WINE WORDS YOU NEED TO KNOW

Hello everyone and welcome back to my wine diary, the channel where everything is related to wine. Have you ever caught yourself on listening to some wine experts talk or looking at a wine bottle and having no clue what the words on it actually meant? If so, this video is for you and keep But of course, before we jump into today's video, please consider subscribing to my channel. The subscription button is right down below together with that notification bell that will allow you to get notifications of my new videos coming out every single week. If you like this video at the end or through the video itself, make sure to click on the like button as well. Now that I'm done with all of these formalities, let's go ahead and jump right in. Now I will do my best to place these words in alphabetic order for you so it's a little bit easier for your brain to comprehend, but we cannot start building our wine vocabulary until we describe the very first one that everyone needs to know and that is ABV or ALC. So what does that mean when you see it on the bottle? It's usually followed by a percentage. So ABV means alcohol by volume, ALC clearly means alcohol and the percentage range is usually between 11 to 15%. So what that really means is not only that the 15% ABV wine will get you 4% drunker than the 11% ABV wine, it also means that that wine with 15% will be a bigger wine. We will talk about the term big in just a moment too, but bigger wines basically means that they have a fuller, bigger body to them and then the lower ABV or lower ALC wines are usually lighter, they're crispier and much, much easier on your palate. The second wine word that you need to know is acidity. So you've all tasted citrus before. If you have, that's what acid is. That's what acidity is. And the presence of acidity is super important when talking and describing wine. So its presence in wine is just as important as the lack of thereof. So if there's no acidity in wine, we may have a little bit of an issue here. So wines with higher acidity like Pinot Noir or Riesling, for example, are also good wines to keep in your cellar for the longer time. So the higher acidity, the longer the longevity of that wine supposedly is. So don't be afraid of storing those and keeping them for a few years. Our wine word number three that everyone needs to know is age or aging. Now that one is super important. So let's pause here for a little bit longer. Wine is not milk. It's not something that's going to turn bad on you in a few weeks or a few months or years. However, depending on how old that wine is, it will perform and it will taste differently. Matter of fact, it's one of the most beautiful things about wine is its ability to age gracefully. So that's why a lot of times we refer to, in general, other older beautiful things in life as aged as a fine wine. So aging your wines will make acids, alcohol, and all the other compounds in wine interact in very different manner with each other, in between each other. So really it all depends on many factors when it comes to what wine ages better than others. Eventually the taste, the smell of wine, even the color of wine can be affected by aging as well. And those factors that I've mentioned when it comes to whether to age a wine or not will of course be your amount of acids, the grape varietal, the amount of tannins is a huge one. That's why wines like Cabernet Sauvignon age perfectly. So all of that will greatly affect the aging capabilities of your wine. The next wine word that everyone needs to know is that word big. So big is something that I referred to earlier with our first or second word on the list. So big is usually a term that's associated with red wine versus your white wine. So by saying big wine, what we usually mean is heavy, juicy, very high in alcohol, sometimes even sweet wine. So good examples of big wines would be Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, or Shiraz for instance. The next word on our list is the word blend. So a lot of times on wine bottles, you will see red blend. So what blend is, is exactly what it sounds. It basically means that a few or more than one grape varietal were mixed together to create a fruitier, maybe smoother type of wine. So a lot of times the main grape varietals in blends are Merlot or Cabernet Sauvignon. So the two usually compliment each other pretty well. And a lot of times they're added to other grape varietals to create some absolute new, beautiful concoction. Next up is the wine word body. So what do we mean when we describe the body of wine? So imagine if you had a friend who is light in body sitting on your lap versus a full bodied friend who'd be a little bit heavier on your lap. So technically when we talk about bodies in wine, it's about the same thing. So we go anywhere from light body to medium bodied and full bodied wines. So your white wines for the most part will be on the lighter to medium side of the body. And then your red wines will most likely, again, that's just statistics, will go onto the medium to full body type as well. Another good indicator of wine body is the percentage of alcohol or that ABV, the very first word that we talked about. So if your wine is