Wine Glossary
Your complete reference for wine terminology. From vineyard to glass, understand the language of wine.
A
Acidity: Natural acids in wine (tartaric, malic, citric) that provide freshness, crispness, and balance.
Aeration: Exposing wine to air to allow it to “breathe” and develop aromas.
Aftertaste: Flavors and sensations that linger after swallowing wine; also called “finish.”
Aging: Process of storing wine to develop complexity and improve quality over time.
Alcohol by Volume (ABV): Percentage of alcohol in wine, typically 12-15% for most table wines.
Appellation: Designated wine-growing region with specific regulations (AOC in France, AVA in USA, DOC in Italy).
Aroma: Scents derived from grapes themselves (vs. bouquet from aging).
Assemblage: Blending of different wines to create final product, especially in Champagne and Bordeaux.
Astringent: Drying, puckering sensation in mouth from tannins.
AVA (American Viticultural Area): Designated wine region in United States.
B
Balance: Harmonious relationship between acid, tannin, fruit, alcohol, and sweetness.
Barrel: Oak container used for aging wine, typically 225 liters (59 gallons).
Barrel Fermentation: Fermenting wine in oak barrels rather than stainless steel, adds complexity.
Biodynamic: Farming approach using organic methods plus lunar cycles and specific preparations.
Blanc de Blancs: Sparkling wine made entirely from white grapes (usually Chardonnay).
Blanc de Noirs: White or sparkling wine made from red grapes (skins removed before fermentation).
Blend: Wine made from multiple grape varieties.
Body: Weight and fullness of wine in mouth (light, medium, or full-bodied).
Botrytis/Noble Rot: Beneficial fungus that concentrates sugars in grapes, used for sweet wines (Sauternes, Tokaji).
Bouquet: Complex aromas developed through aging (vs. aroma from grapes).
Brettanomyces/Brett: Yeast that creates barnyard, Band-Aid aromas; polarizing—some love, some hate.
Brut: Dry sparkling wine (0-12 grams/liter residual sugar).
Bung: Stopper sealing oak barrel.
C
Carbonic Maceration: Fermentation technique where whole grapes ferment in CO2, creates fruity, low-tannin wines (Beaujolais).
Cava: Spanish sparkling wine made in traditional method.
Cellaring: Storing wine for aging.
Champagne: Sparkling wine from Champagne region of France; method used elsewhere called “traditional method.”
Chaptalization: Adding sugar to grape must before fermentation to increase alcohol (legal in some regions).
Château: French wine estate, especially in Bordeaux.
Claret: British term for red Bordeaux wine.
Classified Growth (Cru Classé): Bordeaux châteaux ranked in 1855 classification.
Climat: Specific vineyard parcel in Burgundy with unique terroir.
Clone: Genetic variation of grape variety propagated by cutting.
Closed: Wine not showing expected aroma/flavor, needs time to open up.
Clos: Walled vineyard, especially in Burgundy.
Complex: Wine with multiple layers of aromas and flavors.
Cork Taint: Musty, moldy smell from contaminated cork (TCA).
Corked: Wine spoiled by cork taint (not the same as having cork in wine).
Côte: Slope or hillside vineyard area.
Crisp: Wine with refreshing, pronounced acidity.
Cru: Growth; indicates specific vineyard quality level (Premier Cru, Grand Cru).
Crush: Grape harvest season; also breaking grape skins.
Cuvée: Specific blend or batch of wine, especially Champagne.
D
Decanting: Pouring wine from bottle to another container to aerate or separate from sediment.
Demi-Sec: Off-dry sparkling wine (32-50 grams/liter residual sugar).
Density: Concentration of flavor and structure.
Disgorgement: Removing sediment from Champagne bottle after second fermentation.
Domaine: Wine estate, especially in Burgundy.
Dosage: Sugar solution added to Champagne after disgorgement.
Dry: Wine with little to no residual sugar (under 4 grams/liter).
E
Earthy: Flavors/aromas of soil, mushroom, forest floor, leather.
Eiswein/Ice Wine: Sweet wine from grapes frozen on vine, concentrating sugars.
Elegant: Wine with finesse, balance, and refinement.
