Wine Glossary

66 terms. Plain-English definitions based on owner-provided first-party material.

A

• ABV — Abbreviation for alcohol by volume, the standard measure of how much ethanol a wine contains, generally listed as a…
• Aeration — The process of exposing wine to air to allow it to open up and reveal its full range of aromas and flavors. Sometimes…
• Aftertaste — The taste or flavors that linger in the mouth after wine is swallowed. Also called the finish or length.
• Aging — The time during which wine components develop and integrate to produce the flavor profile intended by the winemaker.…
• Appearance — Refers to a wine's clarity and reflective quality when assessed visually. Common positive descriptors include clear,…

B

• Blanc de Blancs — French for white from whites. Most commonly used to describe a sparkling wine or Champagne made exclusively from white…
• Blanc de Noirs — French for white from blacks. A sparkling white wine made from red or dark-skinned grapes. The resulting wine may carry…
• Breathe — The interaction between air and wine, typically by allowing a poured glass or decanted wine to rest before drinking.…
• Brut — A general term for a dry Champagne or sparkling wine. Brut wines contain very little residual sugar and are among the…

C

• Capsule — The foil or protective covering that wraps around the cork and upper neck of a wine bottle, typically removed before…
• Cava — A sparkling wine produced in Spain using the traditional method of secondary fermentation in the bottle. Cava is most…
• Cellaring — The practice of storing wine, typically for a year or more, to allow it to develop and improve over time.
• Château — Originally a term for a wine estate in the Bordeaux region of France. Now used more broadly to describe a winery or…
• Classico — An Italian term used to designate wines from the historical or traditional center of a particular wine region, implying…
• Cooked — A wine fault term describing a dull, flat, or warm flavor that results from excessive heat exposure during shipping or…
• Cuvée — A blend or specially selected lot of wine. The term is widely used in Champagne and sparkling wine production to…

D

• Doux — A French term indicating the sweetest category of Champagne or sparkling wine, with a higher residual sugar content than…

E

• Earthy — A tasting descriptor for wines carrying aromas or flavors reminiscent of soil, earth, or forest floor. At moderate…
• Elegant — A descriptive term for a balanced, refined, and harmonious wine. Generally used as a positive assessment indicating…
• Estate Bottled — A label term indicating that the winery or vineyard that grew the grapes also vinified and bottled the wine. In the…
• Extra-Brut — The driest category of Champagne or sparkling wine, containing even less residual sugar than standard Brut.
• Extra-Dry — Despite its name, Extra-Dry Champagne and sparkling wine is slightly sweeter than Brut, sitting in the middle of the…

F

• Fermentation — The biochemical process by which yeast converts sugars in grape juice into alcohol and carbon dioxide, forming the basis…
• Filtering — A step in the wine-making process in which wine is passed through a filter medium to remove remaining particles, yeast,…
• Flute — A style of glassware commonly used for Champagne and sparkling wines, characterized by a tall, narrow shape with a small…
• Fortified Wine — A wine to which a distilled spirit, usually brandy, has been added, raising the alcohol content above that of standard…
• Full-bodied — A tasting term for a wine that feels rich and substantial in the mouth, often with higher alcohol, tannins, or residual…

G

• Grand Cru — A French wine classification term meaning great growth, used to designate the highest-ranked vineyards or wines within…
• Grand Reserva — The highest aging category in Spanish wine classification. In the context of Spanish wine regulations, red Grand Reserva…
• Grand Vin — French for great wine, used to identify the primary or flagship wine produced by a winery. Most often associated with…

H

• Hearty — A descriptive term for a wine that is full, warm, and robust, typically with higher alcohol content. Often applied to…

I

• Imperial — A large-format wine bottle holding the equivalent of eight standard 750 ml bottles, or approximately six liters.
• International Variety — A term for grape varieties cultivated across most major wine regions worldwide, regardless of their origin. Well-known…

J

• Jug Wine — An informal American term for inexpensive, everyday table wine typically sold in large-format containers. The term…