say below 13 to 13.5% ABV, most likely it will go on the lighter body type. And then if you cross the 13 to 15 and higher ABV content, then most likely you will have medium to full body wine. Two other factories that help us to determine what body a wine has is of course the way it feels in your mouth. So your light body wines will be a little bit crisper, they will be lighter in taste, a little bit lighter on your palate, and your medium to full bodied wines will be much stronger, heavier. Imagine them coating your mouth completely and leaving a lot of flavor behind. And last but not least here is of course the color of wine. So you can imagine where I'm going with this here. Lighter colored wines, whether it's red, that's kind of translucent and seen through, will be on the lighter side, lighter to medium. Or say if it's a dark red wine where you pick up the glass, you can barely even see through, will most likely be a full bodied wine. So examples of those again are Shiraz or Syrah or Malbec Cabernet Sauvignon. So those are a lot of times, most of the times actually are full bodied wines. However, a little discrepancy here, there are some full bodied white wines as well. So think about your Chardonnay, for instance. Chardonnays can vary from medium body to full body as well. And there are plenty of full body, beautiful, big Chardonnays out there that you can totally eat with your steak, eat with any meat. So don't listen to just the basic rule of thumb. Always try your wine, see how they feel and determine for yourself whether they're light, medium or full bodied. The next wine word that everyone needs to know is the word corked. So unlike what you may think, it doesn't actually mean if the wine has a cork in it, meaning like, is it sealed with a cork or is it a screw top? So no, that's not what we call cork. Neither does the word corked actually mean that as you open the bottle, there is some cork still swimming in it. We don't call that wine corked. All right. If you're ready for it, corked wine is the wine that actually has some damage from the cork. So remember if there has been any time where a waiter would bring you your wine and pour you a little bit to try first. So guess what? That's exactly why they're doing that. They want you to see if that wine has been corked or affected by the cork. So cork spoilage can greatly affect our wines. And all you do when the sommelier or your waiter is bringing you that wine, you smell and you taste it to see if there is any cork damage or if that wine is corked. So if you see any notes of like dirty sock smell or rubber smell, maybe a super vinegary taste when you taste that wine, something like cardboard taste, that wine is indeed corked and you have all the rights to return that wine back to the cellar. Next one up is the word creamy. Creamy is actually a pretty simple word when describing wines. Creamy, you would apply to white wines mostly or mainly, and you would see how creamy goes to description of a little bit heavier, richer, smoother white wine, like Chardonnay for instance. You would not call any wines that are crisp, light bodied and citrusy creamy. So anything on the opposite spectrum would be a creamy white wine. Piggybacking off, the last one is the word crisp. So crisp is exactly what you would say about light bodied, acidic, citrusy white wine. So you would be calling that to a wine that's not creamy like the previous term that we just discussed. So just remember creamy and crisp could be two great words to discuss or to describe your white wines on the opposite spectrum. Next is the word cru. So what does cru actually mean? This is the shortest explanation ever. Cru is a nice French way of saying a vineyard. The next word on the list is the word cuvee. So what cuvee means is really describing wines that are made by the same producer. So think of it as say BMW cars. You know how they have BMW 3 series, they have BMW 5 series, 7 series and so on. So same with wine here. If the wine is made by the same producer but has different series to it, then you would describe them as cuvees. Next word is the word decant. So decant means to pour a wine from a bottle into a different vessel. Whether it's a decanter or any other vessel that you're using, pouring the wine into it would be decanting it. So to decant something originally means to separate wine from any sediment that's left on the bottom of the bottle. Or sometimes decanting a wine, especially white wines, can really soften some younger white wines, give them some more air, give us some more notes to breathe in once we actually are ready to drink it. Next word up is the word dry. So dry is a little bit tricky just because it's a little bit of a vague term when it comes to wines. Now of course dry is anything but sweet. So technically if you don't want a dry wine, you will be brought some sweet wine to drink. So I would be very careful when telling your waiter or telling your sommelier to bring you dry wine because most wines are actually dry. Some are just more dry than others. So be a little more specific. If you ask for a dry wine, describe the body of it. So say you want a nice dry light body white wine for instance, or tell your waiter or tell your sommelier