Enologist/Oenologist: Wine scientist or winemaker.
Estate Bottled: Wine made from grapes grown on winery’s own land.
Extract: Concentration of dissolved solids giving wine body and texture.
Extra Brut: Very dry sparkling wine (0-6 grams/liter residual sugar).
F
Fermentation: Conversion of grape sugars to alcohol by yeast.
Filtering: Removing particles from wine before bottling.
Finish: Aftertaste length and character after swallowing.
Fining: Clarifying wine by adding substance that binds particles (egg white, bentonite).
Flabby: Wine lacking acidity, tastes flat or boring.
Foudre: Large oak cask, much bigger than standard barrel.
Fortified Wine: Wine with added spirits (Port, Sherry, Madeira).
Free-Run Juice: Juice flowing from grapes before pressing, higher quality.
Fruit-Forward: Wine emphasizing ripe fruit flavors.
G
Grand Cru: Highest vineyard classification in Burgundy and Alsace.
Grip: Textural sensation from tannins, provides structure.
Grower Champagne: Champagne made by vineyard owner (vs. large house).
H
Harvest: Picking ripe grapes, also called “vintage.”
Herbaceous: Herbal, grassy aromas and flavors.
Hot: Wine with excessive alcohol creating burning sensation.
I
IGT (Indicazione Geografica Tipica): Italian wine classification below DOC.
Integrated: Well-balanced wine where no component dominates.
J
Jammy: Very ripe, concentrated fruit flavors, almost cooked.
Jeroboam: Large bottle, 3 liters (4 standard bottles).
K
Kosher: Wine made according to Jewish dietary laws.
L
Label: Information on bottle describing wine, origin, vintage, producer.
Late Harvest: Wine from grapes picked very ripe, often sweet.
Lees: Dead yeast cells settling after fermentation; aging sur lie adds richness.
Legs: Wine streaks running down glass after swirling, indicates alcohol or sugar content.
Length: How long flavors persist after swallowing.
Lieu-Dit: Named vineyard plot in Burgundy, below Premier Cru.
M
Maceration: Skin contact with juice during/after fermentation, extracts color, tannin, flavor.
Maderized: Oxidized wine taking on Madeira-like character (usually a fault unless intentional).
Magnum: Large bottle, 1.5 liters (2 standard bottles).
Malolactic Fermentation (MLF): Secondary fermentation converting sharp malic acid to softer lactic acid, adds buttery character.
Méthode Champenoise/Traditional Method: Sparkling wine production method with second fermentation in bottle.
Minerality: Sense of stones, rocks, or minerals in wine (controversial term).
Moelleux: Off-dry to sweet Loire wine.
Monopole: Single-ownership vineyard.
Mousse: Bubbles in sparkling wine.
Must: Crushed grapes before/during fermentation.
N
Natural Wine: Wine made with minimal intervention, often no added sulfites.
Négociant: Wine merchant who buys grapes or wine from producers, especially in Burgundy.
New World: Wine regions outside traditional European areas (USA, Australia, South America, etc.).
Noble Grapes: Classic varieties (Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling).
Nose: Overall aroma and bouquet of wine.
NV (Non-Vintage): Wine blended from multiple years, common in Champagne.
O
Oaked: Wine aged in oak barrels, adds vanilla, toast, spice flavors.
Off-Dry: Slightly sweet wine (4-12 grams/liter residual sugar).
Old Vines: Vines typically 30+ years old, produces more concentrated fruit (no legal definition).
Old World: Traditional European wine regions (France, Italy, Spain, Germany, etc.).
Organic: Grapes grown without synthetic pesticides or fertilizers.
Oxidation: Exposure to air; can be intentional (Sherry) or fault (spoilage).
P
Passito: Italian wine from dried grapes, concentrated and sweet.
Pétillant: Lightly sparkling wine.
Phenolics: Compounds from skins/seeds including tannins and color.
Phylloxera: Vine louse that devastated European vineyards in 1800s.
Pomace: Grape skins, seeds, stems remaining after pressing.
Premier Cru: First growth; top classification below Grand Cru in Burgundy.
Press Wine: Wine from pressed grapes after free-run juice, more tannic.
