Acids
Present in all grapes and an essential component of wine, acidity
imparts a crisp, refreshing character to wine, contributes structure,
prolongs the aftertaste and acts as a preservative, allowing
wine to mature.
Aeration
This process of encouraging the wine to absorb oxygen is also
called breathing. Simply pulling the cork out of a bottle does
not allow for sufficient since air contact; decanting or even
swirling the wine in a glass are preferred methods. The goal
is to allow the wine to open up and develop, releasing its aromas
into the air. Ten to thirty minutes aeration can help open tight
young red wines that are meant to age. Some wines can also develop
off-odors or a bottle stink that blows off with a few minutes
of aeration. Since older (15+ years) red wines are more delicate
and can lose their fruit during aeration, aeration is not recommended;
the wines can evolve quite quickly in the glass.
Alcohol
Ethyl alcohol is produced during fermentation. Alcohol adds
body and a perception of sweetness to wine.
American Oak
Oak grown in American forests is increasingly popular as an
alternative to French oak for making barrels thanks to its relatively
low cost (American oak barrels are about half the price of French
oak barrels). In contrast with French oak, American oak can
have more pronounced vanilla, dill and cedar notes; it is used
primarily for aging more intensely flavored wines such as Cabernet,
Merlot and Zinfandel.
Appellation
Defines the area where a wine's grapes were grown, such as Bordeaux,
Chianti, Alexander Valley or Russian River Valley. Wines are
frequently named after the appellation especially in Old World
regions. Regulations vary widely from country to country and
sometimes from appellation to appellation.
Appellation D'Origine Contrôlée (AOC or AC)
The French system of appellations, begun in the 1930s, is considered
the wine world's prototype. To carry an appellation in this
system, a wine must follow rules regulating the area in which
the grapes are grown, varieties used, ripeness at harvest, alcoholic
strength, vineyard yields, irrigation and various techniques
used in grapegrowing and winemaking.
Balthazar
An oversized bottle, which holds the equivalent of 12 to 16
standard bottles.
Barrel Fermented
Denotes wine that has been fermented in small casks (usually
55-gallon oak barrels) instead of larger tanks. At the cost
of additional labor, barrel fermentation may increase body and
add complexity, texture and flavor. The process is used mainly
for white wines.
Blanc de Blancs
"White of whites," meaning a white wine made from
white grapes, most often used to describe sparkling wines made
from Chardonnay.
Blanc de Noirs
"White of blacks," white wine made from the black
grapes, Pinot Noir or Pinot Meunieur. To avoid extracting color
from the skins, the juice is quickly pressed from the grapes
and fermented without skin contact. The wines can have a pale
pink hue and has some of the red berry fruit and fuller body
normally associated with red wines.
Botrytis Cinerea
"Noble rot" is the common name for Botrytis cinerea,
a beneficial mold that grows on ripe white wine grapes in the
vineyard under specific climatic conditions. The mold dehydrates
the grapes, leaving them shriveled and raisin-like and concentrates
the sugars and flavors. Wines made from these berries have a
rich, complex, honeyed character and are often high in residual
sugar. Botrytis contributes the unique, concentrated flavors
in such wines as BA and TBA Riesling from Germany, Sauternes
from Bordeaux, Aszu from Hungary's Tokay district and an assortment
of late-harvest wines from other regions.
Bottle Sickness
Also known as bottle stink due to the unpleasant odor sometimes
caused by sulfur. Usually blows off with decanting.
Bottled By
Means the wine could have been purchased ready-made and simply
bottled by the brand owner, or made under contract by another
winery. When the label reads "produced and bottled by"
or "made and bottled by" it means the winery produced
the wine from start to finish.
Brut
Designates a relatively dry Champagne or sparkling wine, brut
is the driest wine made by many producers. The scale, from driest
to sweetest is: Extra Brut, Brut, Extra-Dry, Sec, Demi-Sec and
Doux.
Cask Number
A term sometimes used to designate special wines, as in Stag's
Leap Wine Cellars Cask 23, but often applied to ordinary wines
to identify a separate lot or brand. Synonymous with bin number.
Chapitalization
The addition of sugar or concentrated grape must to grape juice
before fermentation is complete. The goal is to boost the meager
sugar levels found under-ripe grapes and the alcohol levels
in the subsequent wines. Chaptalization is not uncommon in northern
European countries, where cold climates may keep grapes from
ripening completely, but it is forbidden in southern Europe
(including southern France and all of Italy) and California.