that you like your dry wines crispy or citrusy, or maybe you like some honey and peach in them. When it comes to red wines, bring up some fruit description. Maybe you like some plum textures, some blackberry textures, or something a little crispier like red apples and cherries in your Pinot Noir. So don't just stick to the term dry because technically the waiter or the sommelier will not be convinced or will not be able to determine exactly what you want out of that wine. The next word or actually two words is Grand Cru. So we already talked about cru and that it's actually just a very nice very French way of saying vineyard. So Grand Cru is the highest classification to some vineyards in the Burgundy region of France. So depending on the class and the quality of the grapes grown in those vineyards, they may be able to get themselves that Grand Cru classification. So if you see Grand Cru on a bottle, that bottle will probably cost you a little bit because that's the highest classification that Burgundy vineyard can get. Similar one to that is Premier Cru. So Premier Cru is one step below the Grand Cru. So that one again, you will see quite a lot in Burgundy, in Champagne region of France, describing some of the vineyards making Champagne wine. And then you will see it in Bordeaux as well. So just remember that it's a step down from your Grand Cru, but still extremely high designation to have. Next up is the word harvest. So harvest literally means the time of the year when grapes are collected. And it really doesn't matter which part of the world the grapes or vineyards are located at. Just know that your harvest season will always always fall under late summertime or early autumn time. That's just the way it is. Maceration. That's a very fancy word that actually means a pretty simple thing, but not too many people know what that is. Maceration is basically leaving your grapes during fermentation process with their skins on them. So maceration allows our wine to have some color to it. So with white wines, the process of maceration will only probably last anywhere from a few days to a couple of weeks. With red wines, the process of maceration lasts a little bit longer. It allows all of those tannins through the skins to come through and give us a nice rich red color to the wine. So that process usually takes a couple of months, I would say, when it comes to red wine. Now for rosé, if you're interested how rosé is made, maceration is a very important process in making of rosé wine because rosés are made from red grapes or from black grapes. Now with the contacts of the skins, rosé wine is right in between white and red wine making. So those grape skins are left on the flesh for just a little bit and then they're separated so the wine can be that beautiful rose color. The next word is magnum. Magnum is a one and a half liter bottle of wine. It's a ginormous bottle of wine, which is equivalent to two standard 750 milliliters bottle of wines. The next two wine terms go kind of side to side. One is called New World. So New World is any region of the world except for the continental Europe where wine comes from. And the next one is Old World. Old World means that the wine was made or the grapes were produced somewhere in the continental Europe region. The next wine term that you must know about is oak or oaky, maybe oakiness you heard sometimes. So that of course has to do with a particular wine aged in an oak barrel. So the way we say it is usually when we sniff or taste our wine, we start describing certain things about wine characteristics or the smelling characteristics of wine. So just by saying oaky, you don't really give people enough description. So I would maybe venture out to bring it out words like vanilla notes or cinnamon notes, something like this will be a little more helpful for people to understand what oaky is. But remember that it's the similar taste of say whiskey have some oak taste to it as well, or maybe bourbon because they're aged in oak barrels as well. So some of those similar characteristics can be transferred to wine as well. When new brand new oak barrels are used to age wine, those tastes and the notes will be way more prominent versus an oak barrel that's been used to age a few batches of wine already. Next is the word producer. So producer in wine industry is similar to the word company or winery. So it's basically an entity that's responsible for all of the processes across the board of winemaking. So whether it's farming, collecting wines, picking wine grapes, winemaking itself, and then marketing and sale. So all of that combined will be placed under producer term. Next word on our list is the word rich. Now rich can be used when describing both red and white wines. So don't be confused. It's not only for red wines. Imagine having a big old piece of chocolate cake, something nice, heavy and rich. I would say that the word rich is also kind of synonymous with the word big when we describe wine. So imagine something very full body, full of flavor coating your mouth, that wine is rich. The next word is the word sediment. So sediment is something we're actually trying to get rid of while decanting our wine. That's exactly what decanting wine does. Now