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M –

maderization

Occasionally madeirization, is the process by which a wine is made to taste like Madeira, involving mild oxidation over a long period and, usually, heat.

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W –

Weissherbst

Is by German law a rosé wine at least 95% of which is made by direct pressing of a single red wine grape variety named on the label (Spätburgunder and Portugieser are especially common).

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M –

maître de chai

Term often used in France, particularly in Bordeaux, for the cellermaster, as opposed to the régisseur, who might manage the whole estate, or certainly the vineyards.

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S –

Sassicaia

One of the first Italian reds made in the image of fine red bordeaux.

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V –

Vougeot

Small village in the Côte de Nuits district of Burgundy producing red wines from the Pinot Noir grape. The name is derived from the diminutive of Vouge, a small stream flowing through the village. The village's fame rests squarely with the 50.6 ha Grand Cru, Clos de Vougeot.

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C –

copper

A micronutriment required in very small concentrations for healthy vine growth.

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S –

Süssreserve

German term for sweet reserve, the unfermented or part-fermented must much used in the 1970s and 1980s to sweeten all but the finest or driest German wines.

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R –

right bank

An expression much used of that part of the Bordeaux wine region that is on the right bank, or north, of the river Dordogne. It includes, travelling down river, Castillon Côtes de Bordeaux, Francs Côtes de Bordeaux, St-Émilion and its satellite appellations, Pomerol and Lalande-de-Pomerol, Fronsac and Canon-Fronsac, Bourg, and Blaye.

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É –

élevage

When applied to wines, it means the series of cellar operations that take place between fermentation and botteling.

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B –

Beaune

Vinous capital of Burgundy giving ist name to the Côte de Beaune sction of the Côte d'Or.

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C –

chambré

French word also used in English to describe a wine that has been deliberately warmed to room temperature before serving.

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B –

botte

Italian word for a large wooden cask. The plural is botti.

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P –

pigeage

French term for punching down, the winemaking operation of breaking up and submerging the cap of skins and other solids during red wine fermentation to stop the cap from drying out.

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H –

harvest

Both the process of picking ripe grapes from the vine and transferring them to the winery, and ist occasionally festive, if frenetic, duration.

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M –

microclimate

Widely misused term meaning strictly the climate within a defined and usually very restricted space or position. In viticulture, it might be at specific positions between rows of vines, or distances above the ground.

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L –

liquoreux

French term meaning "syrupy sweet" used for very rich, often botrytized, wines that are markedly sweeter than moelleux wines.

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O –

oak ageing

The process of ageing a wine in contact with oak. This typically involves barrel maturation, ageing the wine in a relatively small oak container.

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F –

flétri

French term used to describe grapes which have been dried, or partially dried, before fermentation to increase the sugar content. It is used most commonly in Switzerland and occasionally in the Valle d'Aosta.

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D –

diatomaceous earth

Widely used in filtration, is a naturally occuring, highly porous, chalky textured sedimentary rock made mainly of silica and consisting of fossilized remains of diatoms, a type of hard-shelled algae.

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S –

St-Aubin

Village in the Côte de Beaune district of Burgundy's Côte d'Or tucked out of the limelight between Meursault and Puligny-Montrachet. A high production, two-thirds, of the vineyards area is designated premier cru, notably Les Charmois, La Chantenière, En Remilly and Les Murgers Dents de Chien.

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P –

pomace

In white winemaking, the pomace is the sweet, pale brownish-green mass of grape skins, stems, seeds and pulp left after pressing. In red winemaking, the pomace is coloured blackish red.

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B –

botrytis bunch rot

A fungal diseases which has the greatest potential effect on wine quality. The malevolent form is grey rot, the benevolent form is noble rot.

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B –

Burgundy

Known as Bourgogne in French, province of eastern France famous for ist great red and white wines produced mostly from Pinot Noir and Chardonnay rapes respectively.

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T –

Tokaj

According to the 2005 wine legislation, the following types of wine are produced in Tokaj: Dry and semi-dry; These are wines vinified from overripe grapes and matured only briefly. Matured dry wines; botrytis is undesirable. Szamorodni; Comparable to that of Beerenauslese. They are fermented dry or sweet and subjected to subtle maturation under a film-forming yeast. Very like the Jura's Vin Jaune. Sweet Aszù wines; Traditionally, the concentration of wines is measured by the number of puttonyos of Aszù grapes. Essencia; The free-run juice of hand-picked botrytized berries with a sugar content of over 450g / l also 800g and more. Essencia takes years to achieve a modest alcohol level of 4-5%.

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D –

Domaine de la Romanée-Conti

The most prestigious wine estate in Burgundy, based in Vosne-Romanée. The Domaine, as it is frequently called, is co-owned by the de Villaine and Leroy families and produces only Grand Cru wines.

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