Color: From red to purple. The more blue or purple, the younger. CM wines are very purple. Orange or bricky denotes age.

Fruit: From red fruits to dark bramble fruit. Raspberry and cotton candy in CM wines. Older wines tend to be lacking fruit.

Tannins: When they are young they are the rough almost tactile sensation in the mouth. The harsh ones are from the seed and stems. The softer tannins are from oak. Harsh tannins can be softened with careful winemaking during the maceration period (skin contact).

Leather flavors in aged red wine is are to be expected. TANnin is used to TAN leather, so the smell is from the tannins. Leather tends to be more pronounced once the fruit has faded.

Tobacco - along with cedar and leather a product of well aged tannins.

Astringency: Different than tannins, this is the drying out of the mouth. It is due to the acidity in general.

Climatic Characteristics:

Hot weather - A deep rich flavor lacking in acidity or bright fruit. The hotter the region the more flabby (less acidic) the wines tend to be. Because of the overripe fruit, and the propensity to oxidize hot fruit, the color tends towards brown shades of red.

Cool weather - Long cool growing condition pronounce the fruit and the acidity. Tannins and color are low.

Temperate weather - If it is not too hot nor too cool, the ideal grape variety are those with long growing seasons, but thick skins to protect the fruit. Tannin and color are products of the grape skin.