No, I'm not taking about its geometric dimensions... duh. (But in case you're curious, a standard Bordeaux bottle is 300mm "long" x 70mm wide usually :))
I'm talking about one of the three key factors in tasting and enjoying (then maybe rating) wine, together with its balance and depth: THE LENGTH.
Length is a tasting term to describe how long the taste of a wine persists or lingers on your palate after you have swallowed the wine... As it is an instrument of measure, it can be long, moderate or short.
As a rule of thumb, a long length (more than 45 seconds) is considered a sign of high quality.
But where does this variable length come from?
It comes from the interaction of many different flavour compounds with COLLOIDS.
Colloids are tiny particles which are not removed after fining and filtering, which consist of pectins and phenolics.
The resulting slow release of the flavour compounds creates the perception of length of flavour that you have observed.
However, a too strong concentration of colloids (particularly pectins) is bad for a wine, as it will then prevent the grapes from releasing their aromas!
