Aromas vs. Bouquet

Is there a difference between a wines aroma and its bouquet? Yes there is a difference. Typically (at least to me) when I think of an aroma I think of its smell and when I think of a bouquet I think of flowers. However, when it comes to wine this would be wrong.

When talking of aroma and bouquets, you are naming two different things all together. An aroma can be broken into 3 categories:

1.) Primary Aromas: These are the varietal aromas, like what type of grape was used.

2.) Secondary Aroma: These are the aromas that develop as the wine ferments.
and

3.) Tertiary Aromas: These are the smells that are developed after the fermentation, and will further develop as the wine is being matured. How the wine is matured will also affect these aromas. If it is barrel aged it will take on a cedar, licorice, smoke, or toast flavor. If it is bottle aged then it can take on a nutty, sweet, or mushroom smell (in the best possible way.)


So a wines Bouquet is just the attributes it takes on after fermentation and depending on how it is stored afterwards to mature. These attributes or bouquets are the flavor tastes as described in the above 3rd Tertiary Aroma. So when describing a new wine one would shy away from the use of the word Bouquet while describing the aroma/smell of the wine, unless the wine is young and already developing those more mature flavors.