This one is pretty straightforward, is the wine balanced on the palate? If any one aspect stands out further than another (very acidic, super fruity, highly noticeable alcohol, etc.) the wine is not in balance, or it is not a balanced wine. If everything feels in congruent harmony,…
Wine Term: Meritage First things first, the way to pronounce this is as though it rhymes with “Heritage.” This is a creation of California winemakers, and it’s a blended red wine, not a varietal wine nor variety of grape. To classify as a Meritage wine, the blend must…
No matter what your spouse claims about that bottle that was there last night – but is somehow missing now – it did not grow legs and walk away. So what do the wine geeks mean when they speak to a wine’s legs? It’s the way the wine…
Well, you’ve at least heard the term from us a number of times, if no where else, as that’s what Cam is. But what does it mean? A “Négociant” is someone who buys wine from someone else and labels it under their own label. It’s a title for…
In tasting room, restaurant, or wine shop conversations you might hear the term Noble Grapes, but what are they referring to? This is a two-part answer. Depending on context, they may be referring to either The Six Noble Grapes or referring to The Five Noble Grapes of Bordeaux. It can be…
Wine Term: Decant Variations: Open, Oxygenate, Aerate, Breathe, Breathing What it really means: Allowing the wine to interact with oxygen after the cork is removed. While there are all sorts of currently, highly marketed devices and fancy (expensive) vessels that double as art pieces, a good old glass…
Wine Term: Corked Variations: Cork taint, Tainted, TCA, Systemic TCA, Trichloroanisole What it really means: The wine has an off-putting musty, mushroomy fragrance and taste. This is not in regards to Pinot Noirs, where the mushroom fragrance and taste is very welcoming. And this is not in reference…
Wine Term: Varietal Variations: Single varietal, Varietal wine What it really means: The wine is made from* and labeled as a single grape variety. A varietal wine is labeled as a single grape wine. Examples would be wines labeled as: Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot,…
Customer David C. writes: “What is meant by ‘linear?’” At the end of January we wrote about ‘Angular’ wines – not to be mistaken for ‘Linear’ wines, see below: Wine Term: Linear Variations: Straightforward, commonplace What it really means: the wine does nothing to play outside of the…
There are 2 types of finished wines. Wine Term(s): Filtered and Unfiltered No one or the other is better, they are a stylistic choice by the winemakers in modern times. Historically speaking, wines always had to be filtered to remove potentially harmful bacteria, but due to modern winemaking…