Buzz Words, Vinification & Vitification

Question 1

What does Buttage mean?

Answer 1

The process of stooping up the soils around the base of the vine to protect the roots from frost damage.

Question 2

What does Bâtonnage mean?

Answer 2

The process of stirring up the lees with a stick paddle to increase flavour extraction.

Question 3

What is Cryoextraction?

Answer 3

Wine makers freeze grapes to -7°C (20°F) then press them. The ice in the grapes remains frozen while the highly concentrated juice is pressed out. This is used in countries and regions where it is impossible to produce ice wine by the natural method of leaving the grapes to freeze on the vines, due to the climate. In most countries, the resulting wine would not be permitted to be called ice wine.

Question 4

What is Cuvaison?

Answer 4

Cuvaison refers to the maceration of the grape skins (pomace) in the fermenting juice during red wine production, to extract colour, tannins and flavours from the skins.

Question 5

What is Débourbage?

Answer 5

This is the process of allowing the solids to settle out from the must prior to racking during the wine production.

Question 6

What is a Microclimate/Mesoclimate & Macroclimate?

Answer 6

Microclimate correctly refers to the small area around a single or small group of vines or sometimes to the air above.

Mesoclimate is the climate of a small area such as a vineyard or a hillside (e.g. in the mosel).

Macroclimate is the climate of a wine disrtict or even a region. (e.g. Alsace)

Question 7

What are Lees?

Answer 7

Lees are made up of dead yeasts, pieses of stalk, pips, pulp and other solids which fall to the bottom of vats and holding vessels during wine production.

Question 8

What is a Lieu-dit?

Answer 8

This is the smallest geographical unit of land within a vineyard which may bear a traditional name.

They appear in some wine labels, alsace / germany / burgundy being the most common, if an Alsace wine is sold as a Grand cru, the Lieu-die must be stated.

Question 9

What is Passerillage?

Answer 9

This refers to grapes which have been shrivelled by strong winds, or grapes which have been dried after picking.

Question 10

What does Pigeage mean?

Answer 10

Pigeage or punch down is the process of punching down the cap (pomace) to drown the aerobic bacteria, to keep the skins fresh and to assist the cuvaison process.

The cap consists of the mixture of skins and pips of the grrapes that raise to the top during the fermentation of red wine.

Question 11

What is Remontage?

Answer 11

Remontage or Pump over is the process in which the fermenting juice is pumped over the cap (pomace) during cuvaison in the red winemaking process.

Question 12

What is reverse osmosis?

Answer 12

This is a technique used to reduce the alcohol context in wine.

Question 13

What is Soutirage?

Answer 13

Anouther name for Racking.

This is the transfer of wine from one container to another, leaving the lees behind.

Question 14

What is a spinning cone column used for?

Answer 14

It is used to reduce the alcohol content in wine.

Question 15

What is Süssreserve and what is it used for?

Answer 15

Süssreserve is unfermented grape juice used to sweeten wines, particularly german wines.

Question 16

What does Veraison indicate?

Answer 16

The stage in the grape sycle when the grape changes colour and softend, it is the begining of the ripening period.

Question 17

What is Mutage?

Answer 17

A winemaking process to artificially stop or ‘mute’ the alcoholic fermentation of grape juice (must), resulting in a wine with high levels of residual grape sugar. It involves the creation of an environment inhospitable to yeast, usually by the addition of alcohol or sometimes sulfur dioxide. Mutage is a standard procedure for making VDN’s / VDL’s & Fortified wine.

Question 18

What is the difference between a Crossing, a Clone & a Hybrid?

Answer 18

Crossing: happend between two grapes of the same species (Vitis Vinefera).
Cabernet Savignon = Cabernet Franc X Sauvignon Blanc
Pinotage = Pinot Noir X Cinsault

Hybrid: A hybrid is simular to a crossing however, the parent varietials are not of the same species, usually a crossing between Vitis vinifera and an american root stock. Most grapes produce inferior wines.
Few excetions:
Seyval Blanc
Vidal Blanc

Clone: A clone is a vine that is an exact DNA copy of another vine acheived though asexual reproduction. Many varierieals have several different clones and some have hundreds.

Question 19

What is Clonal Selection?

Answer 19

Clonal selection involves selecting the best genetic material avaliable for the variety you wish to use, and propergating it in the vineyard. Some clones are used because they produce certain flavours, other clones are selected due to their ability to withstand certan climate and soil conditions.

Question 20

What is Vin de Presse?

Answer 20

The wine pressed off the skins/pulp/stems & stalks

Question 21

What is Vin de Goutte?

Answer 21

The Free-Run / Free-Flow juice

Question 22

What is Maceration Carbonique / Carbonic Maceration?

Answer 22

This process is used to produce wine wines with low tannins and high fruit flavours.
The anerobic fermentation within the grape extracts colour & flavour extreemly quickly alowing the juice to be pressed early producing a wine with very little tannin.
These wines are ready to drink almost immediately after fermentation.

Question 23

What is Malolactic fermentation (MLF)?

Answer 23

MLF is used to reduce the acidity in wine by converting tart malic acid into softer lactic acid. It also produced wine witha buttery charachteristic.

Question 24

What is Sur lie ageing?

Answer 24

The process of keeping the wine in contact with its lees during its ageing.

Question 25

What are Tartrates in wine?

Answer 25

Tartrates are harmless crystaline deposits that seperarte from the wine during fermentation and ageing.
German word: Weinstein = wine stones

Question 26

What is the specific yeast used for fermentation called?

Answer 26

Saccharomyces Cerevisiae

sa-kuh-row-mai-seez seh-ruh-vi-see-ai

Question 27

What is Chaptalisation?

Answer 27

The process of increasing the potential alcoholic strength of wine by adding grape juice/must either during or before fermentation.

Question 28

What is Botrytis?

Answer 28

Botrytis cinerea or noble rot. This is a prized rot which develops when there are early morning mists creating humidity followed by afternoon sunshine. The rot causes the grapes to dry out and shrivel up like raisins.

Question 29

What is Triage?

Answer 29

Triage is the sorting of grapes according to quality before winemaking.

Question 30

What is Maceration Pellicilaire?

Answer 30

Also known as Pre-feremtation maceration or cold soak: the process where grapes are held in contaact with their skins at cool tempratures for 6-10 hours to increase the flavour of some white wines.

Question 31

What is Maceration Pellicilaire?

Answer 31

Also known as Pre-fermentation maceration or cold soak: the process where grapes are held in contact with their skins at cool temperatures for 6-10 hours to increase the flavour of some white wines.

Question 32

What are the two types of lees and what are they?

Answer 32

Gross Lees: Incorporate small pieces of skins/ seeds and stems leftover from the fermentation.

Fine Lees: smaller & tend to integrate into the wine more slowly.

Question 33

What is Racking?

Answer 33

This is the transfer of wine from one container to another, leaving the lees behind.

French: Soutirage