conversion produces diacetyl, the buttery note.

Question 4

Banana and bubblegum notes point to:

a)New American oak
b)Lees ageing
c)Carbonic maceration
d)Brett

Show answer

c) Carbonic maceration. Carbonic maceration, as in many Beaujolais, gives these estery notes.

Question 5

Which part of the method comes last?

a)Initial conclusion
b)Structure
c)Final conclusion
d)Sight

Show answer

c) Final conclusion. Describe everything first; vintage, grape, country and region come at the end.

Practise with SOMM DIGI AI Certified practice test

Questions people ask

What are the steps of wine tasting?

Sight, nose, palate, then conclusions. Sommeliers split the palate into structure (sweetness, acid, tannin, alcohol, body) and flavour, and the conclusion into an initial and a final one.

Do wine legs mean better quality?

No. Tears show alcohol and sugar levels, not quality.

Is the deductive tasting grid the same as WSET's method?

They follow the same logic, from appearance to nose, palate and conclusions. WSET uses its own Systematic Approach to Tasting with its own wording; the Court uses its deductive grid.