Charmat
Bulk production method for sparkling wine in which the wines
undergo secondary fermentation in large stainless steel tanks
and are later bottled under pressure. Also known as the "bulk
process."
Cold Stabilization
A clarification technique that can prevent the formation of
crystals in wine bottles. Prior to bottling, the wine's temperature
is lowered to approximately 30æF for two weeks, causing the
tartrates and other solids to precipitate out of solution. The
wine is then easily racked off—separated from—the
solids.
Crush
Harvest season when the grapes are picked and brought into the
winery to be pressed; fermentation is usually started after
crushing the berries.
Cuvee
A blend or special lot of wine.
Decant
A technique, which removes sediment from wine before drinking.
After allowing the sediment to settle by standing the bottle
upright for the day, the wine is poured slowly and carefully
into another container leaving the sediment in the original
bottle.
Demi-Sec
A term describing sweetness in Champagne. It can be misleading;
although demi-sec literally means "half-dry", demi-sec
sparkling wines are usually slightly sweet to medium sweet.
The scale, from driest to sweetest, is: Extra Brut, Brut, Extra-Dry,
Sec, Demi-Sec and Doux.
Enology
The science and study of and winemaking. Also spelled oenology.
Estate-Bottled
Originally used to describe wines made entirely by the producer
from vineyards owned by the winery and contiguous to the winery
"estate." Today it indicates that the winery controls
the grapes—through vineyard ownership or a long-term lease
to purchase the grapes—and makes the wine from crushing
to bottling.
Extra-Dry
A common sparkling wine term not to be taken literally; most
wines labeled extra-dry are slightly sweet. The scale, from
driest to sweetest, is: Extra-Brut, Brut, Extra-Dry, Sec, Demi-Sec
and Doux.
Fermentation
The process in which yeast metabolizes grapes sugars, producing
alcohol and carbon dioxide and transforming grape juice into
wine.
Filtering
Pumping wine through a screen or pad to remove leftover grape
and fermentation particles. Most wines are filtered for both
clarity and stability, although many winemakers believe that
some flavors and complexity are also stripped from the wine.
Fining
A technique for removing suspended particulates that can make
wine hazy or add undesirable aromas. A fining agent such as
bentonite (powdered clay) or egg whites is added to the top
of a tank or barrel full of wine. As the fining agent travels
down through the wine, it combines with the suspended particulates.
Once the sediment has settled at the bottom of the container,
it is easy to rack off the wine.
Fortified
Indicates wine whose alcohol content has been increased by the
addition of brandy or neutral spirits. Port and sherry are two
examples.
French Oak
The traditional wood for wine barrels is oak grown in French
forests. The barrels impart vanilla, cedar and sometimes butterscotch
flavors. Pricey compared to barrels made from American oak;
French oak costs upwards of $600 per barrel vs. $250 for American.
Grown, Produced and Bottled
On U.S. labels, means the winery handled all aspects of wine
growing, making and bottling.
Half-Bottle
Holds 375 milliliters or 12.5 ounces; equivalent to three small
glasses of wine.
Imperial
A large format bottle holding six liters; the equivalent of
eight standard 750ml bottles. The Bordelaise equivalent of Burgundy's
Methuselah.
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Jéroboam
The Bordelaise use this term for large format bottles holding
4.5 liters or the equivalent of six bottles. In Burgundy and
Champagne, the Jéroboam is the same size as Bordeaux's
double magnum and holds 3 liters or four bottles of wine.
Late Harvest
On U.S. labels, indicates that a wine was made from grapes
picked later and at a higher sugar level (Brix) than normal.
Usually associated with botrytized and other sweet wines.
Lees
Sediment composed of expired yeast cells and grape solids
that settles at the bottom of a barrel or tank during and
after fermentation. White wine is often aged "on its
lees" to gain additional complexity.
Maceration
Used primarily in making red wine, the process of steeping
grape skins and solids in wine after fermentation, when alcohol
acts as a solvent to extract color, tannin and aroma from
the skins (aided by heat, alcohol, the amount of skin contact
and time). Cold maceration, (steeping when the must is not
heated) takes place before fermentation.
Made and Bottled By
On U.S. labels, indicates only that the winery crushed, fermented
and bottled a minimum of 10 percent of the wine in the bottle.
Magnum
A large format bottle that holds 1.5 liters.