Q
Quinta: Portuguese wine estate, especially in Port production.
R
Racking: Transferring wine from one barrel to another, leaving sediment behind.
Reserve: Term implying special quality (no legal definition in most regions).
Residual Sugar (RS): Unfermented sugar remaining in wine.
Riddling: Gradually rotating Champagne bottles to move sediment to neck for disgorgement.
Robe: Visual appearance of wine, color and clarity.
Rootstock: Root system onto which fruiting vine is grafted (often phylloxera-resistant).
Rosé: Pink wine from brief skin contact with red grapes.
Round: Smooth, full wine with balanced acidity and tannins.
S
Sec: Dry (but in Champagne, sec means off-dry: 17-32 g/L sugar).
Secondary Aromas: Aromas from fermentation and winemaking (oak, butter, bread).
Sediment: Solid particles settling in wine, especially aged reds.
Single Vineyard: Wine from one specific vineyard site.
Sommelier: Wine professional, especially in restaurants.
Spumante: Italian sparkling wine.
Structure: Framework of acidity, tannins, alcohol, and body.
Sulfites/SO2: Preservative added to most wines (also naturally occurring).
Super Tuscan: High-quality Italian wine outside traditional DOC regulations, often using Bordeaux grapes.
Sur Lie: “On the lees”; aging wine with dead yeast for added richness and complexity.
T
Table Wine: Basic quality level wine, everyday drinking.
Tannin: Phenolic compound from skins, seeds, stems, and oak creating astringent, drying sensation.
Tartrates: Harmless crystals (cream of tartar) sometimes forming in bottle.
TCA (Trichloroanisole): Chemical compound causing cork taint.
Terroir: Complete environment where grapes grow (soil, climate, topography, tradition).
Tertiary Aromas: Aromas from aging (leather, tobacco, earth, dried fruit).
Thin: Wine lacking body or concentration.
Toast: Charring inside oak barrel creating toasted flavors in wine.
Typicity: How well wine represents its grape variety or region.
U
Ullage: Air space in wine bottle or barrel; too much indicates possible oxidation.
Unfiltered: Wine bottled without filtration, may contain sediment.
Unoaked: Wine fermented/aged in stainless steel or concrete, no oak influence.
V
Varietal: Wine named for primary grape variety (75%+ in US).
Vegetal: Plant-like aromas (bell pepper, grass); can be positive or negative.
Vendange Tardive: Late harvest (French).
Veraison: Ripening stage when grapes change color.
Vignoble: Vineyard area.
Vigneron: Vineyard owner/manager who makes wine.
Village Wine: In Burgundy, wine from specific village appellation.
Vin de Pays: Country wine (France), now IGP.
Vinification: Winemaking process.
Vintage: Year grapes were harvested; also harvest itself.
Viticulture: Grape growing science and practice.
Vitis Vinifera: Species of wine grape.
W
Weight: Sensation of body and fullness in mouth.
Wine Fault: Flaw in wine (cork taint, oxidation, volatile acidity, etc.).
Winemaker: Person responsible for turning grapes into wine.
X
(No common wine terms begin with X)
Y
Yeast: Microorganism converting sugar to alcohol during fermentation.
Yield: Amount of grapes harvested per acre/hectare (lower often means higher quality).
Z
Zymology: Science of fermentation.
Quick Reference: Abbreviations
- AOC = Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée (France)
- AVA = American Viticultural Area
- DOC = Denominazione di Origine Controllata (Italy)
- DOCG = Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita (Italy, highest)
- IGP = Indication Géographique Protégée
- PDO = Protected Designation of Origin
- PGI = Protected Geographical Indication
- RS = Residual Sugar
- SO2 = Sulfur Dioxide
- TCA = Trichloroanisole (cork taint)
- VA = Volatile Acidity
- VdP = Vin de Pays
The 5 S’s (Wine Tasting)
- See: Visual examination
- Swirl: Aerate wine in glass
- Sniff: Smell aromas
- Sip: Taste wine
- Savor: Evaluate finish and overall impression
Master these terms and you’ll understand wine professionals, navigate wine lists confidently, and describe wines accurately. Bookmark this page as your go-to wine vocabulary reference!