K

• Kosher Wine — Wine produced in accordance with Jewish dietary law and certified by a qualified rabbinic authority. The production…

L

• Landwein — A level in the German wine classification system, ranking just above the basic table wine (Tafelwein) category. Landwein…
• Length — A tasting term describing how long the flavors and impressions of a wine persist in the mouth after swallowing. Wines…

M

• Mature — Describes a wine that has reached its peak of development and complexity through aging, and is considered ready to…
• Méthode Champenoise — The traditional method of producing sparkling wine by inducing a second fermentation within the individual bottle,…

N

• New World — Refers to regions where wine-making developed more recently, including the United States, Australia, Argentina, and…
• Non-Vintage — A wine blended from grapes harvested in more than one year. Non-vintage wines allow the winemaker to maintain a…

O

• Oaky — A tasting term used to describe flavors or aromas imparted to a wine by the oak barrels in which it was aged. Common…
• Old World — Refers to wine-growing regions mostly in Europe where viticulture has the longest history. Wine-making practices are…
• Organic Wine — Wine produced from grapes grown without the use of synthetic chemical fertilizers, pesticides, or herbicides. Specific…
• Oxidized — A wine fault in which excessive exposure to air has degraded the wine, often resulting in a flat, nutty, or sherry-like…

P

• Private Reserve — A term used by wineries to suggest a higher-quality tier of wine. In the United States, the term is not legally…

Q

• QbA (Qualitätswein bestimmter Anbaugebiete) — A level in the German wine quality classification system meaning quality wine from a specific region. QbA wines must…
• QmP (Qualitätswein mit Prädikat) — The highest tier of the German wine quality classification system, meaning quality wine with distinction. QmP wines, now…

R

• Reserva — A Spanish wine classification indicating that the wine has met minimum aging requirements. As defined by Spanish wine…
• Reserve — A term used on wine labels in the United States and other countries to suggest a higher quality tier. Unlike Reserva in…
• Resveratrol — A natural antioxidant compound found primarily in red wine, occurring in grape skins. Some studies have explored…
• Rich — A tasting term for a wine with a pronounced, fruit-forward character and a full, generous finish. Often applied to wines…
• Riserva — An Italian wine classification term indicating that the wine has been aged for an extended period beyond the standard…

S

• Sherry — A fortified wine produced in the Jerez region of southern Spain. Sherry ranges from very dry (Fino, Manzanilla) to sweet…
• Split — A small wine bottle format holding approximately 6 oz., equivalent to one quarter of a standard 750 ml bottle. Commonly…
• Spumante — The Italian term for sparkling wine. Spumante wines are fully sparkling, as distinguished from frizzante wines, which…
• Sulfites — Sulfur dioxide compounds used as a preservative in wine to maintain freshness and provide antibacterial and antioxidant…

T

• Terroir — A French term describing the combined environmental factors that influence the character of a wine produced in a…

U

• Ullage — The small space of air between the wine and the top of the bottle, also referred to as headspace. A significant ullage…

V

• Vin de Pays — A level in the French wine classification system meaning country wine, ranking above the basic table wine category (Vin…
• Vin de Table — The most basic level of French wine classification, meaning table wine. Vin de Table wines have the fewest restrictions…
• Viniculture — The study and science of grape cultivation as it pertains to wine production, encompassing vineyard management, grape…
• Vino da Tavola — The most basic category in the Italian wine classification system, equivalent to table wine. Wines labeled Vino da…
• Vino de la Mesa — The most basic level of Spanish wine classification, equivalent to table wine, with minimal restrictions on origin or…
• Vintner — A term for a winery owner, wine producer, or wine merchant.

W

• Wine Label — The descriptive information affixed to a wine bottle that identifies key details such as producer, grape variety,…

Glossary definitions are based on owner-provided first-party material with editorial cleanup. Not copied from third-party glossaries, commercial wine education sites, or Wikipedia.