Blind Tasting
Definition - What does Blind Tasting mean?
Blind tasting is a method of tasting wine which avoids having or creating any preconceived perceptions of a wine based on a known varietal or the label of the wine. A wine's label, style and varietal is hidden from the taster to avoid any bias or opinion. When a blind tasting is done for many wines, it allows fairness in the evaluation of each wine.
WineFrog explains Blind Tasting
When a blind tasting is conducted, the wine's identity is hidden from the taster. By concealing the information of a wine and even its varietal, a taster can judge and/or analyze the wine without any bias or preconceived opinions. This is often practiced for those testing for a sommelier certification, proving that, as a professional, one can identify and analyze a wine without any knowledge of specific wines.
It is also done during wine judging so that each wine in the line-up has the same fair advantage. They are then better judged based on their color, their aroma and bouquet, balance (or imbalance) and finish.
There are a couple of types of blind tastings:
- Single blind - This means that only the type of wine is known to the taster. However, they are unaware of the specific wine being tasted in terms of which vineyard, maker or brand it belongs to.
- Double blind - This means that the taster has no prior knowledge or information on the wine.
