Ch. 1 - Prelude to Wine

Question 1

What are the main tastes of wine?

Answer 1

Sweet, Sour and sometimes Bitter.

Question 2

What are the three sources that go into wine’s flavors?

Answer 2

Grapes, Fermentation and Maturation/Aging

Question 3

What species of grape is used to make the most wine?

Answer 3

Vitis vinifera

Question 4

Name three grapes that have high tannin

Answer 4

Nebbiolo, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah/Shiraz

Question 5

What is terroir?

Answer 5

the “somewhereness” of a particular region or vineyard including the soil makeup and geography; sunlight, weather, and climate; rainfall; the natural plant life of the area and many other elements.

*many winemakers believe that terroir has an impact on the flavor of the wine.

Question 6

What does the term “Brix” refer to?

Answer 6

“Brix” is the winemaker’s measure of sugar in the grapes.

*Each degree Brix is equivalent to 1 gram of sugar per 100 grams of grape juice.The grapes for most Table Wines have a Brix reading of between 20 to 25 at harvest.

Question 7

What is phylloxera?

Answer 7

A grape louse (parasite), is one of the grapevine’s worst enemy because it will eventually kill the entire plant.

*Roots of native American vines are immune to this louse.

Question 8

What does “noble rot” refer to?

Answer 8

Botrytis cinerea, a rot that makes some of the world’s best sweet wines possible. Botrytis reduces the water content of the grape before harvest, giving them an intensity of flavor not found in conventionally harvested grapes.

Question 9

Sugar +___________ = ___________ + Carbon Dioxide

Answer 9

Yeast / Alcohol. The simple formula for the fermentation process.

Question 10

What is the percentage range of alcohol in table wine, sparkling wine, and fortified wine?

Answer 10

Table wine: 8-15%, Sparkling wine: 8-12%, Fortified wine: 17-22%

Question 11

What is must?

Answer 11

The juice and skin mixture that comes from grapes.

Question 12

How is the white wine made from red grapes?

Answer 12

By removing skins immediately after picking, no color is imparted to the wine, and it will be white. When pressing, it must be done with care, so that undesired bitter tannins from skins and seeds are avoided.

Question 13

What is maceration?

Answer 13

Soaking to extract aromas, tannins, and color from the skin. Maceration increases aroma intensity and the wine’s mouthfeel- the weight and texture in your mouth.

Question 14

Define “chaptalization”

Answer 14

When sugar is added to wine before fermentation, in regions where it is permitted, so the yeast is able to generate more alcohol in the final wine. It is used for grapes that are underripe, because they don’t have enough natural sugars in them.

Question 15

What is residual sugar?

Answer 15

The natural sugar in ripe grapes that remained undigested by the yeast after fermentation. It leaves residual sugar in the wine.

Question 16

Where does tannin come from?

Answer 16

It comes from skins, pits and stems of the grapes.
Another source of tannins is wood, such as the oak barrels some wines are aged and fermented in.
*Generally, red wines have higher tannins.

Question 17

What does a vintage on a bottle indicate?

Answer 17

A vintage indicates the year in which the grapes where harvested.

Question 18

What factors can you use when judging if a wine can last more than five years?

Answer 18

The color and the grape, the vintage, where the wine comes from, how the wine was made (vinification), wine storage condition.
*Less than 1% of wines should be aged for more than five years.

Question 19

What is a “corked” wine?

Answer 19

The cork has been affected by trichloroanisole (TCA) giving the wine a musty aroma. It causes a smell similar to wet or mildew cardboard. Can range from undetectable to overwhelming.
*Affected 2-7% of wines.

Question 20

How is sulfur dioxide used in winemaking?

Answer 20

Sulfur dioxide is a natural antioxidant, preservative and disinfectant used by most winemakers at various stages of the winemaking process to prevent unwanted oxidation of the grape juice and to inhibit the action of bacteria or wild yeast.
*too much can cause wine to smell like burnt match.

Question 21

What is vertical tasting?

Answer 21

Comparing wines from different vintages.

Question 22

What happens to the color of white wines as they get older?

Answer 22

The gain color, get darker.

Question 23

What happens to the color of red wines as they get older?

Answer 23

The lose color, get lighter.

Question 24

What is the difference between bouquet and aroma?

Answer 24

Bouquet is the total smell of the wine and the aroma is the smell of the grapes.

Question 25

Why should you swirl a wine before you smell it?

Answer 25

It allows oxygen to get into the wine. Swirling releases esters that combine with oxygen to yield a wine’s bouquet.