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Decant:
To pour wine gently from a large container or from the
bottle in which crust or sediment has deposited, for the
purpose of obtaining clear wine for serving.
Demi-Sec / Semi-Dry:
Used to describe a fairly sweet sparking wine.
Dry:
Opposite of sweet, free of sugar. A wine becomes dry
when all sugar has been consumed by fermentation.
Fruity:
Having the fragrance and flavor of the grape, sometimes
used to designate tartness.
Generic Wine:
Wine type names (such as Burgundy, Chablis, Chianti,
Champagne) to denote that the wine is best described by
general type rather than by the major grape variety used
in its production. Generic wines are normally blends of
several grape varieties in which neither percentage nor the
character of any on variety dominates.
Magnum:
A large wine bottle with capacity of two ordinary bottles
Nose:
The name given to perceived odor of wine. It is composed
of aroma, bouquet and fer-
mentation
volatiles.
Nutty:
Term
denotes
the
charac-
teristic
flavor of
Sherry.
Racking
Decanting from
one large vessel to
another, be it a 225 liter oak barrel or a 10K liter stainless
steel tank. This process allows the wine to breathe and it
also clarifies the wine from the sediment.
Sec:
French word for “dry”
Sour:
Disagreeable acid from vinegar acid. A sour wine is
spoiled wine. Not to be confused with dry, astringent, or
tart.
Table wine:
Wine with an alcoholic content below 14%, suitable for
serving with meals at the table.
Tart:
Possessing agreeable acidity; in wine, tartness reflects the
content of agreeable fruit acids.
Varietal:
A wine that is named for the principal grape variety from
which it is made. In California, the law requires that any
varietals labeled wine must contain at least 75% of the
grape of which it is named.
Vintage wine:
Wine made from grapes that were harvested in one given
year. Regulations specify that a vintage wine must contain
at least 95% of its volume from grapes of
the year speci-
fied.