Copy of `Aroma Dictionary - Wines glossary`

The wordlist doesn't exist anymore, or, the website doesn't exist anymore. On this page you can find a copy of the original information. The information may have been taken offline because it is outdated.

Aroma Dictionary - Wines glossary Category: Food and Drink > Wines Date & country: 28/10/2013, USA Words: 242

Cap management
An important step in red winemaking where the cap is wetted with the fermenting juice during fermentation. This allows colour and tannins to be extracted from the skins into the fermenting wine. It is achieved in various ways including physically punching the skins down into the juice, pumping the juice back over the cap, pushing the cap down into the juice using wooden boards, or mixing the juice and skins by spinning a horizontal tank called a roto-fermenter.

browning
An undesirable change in the colour of white wines from straw or yellow to brown. Caused by the oxidation of white wine phenolics, the products of which absorb light at certain wavelengths resulting in a brownish appearance.

burnt
An undesirable 'cooked like' and bitter characters resulting from excessively hot fermentations.

Cap
The layer of grape skins that rises to the surface of red wine during its fermentation.

brix
A system favoured by US winemakers of measuring the amount of sugar present in grape juice. 1 Brix = 10g/L of sugar.

breathing
The practice of letting old red wines stand for a time after opening to reduce bottle staleness prior to consumption. No scientific evidence that it actually works or benefits the wine.

Brettanomyces
A wild yeast (Dekkera bruxullensis) that imparts aromas and flavours to red wines akin to barnyard, antiseptic, or band-aid. Considered a fault when in excess, but the yeast can impart a restrained complexing spicy and earthy character. Synonym Brett. (as Dekkera is often referred to as Brettanomyces)

bottle fermented
Refers to sparkling wine that has undergone a second fermentation in bottle. Known as Methode Champenoise as the method was instigated in Champagne.

blind tasting
A wine tasting where no aspect of the wine including its identity are known to the taster.

blush
A very pale rose or sparkling wine with a light pink appearance.

body
A wine's weight or fullness in the mouth due to a combination of its flavour, alcohol and in the case of red wines, tannin.

botrytised
affected by the good version of Botrytis cinerea.

big
Term used to describe full-bodied wines that are flavoursome, high in alcohol, and in the case of red wines, are high in tannin.

bitter
An unpleasant taste usually perceived at the back of the mouth after the wine is swallowed. Bitterness is usually caused by the accidental extraction of small molecular weight tannins from the skins and (particularly) seeds during the maceration stage of red winemaking.

blend
A combination of wines made from different grape varieties, regions or vintages. The aim of blending is to create a wine with better balance and/or consistency.

barrique
A small oak barrel of 225 litre capacity favoured for the production of high quality wines.

baum
A measure of the sugar content in unfermented grape juice. Each 1 degree Baume = 18 g/L of sugar, and when fermented will result in approximately 1% alcohol.

bead
The bubbles found in sparkling wines.

bentonite
A type of fine clay that is added to white wine during its making to remove proteins. This is done to minimise the chance that the proteins will denature and form a haze in the bottle when left in a warm place.

balance
In a balanced wine, no single component is either too dominant or lacking in intensity.

barrel fermention
The technique of fermenting grape juice (whites) or partially fermented wine (reds) in oak barrels rather than in stainless steel tanks. Imparts complex, integrated oak flavours, and in the case of whites also contributes to the creamy texture and complex cheesy like flavours.

barrel maturation
Storing wine in oak barrels after fermentation to impart complex oaky flavours and aromas, and to soften the astringency of red wines.

autolysis
The decomposition of yeast cells remaining after fermentation. Yeast autolysis may occur in barrel after barrel fermentation resulting in richer, more complex white wines with a creamier texture. Autolysis is also the process which results in the yeasty characters in bottle fermented sparkling wines.

backward
A wine that is developing in bottle at a slower than expected rate, and as a result are usually predicted to age slowly. Considered a positive feature of a wine. Strange really as few people actually cellar wines today. Nevertheless, a backward wine would be expected to take longer to reach optimum maturity.

attack
The initially impression of the intensity of the wine once tasted. Another wanky term which should be attacked! Favoured Synonym

austere
Term used for wines that have low levels of ripe fruit flavours and high acidity and/or tannins. The term usually describes lighter bodied, acidic white wines with subtle flavours. The term usually suggests a red wine with insufficient flavour and high acidity.

ascorbic acid
A common antioxidant related to Vitamin C which is added to wines during their making. Additive 300 on some wine labels.

astringency
The drying, roughing or puckering in-mouth sensations produced after tasting most red wines. It is caused by tannins which are extracted from the skins and seeds of red grapes during fermentation, or by the addition of commercial tannins by the winemaker. The red wine tannins react with the lubricating proteins in our saliva or in the pellicle that covers the mouth surfaces. We perceive the resultant loss of lubrication as a drying roughing sensation in the mouth known as astringency.

aroma
Traditionally refers to any scent in the wine that emanates from the grape. The more modern interpretation is any wine scent(s) regardless of where they are from the grape, oak, winemaking or maturation.

aromatic
Refers to floral and/or citrus characters or varieties which typically produced those characters. Examples of aromatic varieties are Riesling, Gewurztraminer and the Muscat family.

anthocyanin
The scientific name for the group of pigmented substances extracted from black grape skins that give red wine its colour.

antioxidant
Any chemical added by the winemaker which impedes oxidation. The most common antioxidant is ascorbic acid, designated as additive 300 on some wine labels.

aperitif
Any beverage served before a meal intended to stimulate the appetite. They include dry sherry and vermouth, and lighter bodied sparkling and botrytised wines.

ampelography
The study and classification of the grape vine family Vitis.

alcohol
Ethyl alcohol is a naturally occurring substance that is produced by the fermentation of grape sugars by yeast. Alcohol marginally adds to the fullness of wine and when in excess results in a warm or hot finish.

alcoholic
Term used to describe a wine that finishes with an unpleasant hotness due to excessive alcohol.

American Oak
Oak from the American White Oak tree (Quercus alba). Most American oak is sourced from the mid western states of the USA, particularly Missouri. Imparts vanillin and coconut characters, and is favoured for use in making full bodied red wines.

aggressive
A wine with excessive astringency accentuated by high acidity.

aftertaste
The residual flavours left in the mouth after a wine has been tasted. Synonym

acetic acid
One of the substances responsible for the volatile acidity fault in wines. It results in a vinegar aroma and a hot vinegary flavour. Caused by the action of the bacteria Acetobacter aceti and Acetobacter pasteuranus.

acidity
A tart like taste component of wine caused by the presence of (primarily) tartaric and malic acid. Wines with insufficient acidity taste flat, while those with high acidity taste excessively tart. Wines high in acid generally age more slowly as aging reactions are retarded under high acid conditions.

acetaldehyde
A substance responsible for the oxidised fault in table wines. Caused by the oxidation of ethyl alcohol it results in a bruised apple character in table wines. It is an important positive aroma/flavour component of some sherries.