If you are challenged when trying to describe a wine's bouquet, why not buy a wine bouquet wheel?
BackboneFull-bodied highly acidic or highly tannic red wines have backbone.
Backward
A backward wine holds on to its youthful characteristics in the face of considerable aging. Additional aging may generate a better wine.
Baked
A wine is called baked when it smells or tastes cooked. This problem often occurs in hot climates, where the grapes are overripe or the must is oxidized. Producers address this problem by harvesting earlier in the season, harvesting at night, and cold fermentation. Note that in some wines such as Madeira a baked taste may be positive.
Balanced
In a balanced wine the major components; namely acidity, fruit, sugar and tannins coexist in harmony. Balanced wines usually age well.
The term barnyard refers to a certain, unmistakable aroma that may indicate dirty barrels or unsanitary wine making facilities. However, a little bit of barnyard may be considered positive for some red Burgundies and other fine wines.
Beefy
A beefy red wine is chewy or chunky. As you may well imagine, there are no beefy white wines.
Berrylike
Berrylike wines suggest the taste of berries including blackberries, black or red cherries, cranberries, raspberries, and strawberries. This characteristic is usually associated with young, unoaked or lightly oaked wines. Zinfandel often produces berrylike wines.
Big
A big wine is a full-bodied wine and leaves you with an intense feeling. Big reds tend be tannic. Big whites usually are high in alcohol and glycerol.
Biscuity
Some mature Champagnes have a biscuity bouquet. This is considered a positive characteristic. Are there negative characteristics in Champagne?
Bitter
Bitter is one of the four basic tastes. Bitterness often comes from tannins. If well integrated with other taste components, bitterness is a positive characteristic. Gewurztraminer and Muscat grapes often produce somewhat bitter wines.
Black currant
Red Bordeaux often give the sensation of black currants.
Blind tasting
In a blind tasting the judges evaluate wines without knowing beforehand anything about them. Needless to say, all competitive wine tastings are blind tastings.
Blowzy
A blowzy wine has an exaggerated fruity aroma. This characteristic may be appealing in inexpensive wines, but is considered clumsy in better wines.
Body
This refers to the texture of a wine in your mouth. Full-body wines tend to be high in alcohol and glycerol.
Bouquet
The bouquet refers to the more highly evolved smell of a mature wine in contrast to the aroma which is the smell of a young wine.
Brawny
A brawny wine is a flavorful, full-bodied wine containing high levels of alcohol and tannins. Almost by definition, brawny wines are not elegant or refined. Sometimes the term tooth-stainers is used.
Breathe
When a wine is poured out of the bottle, it breathes, picking up oxygen. This process destroys unpleasant aromas and releases positive ones, often within a few minutes.
A red-brown color often found in mature red wines.
Bright
Bright describes a fresh-flavored or a clear wine.
Brilliant
A brilliant wine is very clear and transparent. Brilliance is not necessarily a positive characteristic. The absence of cloudiness and suspended particles may indicate an absence of flavor.
Breed
Denotes a wine coming from the noblest grape varieties such as Pinot Noir and Chardonnay that has been raised as one would raise a rose or a thoroughbred racehorse.
Briary
A wine with an aggressive, spicy taste. This term is often used to describe California Zinfandels.
Brix
A New World system used to measure the sugar content of grapes and wine. A reading of 20 to 25 deg. Brix indicates the optimum degree of grape ripeness at harvest for most table wines.
Browning
Browning denotes aging in a wine. A touch of brown at the surface edge of a tilted wine glass indicates that the wine is past its peak, while still palatable.
Brut
Brut means dry. This term usually refers to Champagne and other sparkling wines. While Brut Champagne contains less than 1.5% residual sugar, Extra Dry Champagne is actually sweeter.
Burnt
Burnt wines taste and smell as if they have been cooked or baked.
Buttery
Some white wines, particularly Chardonnay, give the impression of butter. This taste comes from lactic acid (a component of milk) generated by malolactic fermentation.