Random wine knowledge Flashcards
Teinturier
French word meaning literally ‘tinter’, or ‘dyer’, denoting wine grape varieties with pigmented flesh (e.g. Alicante Bouschet, Dunkelfelder and Saperavi). While most grape varieties have uncolored flesh - and give clear juice - the teinturier grapes have red-tinted flesh, and make significantly richer-colored wines. Originally used just as a blending component, some teinturier varieties are now used to make varietal wines, most notably Alicante Bouschet in Portugal and Spain.
Viognier
A rich, oily white wine that originated in the Northern Rhône and is rapidly growing in popularity in California, Australia, and beyond. Wines are often age in oak to deliver Chardonnay-like richness.
The white grape synonymous with the northern Rhône, Viognier also leads a dual life and is also found blended with Syrah in red wines both at home and abroad. On its own, Viognier produces golden-colored, aromatic white wines with pronounced stonefruit aromas (apricots and peaches are often cited) alongside a full-bodied and often textural palate. It is susceptible to high alcohol levels and low levels of freshening acidty.
Viognier berries are mid-to-late-ripening, often producing wines with a deep golden color. The variety’s ability to produce high levels of sugar also regularly lend a viscous quality to its wines alongside correspondingly high alcohol levels.
Viognier is primarily known for its heady aroma, often compared to apricots and similar stonefruits, including peaches and honeysuckle. Its wines can also be very herbal, with aromas of chamomile, lavender, thyme and even a hint of pine.
In aged examples and sweeter styles, this potentially overpowering herbal profile is softened by honeyed notes.
Verdicchio
Verdicchio is a white wine grape variety that has been cultivated for hundreds of years in the Marche region of central Italy. It is a versatile variety, used both for light, easy-drinking table wines, and for more complex, ageworthy examples. It is commonly lauded by critics as being one of Italy’s best white wine grape varieties, and is found in vineyards across the country.
Verdicchio’s fresh acidity and nutty palate profile make it a remarkably versatile wine, capable of pairing to a range of light foods and dishes, its trademark acidity and slight bitterness able to cut through (and complement) most fats. Suggested pairings include prawn and sweet potato fritters, broad-bean salad with peanut dressing and roasted flounder with lemon butter.
Autolysis
Autolysis in winemaking relates to the complex chemical reactions that take place when a wine spends time in contact with the lees, or dead yeast cells, after fermentation.
Carbonic Maceration
When grapes are placed in whole bunches into the vat, and ferment from the inside out without crushing them, this results in brighter, less tannic wines
What are the wine regions of France?
Alsace, Armagnac and Cognac, Beaujolais and Lyonnais, Bordeaux, Burgundy, Champagne, Corsica, Jura, Languedoc, Lorraine, Poitou-Charentes, Provence, Roussillon, Savoie and Bugey, South-West, Loire Valley, and the Rhône Valley.
Cinsault
One of the minor grapes found in Rhône blends and Provençal rosés; Cinsault delivers fresh, punchy reds that are just as floral as they are fruity. It’s classically paired with escargot. It has notes of bright, red berries and is a soft wine with lower tannins.
Cinsault is either made into rose, or used in blends with other grapes. It’s used in the chateauneuf-du-pape blend, as well as in other southern rhone blends. It’s also commonly used in Languedoc-Rousillion and Provence. It’s also used in other places internationally.
Pinot Noir
The dominant red wine grape of Burgundy, Pinot Noir is now adopted and adored in wine regions all over the world. The variety’s elusive charm has carried it to all manner of vineyards around the world and as of 2016, it was the sixth most-planted grape variety.
As a thick-skinned grape variety, Pinot Noir in very general terms has a moderate to high acidity, a low level of phenolic compounds, low to moderate levels of soft tannins and is paler in color than most other red wines.
The essence of Pinot Noir wine is its aroma of red berries and cherry (fresh red cherries in lighter wines and stewed black cherries in weightier examples). Many of the more complex examples show hints of forest floor.
malolactic fermentation
Also called malo or MLF, malolactic fermentation is a process where tart malic acid in wine converts to softer, creamier lactic acid (the same acid found in milk). The process reduces acidity in wine and also releases some carbon dioxide in the meantime.
This often happens right after alcoholic fermentation is finished, and can be blocked by the winemaker to achieve a crisp white wine.
sur lie
After fermentation, the dead yeast cells become a silty material called lees. There are gross lees, and fine lees, and they can be used for different reasons. The decision to remove them is often in pursuit of a very clean flavor. In Burgundy, the lees are sometimes stirred into the wine, which can impart a creamy, almost oaky flavor. This stirring is called batonage. Leaving wines on the lees provides richness and complexity.
