The Vinquiry Napa facility, conveniently located in Napa at the intersection of Hwy. 29 and Redwood Rd., offers sensory evaluation services to the wine industry. Our sensory scientist, Sue Langstaff, will assist you in choosing the correct type of sensory test to fit your needs.

For the convenience of our Napa Valley clients, Vinquiry stocks a supply of fermentation products and specialty winemaking supplies. Please call ahead when picking up products so that we can ensure we have available what is needed. The lab at Vinquiry in Napa has expanded to offer basic lab analysis, fining, and microbiology services. Please call 707-259-0740 for further information on available sensory services, products, reagents, and lab analyses in Napa.

Vinquiry Napa
2025 Redwood Rd. Suite 9
Napa, CA 94558
Tel: 707-259-0740
Fax: 707-259-0760
info@vinquiry.com

Each of our custom designed programs will include one or more of the following sensory testing techniques or training services:

Descriptive Analysis
Descriptive analysis is a powerful and versatile technique. Trained and experienced judges objectively describe and rate sensory attribute intensities of wines for appearance, aroma, flavor, aftertaste and texture. This results in a sensory profile of the wine. Descriptive analysis techniques are used when there are large sensory differences among wine samples.

Discrimination Testing
Experienced judges evaluate wines in a controlled environment to determine if perceptible and significant differences exist between them. The duo-trio, triangle and paired-comparison tests are some of the difference tests used. These tests are used when there are very small differences between wines.

Wine Quality Evaluation
A panel of winemakers will evaluate the quality of your wines using a 20-point scale. Winemaking corrections will be recommended for low scoring wines.

Cork Aroma Evaluation
Still and sparkling wine corks can be screen for potential sensory defects prior to purchase.

Staff Sensory Training
Tasting room and winery staff can be trained to identify common aromas and flavors found in wine. Defect identification is also available.

TCA Threshold Testing
Determine an employee’s ability to detect various compounds (TCA, for example) and their level of sensitivity.

Reference Standards
Reference standards for various aromas in white and red wines, basic tastes and astringency are available. Standards for cork-related aromas – TCA, geosmin and methylisoborneol – are available in several different concentrations.

Wine Awakenings Kits
Each kit, packaged in an attractive box, includes fifteen 10mL bottles of liquid demonstrating specific key aromas accompanied by a booklet describing the associated aromas for each wine varietal, their origin, and a brief history of each grape variety. The following kits are available:
Wine Faults Kit
Chardonnay Kit
Pinot Noir Kit
Cabernet Sauvignon Kit