sediment itself are just particles, little pieces that you can find on the bottom of the grapes. They can come from the barrel. They can come from the skins of the grapes when you're making your wine. They can come from cork sometimes. So could you drink sediment? You technically could. You probably don't want to. It's just imagine unfiltered something, something that's not filtered properly. Next word up is the word sommelier. It's the word that everyone have heard before. Anyone even slightly familiar with wine industry have definitely heard the word sommelier being said before. So sommelier is a French word to call a wine expert. Technically translates into wine servant. So wine servant, wine expert, whatever you want to call it. It's just a person who is designated by the court of masters sommeliers if they are certified indeed and if they are holding that designation to be the expert in wine. There are some different levels behind sommeliers. I have a perfect video for you to check out. It's the CMS which is court of masters sommeliers versus WSET court. Two separate courses that give you wine designations. I'll put the link right here for you to see the difference. So I go into details there of who sommeliers are, how to get that certification and what VSET or WSET course is and how it differs from the sommelier course. But sommelier is just a nice French way of saying expert in wine. We are now coming on the tail end of this video and the next wine word that you must know is the word sulfides. So sulfides are chemical compounds that are naturally appeared in wine but they're also added to wine purposefully sometimes by winemakers in order to preserve it better. Sulfides can also be found in dry fruits or maybe sodas to preserve them better. So just remember they do appear in wines naturally but they also are added to wine in order to preserve it better. Next wine word that we're discussing is one of the most important wine words that you need to know and that is the word tannins. So tannins are again natural compounds that are found in grapes, actually in the skin of the grapes and they allow the wine to have that bitter taste but they also are responsible for amazing aging abilities of that wine. So for the most part when the when the wine is really really tannic that means that it will age for a long period of time and what aging does to wines with tannins it actually softens it. So there are two ways to go around this if the wine is really really tannic we can either make red blend and mix it with a less tannic wine or we can age it for a while and aging the wine will definitely soften the tannins. Now how do we describe the actual sensation of a wine being tannic? So imagine drinking a very very steeped like long steeped black tea. Do you know that sensation that you get um like like right here in the back of your mouth kind of drying in a sense not too pleasant so to say so you always want the tannins to be somewhat balanced as well as in wine and in teas. So tannic wines are good for aging but might be softened a little bit in order to be more pleasant. Next word is the word vineyard. So vineyard is the actual place where the grapes were grown. So contrary to say producer what we call a producer is where the whole process has happened your vineyard will actually be only the place where the grapes are grown. So a lot of times grapes from a certain vineyard are delivered to other parts of the world and in that case of course they will just be mentioned on the bottle saying that the vineyards were at this place but the wine was produced at a different place. The next word is the word vintage. So vintage is the year that you see on every bottle of wine that you pick. The only thing to remember here is that the vintage year is the year when the grapes were picked. It's not when the bottle was bottled it's when the grapes were picked from the vineyards. The very last wine word that you must know is winemaker. So what's interesting about winemakers is that you would think it's somebody who who is a producer of wine only not. Winemakers can actually be employed by a producer and that means that they do winemaking for more than one producers at a time. So keep that in mind producer and winemaker are not always the same entity as that same one. Winemaker can make wines for different wineries and different producers. All right everyone this is it this is everything for my video for you for today. These are all of the wine words that you must know in order to communicate properly when describing the wine that you like or the wine that you don't like for that matter even more importantly so. So if you like this video please make sure to subscribe to this channel and also click on the little notification bell down below. Liking this video will really make my day. It helps my youtube algorithm grow so that this video will pop up as recommended to other wine lovers as well. Don't forget that I post my videos every single week so stay tuned for my new videos to come. If you have any comments about any other words you want to discuss or think that I should have mentioned in this video leave a comment down below. Thank you for joining me and until next time cheers everyone!