soupcon

soupcon [supˈsɔ, ˈsupsɔ] n.



1.) A suspicion; a suggestion; hence, a very small portion; a taste; as, coffee with a soupcon of brandy; a soupcon of coquetry (GNU Collaborative International Dictionary of English).

Etymology: French, from Old French sospeçon, suspicion, from Latin suspectio, suspection-, fear, from suspectus, past participle of suspicere, to suspect.

"— Miles: Let me show you how this is done. First thing, hold the glass up and examine the wine against the light. You're looking for color and clarity. Just get a sense of it, okay?
— Jack: Okay.
— Miles: Thick, thin, watery, syrupy? Okay?
— Jack: Okay.
— Miles: All right. Now, tip it. What you're doing here is checking for color density as it thins out towards the rim. That's going to tell you how old it is, among other things. It's usually more important with reds. Okay?
— Jack: Okay.
— Miles: Stick your nose in it.
— Jack: [smells wine] Okay.
— Miles: Don't be shy. Really get your nose right in there, really. [smells wine deeply] Mm, a little citrus, maybe some strawberry. Passion fruit, and oh there's just like the faintest soupcon of like asparagus and there's just a flutter of like a nutty Edam cheese.
— Jack: Wow. [smells again] Strawberries, yeah...strawberries. Not the cheese" (Sideways, Jim Taylor and Alexander Payne, 2004).