Spin the Aroma Wheel

A few years ago, a relative of mine proudly poured me a glass of diesel fuel disguised as red table wine. Produced in a southern state that I decline to identify, the color was correct, but judging by the odor, I feared it was a petroleum product. I looked around nervously for nearby sources of flame. It was undrinkable, yet I choked it down to be polite.

But it's apparently not uncommon to smell gas in wine, because Ann Noble's Aroma Wheel devotes a subcategory to the scents of petroleum, such as diesel, kerosene, tar, and plastic. Twenty years ago, Ms. Noble, a professor at the University of California at Davis, developed the Aroma Wheel for novice and pro wine drinkers "to learn about wines and enhance one's ability to describe the complexity of wine flavor."

If you spend any time tasting wines, either at wineries or with friends, you've likely tried to nail down a particular odd taste or odor that made the experience heavenly, or dreadful. At times like that, it's sort of cool to have the Aroma Wheel at your fingertips, because it can more precisely identify a scent or a flavor that might otherwise elude you. Many of the wheel's categories and specific terms are to be expected (fruity, woody, herbaceous), but the wheel also offers these pungent possibilities: wet dog, wet wool, skunk, burnt toast, and even natural gas – yikes!