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Common Wine TermsCOMMON WINE TERMS This is by no means an all inclusive glossary of wine related words, however we have tried to include wine terms that you hear when you are tasting wines. ACIDITY: This is the quality of the wine that gives it its crispness and vitality. If the balance is off, the wine may be sharp (due to too much acidity) or too flat (due to not enough acidity). AFTERTASTE: This term refers to the taste left on the palate after the wine has been swallowed. AGING: This is the time required to allow a wine to mature. Red wines usually take longer than whites for this process. AGING BARREL: A barrel, often made of oak, used to age wine or distilled spirits. ALCOHOL: This word refers to a chemical compound, ethanol, found in alcoholic beverages. ANTIOXIDANT: This word refers to any agent that prevents oxidation. APPELLATION: This identifies where the grapes for a particular wine were grown. AROMA: The smell of a wine, generally applied to younger wines. ASTRINGENCY: This is the dry quality of a wine that makes your mouth pucker. It is usually found in young red wines,and lessens as the wine ages. BALANCE: This wine term refers to the combination of all the components of wine: fruit, acid, tannin and alcohol. When a wine is well balanced, it produces a harmonious and satisfying sensation. BARREL: A hollow cylindrical container used for fermenting and aging wine. It is sometimes called a cask. BLENDING: Wine makers mix 2 or more different parcels of wine together to produce a wine that is ready to be bottled. There are laws that say which wines can be blended together and how the bottle is labeled. BLIND TASTING: This wine term refers to tasting and evaluating a wine without knowing what it is. BODY: The body of a wine refers to its weight and fullness in your mouth. BOUQUET: This is the wine term used for mature wines to describe their aroma. BRIGHT: This term describes a wine that has a high clarity, as it has few suspended solids. CELLARING: In order to age wine or store it, you can cellar it in any area that is cool (12 to 15 C), dark and free from vibrations. Bottled wines are cellared on their sides. CHARACTER: This is what makes a wine instantly recognizable by tasting. DESSERT WINE: This is a sweeter wine with richer and riper flavors. They are usually made from grapes that have been left on the vine later in the season, and are called late harvest dessert wines. DRY: Wines that have zero or very low levels of residual sugar are termed dry. FINISH: This is the lingering aftertaste when a wine has been swallowed. HORIZONTAL TASTING: This is an interesting way to compare different wines of the same vintage. ICEWINE: This is a wine produced from frozen grapes. MID-PALATE: This is a tasting term for the feel and taste of a wine when it is held in your mouth. NOSE: A wine taster noses a wine in order to smell the aroma or bouquet. OFF DRY: These wines are also referred to as semi-dry or medium dry. They have a hint of sweetness. RESERVE: When you see this term on a bottle of wine, it indicates that it is of a higher quality than usual. TANNINS: Tannins are acids found in wine that give it a bitter, dry or puckery feel in the mouth. Tannins are usually associated with red wines, but are present to some degree in all wines. TART: This is a tasting term that describes a wine that is high in acidity. TASTING FLIGHT: This refers to a selection of wines, usually between 3 and 8 glasses, that are presented for the purpose of sampling and comparison. TEXTURE: Texture refers to the feel of the wine on the palate. VARIETAL WINE: This refers to wine made from a single grape variety. VERTICAL TASTING: This is a comparison of different vintages of the same wine. VINTAGE: The vintage of a wine refers to the year in which its grapes are harvested. When a vintage year is indicated on the label,it signifies that all the grapes used were harvested in that year. VITICULTURAL AREA: This is a defined geographical boundary identifying where grapes are grown. WINE TASTING: Wine tasting is the sensory evaluation of wine, looking at more than taste. The mouthful, aroma and color are a major part of the experience.
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