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Question 1

Canopy

Answer 1

The green foliage of a grapevine is called the canopy. The canopy can be trimmed or thinned to manage the amount of air and sun reaching the fruit, improving fruit quality, increasing yield and controlling disease.

Question 2

Cap

Answer 2

The thick layer of skins, stems and seeds that forms at the surface of fermenting red wine. Cap management, or breaking up the cap to increase contact between the skins and the liquid, is important since red wines extract color and flavor from the skins.

Question 3

Capsule

Answer 3

The metal or plastic protective coating that surrounds the top of the cork and the bottle. Before pulling out the cork, at least the top portion should be removed to expose the cork and the lip of the bottle.

Question 4

Carbonic maceration

Answer 4

Most frequently associated with Beaujolais, this is a method of producing light-bodied, fresh and fruity red wines. Instead of crushing the grapes and releasing the juiced to be fermented by yeasts, whole grape bunches are placed in a tank and the oxygen is displaced by carbon dioxide. Fermentation starts on an intracellular level inside the berry, producing some alcohol as well as fruity aromatics. In practice, the weight of the grapes on the top crushes the grapes on the bottom and yeasts ferment the juice; the wine is partly a product of carbonic maceration and partly of traditional yeast fermentation.

Question 5

Case

Answer 5

A case of wine in the United States typically contains 9 liters or 12 standard 750ml bottles of wine. The size of wineries is most frequently measured in the number of cases produced annually.

Question 6

Casein

Answer 6

A dairy-based protein used in the fining process. Casein is particularly effective at clarifying cloudy or off-colored white wines.

Question 7

Cask Number

Answer 7

A term sometimes used to designate special wines but often applied to ordinary wines to identify a separate lot or brand. Synonymous with bin number.

Question 8

Cava

Answer 8

Spanish term for sparkling wine made suing the traditional méthode Champenoise.

Question 9

Cedary

Answer 9

Denotes the smell of cedar wood associated with mature Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet blends aged in French or American oak.

Question 10

Cellared by

Answer 10

Means the wine was not produced at the winery where it was bottled. It usually indicates that the wine was purchased from another source.

Question 11

Cépage

Answer 11

French term for grape variety.

Question 12

Chaptalization

Answer 12

The addition of sugar to juice before and/or during fermentation, used to boost sugar levels in under-ripe grapes and alcohol levels in the subsequent wines. Common in northern European countries, where the cold climates may keep grapes from ripening, but forbidden in southern Europe (including southern France and all of Italy) and California.

Question 13

Charmat

Answer 13

A less expensive, mass-production method for producing bulk quantities of sparkling wine. The second fermentation takes place in a pressurized tank, rather than in a bottle, decreasing lees contact and producing larger, coarser bubbles. The wine is filtered under pressure and bottled. Also known as the bulk process or tank method. Wines made this way cannot be labeled méthode Champenoise.

Question 14

Chewy

Answer 14

Describes highly extracted, full-bodied and tannic wines that are so rich they seem as if they should be chewed, rather than simply swallowed.

Question 15

Cigar box

Answer 15

Aroma frequently associated with mature Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet blends. This descriptor refers to the cedary and tobacco leaf scents associated with cigar boxes.

Question 16

Claret

Answer 16

The British term for red wines from Bordeaux. Originally the wines were quite pale or nearly clear in color, giving rise to the term clairet.

Question 17

Clarity

Answer 17

Referring to the amount of suspended particulate matter in a wine. Clarity is described in terms of the wine’s reflective quality: brilliant, clear, dull or hazy. A pronounced haziness may signify spoilage while brilliant, clear or dull wines are generally sound.

Question 18

Clean

Answer 18

Fresh on the palate and free of any off-taste.

Question 19

Climat

Answer 19

French term for a vineyard site defined by its micro-climate and various other aspects of terroir. The term is most commonly associated with Burgundy.

Question 20

Climate

Answer 20

The long-term weather pattern - including temperature, precipitation and hours of sunshine - in a specific region. In contrast, weather is associated with a specific even, such as a hailstorm.

Question 21

Clonal Selection

Answer 21

Vineyard management term for a technique by which dead or under-performing vines are replaced with new vines grown from a single superior vine, or mother vine.

Question 22

Clone

Answer 22

A group of vines originating from a single, individual plant propagated asexually from a single source. Clones are selected for the unique qualities of the grapes and wines they yield, such as flavor, productivity and adaptability to growing conditions.

Question 23

Clos

Answer 23

A French term used to describe a walled vineyard, such as Clos du Vougeot in Burgundy.

Question 24

Closed

Answer 24

Describes wines that are concentrated and have character, yet are shy in aroma or flavor. Closed wines may open up to reveal more flavors and aromas with aging or aeration.

Question 25

Cloudiness

Answer 25

Lack of clarity to the eye. Fine for old wines with sediment, but it can be a warning signal of protein instability, yeast spoilage or re-fermentation in the bottle in younger wines. Cloudiness may also represent a deliberate choice by the winemaker not to filter a wine.

Question 26

Cloying

Answer 26

Describes ultra-sweet or sugary wines that lack the balance provided by acid, alcohol, bitterness or intense flavor.

Question 27

Coarse

Answer 27

Usually refers to texture, and in particular, excessive tannin or oak. Also used to describe harsh bubbles in sparkling wine.

Question 28

Cold stabilization

Answer 28

A clarification technique that can prevent the formation of crystals in wine bottles. Prior to bottling, the wine’s temperature is lowered to approximately 30° F for two weeks, causing the tartrates and other solids to precipitate out of solution. The wine is then easily racked off (separated from) the solids.

Question 29

Commune

Answer 29

French term for village.

Question 30

Complexity

Answer 30

An element in all great wines and many very good ones; a combination of richness, depth, flavor, intensity, focus, balance, harmony and finesse.

Question 31

Cooked

Answer 31

Describes a dull, stewed flavor associated with wines adversely affected by excessive heat during shipping or storage.

Question 32

Cooper

Answer 32

A wine barrel maker.

Question 33

Cooperage

Answer 33

The facility where wine barrels are made.

Question 34

Corkage fee

Answer 34

The fee charged by restaurants when guests bring their own bottle of wine rather than ordering from the wine list.

Question 35

Corked

Answer 35

Describes a wine having the off-putting, musty, moldy-newspaper flavor and aroma and dry aftertaste caused by a tainted cork.

Question 36

Coulure

Answer 36

During flowering in the spring, wind and rain as well as chemical deficiencies can keep grapevine flowers from being properly fertilized, causing these flowers to drop off the cluster. This dropping of flowers is called coulure, or shatter. Since each flower is responsible for a grape, the cluster of grapes that eventually forms is loose and missing grapes. If the improperly fertilized flower stays attached, it produces a puny, seedless grape called a “shot” grape. Although the yield is reduced, there is a corresponding benefit—loose clusters that allow for increased air circulation are less susceptible to rot in humid conditions.

Question 37

Crianza

Answer 37

One of Spain’s quality classifications, it requires that reds are aged for two years, with at least a year in wood, and whites a total of six months.

Question 38

Crisp

Answer 38

Describes a wine with moderately high acidity; refreshing and bright with a clean finish.

Question 39

Cru

Answer 39

Meaning “growth” or “vineyard” in French. this term is often used in quality classifications. In Bordeaux, the highest quality wines are called Premiers Crus and in Burgundy, Grands Crus.

Question 40

Crush

Answer 40

Harvest season when the grapes are picked and crushed.

Question 41

Cuvée

Answer 41

A blend or special lot of wine.