Semillion
Sémillon is one of the wine world’s unsung heroes. The gold-skinned grape produces France’s most famous and revered sweet wines. Notably the long-lived and expensive dessert wines of Sauternes as well as some of the greatest dry white wines of Australia (specifically those of the Hunter Valley). And yet, few Sémillons between these two extremes attract much attention.
As a dry wine, Sémillon requires a unique set of conditions in which to make quality wine. Often lacking the acid required to balance its weight, Sémillon is often blended with Sauvignon Blanc. Muscadelle is also added to enhance the fruitiness of the white Bordeaux Blend. Intensely structured Sémillon wines may be barrel-aged, while fresher examples are typically fermented in stainless steel.
Bergerac
Bergerac is a wine region and appellation in South West France, covering an area along the Dordogne river. The wines are close in style to those of Bordeaux, around 100km (60 miles) to the west. They are also from Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon.
Despite the region’s long, varied history, Bergerac wines often play second fiddle to its famed neighbor. Today, the wines tend to be softer and less ageworthy than than most Bordeaux examples.
The climate here can be described broadly as maritime, although Bergerac’s inland location means that winters are colder and summers hotter than those of Bordeaux, closer to the Atlantic coast. This also means that there is less rainfall, and so vineyards are often planted on sites where the soil retains sufficient water to see vines through the drier growing seasons.
Pineau d’ Aunis
Pineau d’Aunis is a dark-skinned wine grape variety whose story began in the Loire Valley in the Middle Ages. Despite once being popular with royalty on both sides of the English Channel, the variety is now increasingly rare, and is limited to a role in the rosés and light reds of the central Loire.
In its pink form, Pineau d’Aunis has a zippy, crisp quality that will appeal to anyone who enjoys their pink wines lean and energetic. They often feature berry and citrus notes, great acidity, and a reasonable dose of minerality. I’ve never had an aged Pineau d’Aunis rosé but I suspect they might age beautifully.
In its darker form, Pineau d’Aunis wines can be quite profound, despite remaining relatively light-bodied. The grape can have some serious tannins if not handled well, and some of the lower-scoring reds below reflect somewhat unbalanced, aggressive tannins that are likely responsible for the grape’s more rustic reputation.
But when handled gently, and not overly extracted, Pineau d’Aunis offers a wonderful set of aromatics that include spice and incense, occasionally pepper, along with dried flowers. These are layered on bright forest berry flavors like elderberry or huckleberry, sticking more to the red end of the fruit spectrum than black. Provided they are not over-oaked or over-extracted, they can benefit from a slight chill, offering a refreshing but complex character and unique personality.
Chenin Blanc
As a white wine, Chenin Blanc has a wide range of flavors. Part of the reason for this has a lot to do with the winemaking style.
Dry: When the grapes are fermented dry and kept fresh, they produce a very lean, minerally style Chenin Blanc that offers up flavors of tart pear, quince, ginger, and chamomile.
Off-Dry: When some of the grapes’ natural sugars are left in the wine, you’ll taste richer flavors of ripe pear, ginger, jasmine, passion fruit, and honeycomb.
Sweet: Sweeter styles of Chenin Blanc have flavors of dried persimmon, toasted almond, mango, ginger, and mandarin orange.
Sparkling: Sparkling styles can range from dry (Brut) to sweet (Demi-Sec), with Chenin Blanc’s classic characteristics of quince, yellow apple, plum, ginger, and floral notes.
Most of the Loire’s significant acreage planted to Chenin Blanc is around the cities of Angers and Touraine. Intense, minerally white wines with green apple characters are most commonly associated with the Savennieres appellation of the former, while dry and semi-dry Vouvray wines of the latter are a little more tropical and honeyed in character.
Macaebo
Macabeo (or Viura in Rioja and neighboring Navarra) is a white wine grape used on either side of the Pyrenees – in the north and east of Spain and the southernmost reaches of France. A relatively versatile grape, it is used in still, sparkling, dry and sweet wines. There are few universal truths about how Macabeo tastes; the wines can be fresh, floral and aromatic when harvested sufficiently early and aged in stainless steel, but weighty, honeyed and nutty when aged in oak and harvested slightly later.
Spain is unquestionably Macabeo’s homeland, most obviously the northern regions. It is the principal ingredient in white wines from Rioja, where the locals call it Viura – as they do in neighboring regions, including Navarra.
Under the Macabeo name, it is found in almost every wine district of Catalonia, particularly in sparkling Cava wines, where it is blended with Parellada and Xarel-lo.
Southwards along the Mediterranean coast, Macabeo can be found in various areas, most notably Valencia, Yecla and Jumilla. In France (as Maccabeu) the variety is well respected but significantly less common, and limited almost exclusively to the southern parts of Languedoc-Roussillon.