Meritage
California vintners invented this term for their Bordeaux-style
red and white blended wines. The grapes approved to use this
term are the classic Bordeaux varieties: for reds, they are
Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petite Verdot
and Malbec; for whites, Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon.
Méthode Champenoise (Méthode Traditionelle)
The traditional method for making high-quality sparkling wine
in which the secondary fermentation, which creates the bubbles,
occurs inside the bottle. Required in Champagne.
Methuselah
An extra-large bottle holding 6 liters; the equivalent of
eight standard bottles. The Burgundian equivalent of Bordeaux's
Impériale.
Must
The unfermented juice of grapes before it is converted into
wine.
Nebuchadnezzar
A giant wine bottle holding 15 liters; the equivalent of 20
standard (750ml) bottles.
Négociant (Négociant-Éleveur)
French wine merchants who buy grapes, must or wine and bottle
the final product under their own label. The term éleveur
indicates that the négociant oversees the wine at least
from right after fermentation all the way to bottling. Most
commonly found in Burgundy where individual vineyard holdings
are small and the négociant offers significant economies
of scale. Two well-known examples are Joseph Drouhin and Louis
Jadot.
Nonvintage
Blended from more than one year's grapes. Many Champagnes
and sparkling wines are nonvintage; this allows the vintner
to keep a house style from year to year. Most Sherry and Port
is also nonvintage.
Nouveau
Light, fruity red wine bottled and sold as soon as possible
after fermentation, meant to be drunk up quickly. Applies
mostly to Beaujolais.
Phylloxera
Tiny root lice that attack vitis vinifera roots, eventually
killing the vine. The disease was widespread in both Europe
and California during the late 19th century, and returned
to California in the 1980s.
Private Reserve
This description, along with Reserve, once stood for the best
wines a winery produced, but because it lacks a legal definition
many wineries use it or a spin-off (such as Proprietor's Reserve)
for rather ordinary wines. Depending upon the producer, it
may still signify excellent quality.
Produced and Bottled by
Indicates that the winery crushed, fermented and bottled at
least 75 percent of the wine in the bottle.
Rehoboam
Large format bottle equivalent to 4.5 liters; equivalent to
six regular bottles. The Burgundian equivalent of the Bordelaise
Jéroboam.
Salamanazar
A large format bottle holding 9 liters, the equivalent of
12 regular (750ml) bottles.
Tannin
Wine component—found mostly in red wines—derived
primarily from grape skins, seeds and stems, but also from
oak barrels. Tannin acts as a natural preservative that helps
wine age and develop. Excessive, unbalanced tannin can taste
bitter and leaves the same drying, furry sensation in the
mouth as very strong tea. Common tannin descriptors include
smooth, velvety, mouth-drying and rough.
Tartaric Acid
The principal acid in grapes and wine; contributes to taste
and stabilizes color. Unlike malic acid, tartaric acid does
not decline as grapes ripen. Tartaric acid can precipitate
out of solution in bottled wine to form harmless tartrate
crystals resembling shards of glass.
Tartrates
Harmless crystals resembling shards of glass that may form
during fermentation or bottle aging (often on the cork) as
tartaric acid naturally present in wine precipitates out of
solution. Components of tartaric acid, including potassium
bitartrate and cream of tartar, they are less soluble in alcoholic
solutions than in grape juice and solidify at cooler temperatures
(such as those found in a refrigerator); can be avoided in
finished wines through decanting. Cold stabilization and careful
pouring can prevent transferring the crystals from the bottle
into the glass.
Viniculture
The science or study of making wine. Contrast with viticulture.
Vintage
Indicates the year in which the grapes were grown. For vintage
dated wines made in the United States, 95 percent of a wine
must come from grapes that were grown and picked in the stated
calendar year. In the southern hemisphere where the grapes
may grow in the year preceeding a February through March harvest,
the vintage date refers to the year of harvest. Also refers
to the time of year in which the harvest takes place.
Vintner
Literally a wine merchant, but generally used to mean wine
producer or winery proprietor.
Viticulture
The science or study of wine grapes. Contrast with viniculture.
Yeast
Micro-organisms that convert sugar to alcohol and carbon dioxide
in the process known as fermentation.
The predominant wine yeast, saccharomyces cerevisiae, is the
same micro-organism that ferments beer and makes bread dough
rise. Three categories of yeasts are common, including cultured,
natural and wild.
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