Wine character typical for the Portuguese Madeira, which is created by the deliberate oxidative ageing and the heating or warming of the wine. It is characterised by an amber to brown colour and a caramel-like, cooked taste. The reason for the typical smell and taste is the aroma substance Sotolon. In the context of a conventional wine, the term is used negatively for an overaged to spoiled wine and is considered a wine defect if it is more pronounced. It is not possible to draw an exact borderline to the sherry tone - most likely still by the caramel tone (Madeira) and nut tone (sherry). Related terms are firned, oxidized, rancid, rancio and rancid.
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Thomas Götz
Weinberater, Weinblogger und Journalist; Schwendi