Decoding the Label (Part 6): Tasting Notes and the Art of Pairing

Hello, eno-adventurers! Welcome back to "Decoding the Label", our series for learning to look at a bottle without seeing a riddle. We've already travelled the map of the regions, decoded the DNA of the grape varieties, learned to read the vintage and the alcohol content, and peeked into the wine's kitchen, where winemaking and ageing shape its character.

Today we reach the tastiest part of all. Those phrases that fill the back labels and product sheets — "aromas of red fruits", "minerality", "velvety tannins", "crisp acidity" — leave many people scratching their heads. But they aren't empty poetry: they're a map of what your glass holds in store. Let's learn to translate them and, better still, to turn them into spot-on food pairings. Let's get to it!

The nose: the treasure chest of aromas

Before you drink, smell. The nose is the first big clue, and it's where most of the descriptors you see on the label come from. When a sheet mentions "floral" aromas or notes of "white fruit", it isn't making things up: these are real compounds that the grape varieties release and that our sense of smell recognises. A floral aroma usually signals a delicate, perfumed wine; red fruits, a fresh and moreish red.

To grasp the floral, fruity side of a white, try the Landcraft Moscatel Galego 2023, from the Douro. It's very aromatic but never excessive: on the palate a fresh, green note appears, followed by an intense floral character with hints of white stone fruit, all of it vibrant, full of flavour and with a broad, captivating finish. On the red side, the La Palisse Tinto 2023, also from the Douro, is the very definition of "red fruits": intense, lively ruby colour, an expressive red-fruit aroma and a fruity palate, broad and silky in texture. In the producer's own words, "a wine that tastes of wine".

Want to train your nose with aromatic whites and fruit-packed reds? Discover our selection of Douro wines here!

The palate: body and the velvety touch of tannins

Now the sip. On the palate we judge the body (whether the wine is light or full), the finish (whether it lingers or fades fast) and, in reds, the tannins. Tannins are those compounds that give a wine its structure and that, in excess or in youth, dry the tongue and grip a little. When a sheet promises "velvety" or "silky" tannins, it's telling you that grip has been tamed: the structure is there, but it glides, smooth as velvet.

The Quinta Vale d'Aldeia Grande Reserva Sousão 2022, from the Douro Superior, is a masterclass on the subject. Deep purple-red in colour, it's highly concentrated on the nose, with very ripe red fruits, cocoa and spices; and on the palate it's structured, with good acidity and — here's the signature — velvety tannins. It's that blend of grip and softness that makes it an ideal partner for fatty or well-seasoned meats, like pork or kid. The structure grabs the dish, the velvet pleases the palate.

Looking for reds with personality and well-crafted tannins? Explore our selection of red wines here!

Crisp acidity: the wine's backbone

Of all the descriptors, "acidity" is perhaps the most misunderstood. It has nothing to do with spoiled wine — quite the opposite: acidity is freshness, liveliness, the thing that makes a wine mouth-watering and calls for the next sip. When a sheet calls it "crisp" or "vibrant", picture the bite of a green apple or the squeeze of a lemon: that clean, stimulating tension. It's the backbone that holds everything upright and makes a white irresistible at the table.

Few express this as well as the Mirabilis Branco 2023, from Quinta Nova, in the Douro. Sublime, smooth and literally crisp on the palate, it has a vibrant acidity beautifully balanced by notes of citrus, green apple and a touch of minerality. The result isn't just refreshing: it's incredibly versatile, at ease alongside oysters and prawns, a grilled fish, or even a classic like Bacalhau à Brás or Arroz de Pato. Acidity is, in essence, what links the wine to the food.

Fancy the freshness of a vibrant white? Discover our selection of white wines here!

Minerality and salinity: the taste of place

And so we reach the most enigmatic descriptor of all: "minerality". Nobody is sucking on stones, of course, but there are wines that genuinely evoke flint, chalk, wet stone — and others that seem to carry the sea itself within, with a salty tang we call salinity. These sensations are often linked to particular soils and climates, and they give a wine a sense of origin, of belonging to a place.

There's no better place to feel it than a volcanic island. The Branco Vulcânico 2025, from the Azores Wine Company, made from Arinto dos Açores and Verdelho, is fresh, mineral and saline, carrying the matrix of the Azorean terroir but in an exuberant, tropical register of pineapple and passion fruit, fresh fruit pinned down by a lively acidity. It's the perfect wine for oysters, goose barnacles and bivalves, but also for grilled fish, salads and seafood. Do you dare to taste a volcano?

Want to discover wines with the salty soul of the Atlantic? Explore our selection of Azores wines here!

From note to plate: the art of pairing

Now put it all together. Pairing isn't magic or a rule of etiquette: it's using the tasting notes as instructions. The acidity of a white cuts through a fatty dish; the tannins of a red lock into the protein of a meat; the salinity of an Atlantic wine embraces seafood; fruit and body balance a sauce. Once you can read the wine, you already know half of what to put beside it on the plate.

Take a versatile bottle like the 3000 Rosas 2024, from Casal Sta. Maria, in Lisbon. Bright salmon in colour, it has notes of peach and a slight mineral edge, with elegant hints of oak; on the palate it's fresh, slightly saline and balanced, with a pleasant texture. That saline freshness makes it ideal as an aperitif, with salads or with seafood — exactly the clues its tasting notes already announced. Reading the label, after all, is the start of planning dinner.

Looking for a wine for every moment at the table? Find inspiration in our best-selling wines here!

The journey continues...

And so the circle of "Decoding the Label" closes. We started with a bottle that looked like a riddle and ended up here: the region tells you its origin, the grape its DNA, the vintage and the alcohol its time and temperature, the winemaking its temperament, and the tasting notes the promise of what awaits you in the glass — and at the table. Next time you read "velvety tannins", "crisp acidity" or "saline", you'll no longer see jargon: you'll see an invitation.

Best of all, you now have the tools to choose for yourself, with confidence and curiosity. Wine is a world without end, and every bottle opened is a new chapter. Keep exploring, tasting and sharing. Until next time — happy tasting and, as always, please drink responsibly.