Plain-English definitions for the words you will actually hear in tasting rooms, on labels, and in wine writing - no jargon defined with more jargon. New to all of it? Start with Wine 101.
A
Acidity
The tart, mouthwatering quality in wine. High-acid wines taste bright and fresh; low-acid wines taste soft or flat. Acidity is what makes wine refreshing with food.
Aeration
Exposing wine to air - by swirling, decanting, or just time in the glass - to soften it and open up aromas.
Appellation
A legally defined growing region named on the label. In the US, see AVA.
Aroma
What the wine smells like. Most of what we call taste is actually aroma, which is why swirling and sniffing matter.
AVA
American Viticultural Area - a federally designated wine-growing region (Napa Valley, Russian River Valley, Willamette Valley). An AVA on the label means at least 85% of the grapes came from there.
B
Balance
When fruit, acid, tannin, alcohol, and oak all fit together with nothing sticking out. The most-praised quality in wine.
Barrel-aged
Matured in oak barrels, which can add vanilla, spice, and toast notes and soften the wine's texture.
Blend
A wine made from more than one grape variety. Many of the world's most famous wines are blends.
Body
The weight of the wine in your mouth, from light (like skim milk) to full (like whole milk).
Bordeaux blend
A red blend built from the classic Bordeaux grapes - chiefly Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc. Often labeled Meritage in the US.
Brix
The measure of sugar in grapes at harvest. Higher brix generally means riper fruit and more potential alcohol.
Brut
The standard dry style of sparkling wine. Extra brut is drier still; extra dry, confusingly, is slightly sweeter than brut.
C
Corked
Wine spoiled by a tainted cork, smelling like wet cardboard or musty basement. It is a flaw, not a vintage characteristic - a tasting room or restaurant will always replace a corked bottle.
Crush
Both the physical crushing of grapes and the whole harvest season ('during crush'). The most exciting time to visit wine country.
Cuvee
A particular blend or batch of wine, from the French. On sparkling labels it often denotes the house's signature blend.
D
Decanting
Pouring wine into another vessel to aerate it or separate it from sediment.
Dry
Not sweet - the sugar was fermented into alcohol. Most table wine is dry. Dry does not mean tannic or harsh.
E
Estate
On a label, wine made from grapes the winery grew on land it owns or controls within the same appellation - vineyard to bottle under one roof.
F
Fermentation
The process where yeast converts grape sugar into alcohol. The heart of winemaking.
Finish
How long the flavors linger after you swallow. A long finish is a hallmark of serious wine.
Flight
A set of several small pours served together for comparison - the standard format of a tasting.
Fortified
Wine with spirits added, like Port or Sherry - higher in alcohol, often sweet, usually served in small pours.
L
Late harvest
Sweet wine from grapes picked extra-ripe late in the season, concentrating their sugar.
Lees
The spent yeast left after fermentation. Aging 'on the lees' (sur lie) adds creamy, bready richness, especially in whites and sparkling wine.
Legs
The streaks wine leaves on the glass after swirling. They indicate alcohol and sugar - not quality, whatever the bar-stool wisdom says.
Library wine
An older vintage held back by the winery and released later - tasting one is a chance to try what age does.
M
Magnum
A 1.5-liter bottle, double the standard. Wine ages more slowly and gracefully in larger formats.
Malolactic fermentation
A secondary fermentation converting sharp malic acid to softer lactic acid - the source of the buttery character in many Chardonnays.
Meritage
The American term (rhymes with heritage) for a Bordeaux-style blend that meets certain rules.
Minerality
A taster's word for stony, chalky, or flinty impressions in wine - imprecise but universally used.
Must
Freshly crushed grapes - juice, skins, and seeds - before and during fermentation.
N
Noble rot
Botrytis, a beneficial mold that concentrates sugar in grapes for some of the world's great dessert wines.
O
Oaked / Unoaked
Whether the wine saw oak barrels. Oak adds vanilla, spice, and roundness; unoaked wines show purer fruit.
Old vine
Wine from notably old vineyards, which yield less fruit with more concentration. Common on Zinfandel labels; the term has no legal definition, so producer honesty varies.
R
Reserve
Implies a winery's better bottling, but has no legal meaning in the US - judge the wine, not the word.
Residual sugar
The sugar left after fermentation stops, measured in grams per liter. What makes off-dry and sweet wines sweet.
Rose
Pink wine, made by giving the juice brief contact with red grape skins. Almost always meant to be drunk young and cold.
S
Sediment
Harmless particles that settle in aged reds. Decant if you mind it; ignore it if you do not.
Single vineyard
Wine from one named vineyard site rather than blended sources - the label's way of saying this place matters.
Sommelier
A trained wine professional, usually in restaurants. In tasting rooms, your host may be one - ask them anything.
Sur lie
See lees - aging the wine on its spent yeast for texture and richness.
T
Tannin
The drying, grippy sensation in red wine, from grape skins and seeds and oak. Tannin is structure - it softens with age and marries beautifully with rich food.
Terroir
The complete natural environment of a vineyard - soil, slope, climate, fog - and the idea that you can taste the place in the wine. The reason wine travel exists.
V
Varietal
A wine named for its dominant grape (Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay). US law requires at least 75% of the named grape.
Vertical tasting
Tasting the same wine across multiple vintages - the clearest lesson in what a year does.
Vintage
The year the grapes were harvested. A 'vintage' sparkling wine comes from a single declared year.
Vinification
The whole process of turning grapes into wine.
Viticulture
The science and craft of growing wine grapes.
W
Wine club
A winery's subscription program shipping wine periodically to members, usually with member pricing and events. See our wine club guide.
Y
Yeast
The microorganisms that perform fermentation - wild or cultured, they shape the wine's character.
Hear a term we missed? Tell us and we will add it. Ready to put the vocabulary to work? Find a tasting room in the winery browser or near your city.