Glossary of Wine Terms
You can browse our topics using the letters below, or search for a term.
Word |
Description |
|---|---|
| Herbaceous | An aroma or flavor similar to green; often an indication of underripe grapes or fruit grown in a cool climate. |
| Hectoliter | A metric measure equal to 100 liters or 26.4 gallons. |
| Hectare | A metric measure equal to 10,000 square meters or 2.47 acres. |
| Haut | A French word meaning 'high.' It applies to quality as well as altitude. |
| Gruener Veltliner | A white grape popular in Austria that makes lean, fruity, racy wines. |
| Grenache | A hearty, productive red grape popular in southern France as well as in Spain, where it is called Garnacha. |
| Green | A term used to describe underripe, vegetal flavors in a wine. |
| Grand Cru | French for 'great growth;' the very best vineyards. |
| Gran Reserva | A Spanish term used for wines that are aged in wood and bottles for at least five years prior to release. |
| Graft | A vineyard technique in which the bud-producing part of a grapevine is attached to an existing root. |
| Gewuerztraminer | A sweet and spicy white grape popular in eastern France, Germany, Austria, northern Italy, and California. |
| Gamay | A red grape exceedingly popular in the Beaujolais region of France. |
| Fume Blanc | A name created by Robert Mondavi to describe dry Sauvignon Blanc. |
| Fortified Wine | A wine in which brandy is introduced during fermentation; sugars and sweetness are high due to the suspended fermentation. |
| Fining | Part of the clarification process whereby elements are added to the wine, i.e. egg whites, in order to capture solids prior to filtration. |
| Filtration | The process by which wine is clarified before bottling. |
| Fermentation | The process by which sugar is transformed into alcohol; how grape juice interacts with yeast to become wine. |
| Enology | The science of wine production; an enologist is a professional winemaker; an enophile is someone who enjoys wine. |
| Earthy | A term used to describe aromas and flavors that have a certain soil-like quality. |
| Dry | A wine containing no more than 0.2 percent unfermented sugar. |
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