FR Wine Terms Flashcards
baumé (FR)
scale for measuring the must weight / measures the potential alcohol of a must
récolte (FR)
harvest, grape picking
cru (FR)
site or “growth”
côte (FR)
hill
lutte raisonnée (FR)
type of viticulture that tries to avoid synthetic farming, more sustainable than organic
buttage (FR)
earthing-up, to protect plants from frost by pushing dirt up to their base
brassage (FR)
a method of cap management in which pressurized gas is injected into the bottom of a tank – faster than remontage
foulage (FR)
crushing, treading
véraison (FR)
when the grapes change from green to red (or softer green or yellow), ripening phase. Gen occurs in January (S. Hemisphere) & August (N. Hemisphere)
éraflage (FR)
de-stalking or de-stemming
délestage (FR)
“racking and returning”- removing the fermenting wine from a tank and pouring it over the cap
pépiniéristes (FR)
grafting nurseries
collage (FR)
the use of fining agents in wine clarification
marques auxiliare (FR)
term used for a secondary brand
pellicule (FR)
skins
bac à glace (FR)
ice cold brine bath used to freeze the necks of Champagne before disgorging
edelzwicker (FR)
The term Edelzwicker (“noble mixture”) usually indicates its own inverse: an inexpensive blended wine. Alsace AOP wines labeled Edelzwicker do not need to be vintage-dated, nor are they even legally obligated to contain more than one grape. In practice they are blends, however, and do not need to indicate any percentages or grapes on the label.
vrille (FR)
tendril
dégorgement (FR)
disgourging
interligne (FR)
space between rows of vines
vin de cépage (FR)
single varietal wine
feuillaisson (FR)
foliation
vieilles vignes (FR)
old vines (not a legally defined term)
pupitre (FR)
riddling rack
colle de poisson (FR)
isinglass
contre-étiquette (FR)
back label
récoltant (FR)
someone who harvests their own grapes
habillage (FR)
the dressing for a bottle of sparkling wine before release
élevage (FR)
aging
accolage (FR)
the process of tying the vine branches to the trellis frame
gyropalette (FR)
a hydraulic machine capable of mechanical riddling, typically holds 504 bottles
lieu dit (FR)
a named site or vineyard that is not neccesarily designated separately as a Premier or Grand Cru, but may be within a Premier or Grand Cru site
cep (FR)
grapevine stump
triage (FR)
process of sorting grapes according to quality before winemaking
robe (FR)
depth of color
monopole (FR)
a vineyard or site with singular ownership
débourrement (FR)
budding
bousinage (FR)
toasting the inside of oak barrels
vendangé à la main (FR)
hand harvested grapes
greffe (FR)
graft
cuvier d’élevage (FR)
aging hall or room
mistelle (FR)
unfermented grape juice combined with the addition of alcohol, vin de liqueur
biologique (FR)
organic
déchaussage (FR)
removal of dirt near the base of the vines, also débuttage
tri (pl. tries) (FR)
grapes selected and collected from one pass through the vineyard- chosen for optimum ripeness and flavor
bourgeon (FR)
bud
millésime (FR)
vintage
débourbage (FR)
allowing juice to settle before fermentation to reduce sediment
vendange (FR)
wine harvest. Gen. occurs Feb-March (S. Hemisphere) & Aug-Oct (N. Hemisphere)
élaboration (FR)
wine making
effeuillage (FR)
leaf thinning of the canopy
pourriture noble (FR)
botrytis cinerea infected grapes / “noble rot”
bourbes (FR)
lees, sediment
ouillage (FR)
topping off of barrels
passérillee (FR)
grapes that have begun to shrivel on the vine
clos (FR)
walled vineyard or site (the wall may no longer exist)
mas (FR)
vineyard
palissage(FR)
trellising
bâtonnage (FR)
stirring of the lees
floraison (FR)
flowering, blooming
pigeage (FR)
punching down
elevé en fûts de chêne (FR)
oak aged
moût (FR)
must (wine), wort (beer)
cépage (FR)
grape variety
rafle (FR)
stalks, stems
porte-greffe (FR)
root stock
baie (FR)
rack
cuvage (FR)
fermenting in vats
chai (FR)
wine or barrel storehouse, usually in bordeaux
côteaux (FR)
slopes or many hillsides
chapeau (FR)
cap or head (layer of skins on top of must)
remuage (FR)
riddling
Bouillie Bordelaise (FR)
‘Bordeaux Mixture.’ Lime, copper sulphate & water mixture used as an effective control of downy mildew (a.k.a. peronospera)
décuvaison (FR)
running-off
sur pointe (FR)
the final stage of riddling, when the bottle is aged neck down after agining is complete and before disgorging
taille (FR)
the second pressing of Champagne, this term also refers to pruning
remontage (FR)
pumping over, also to repair a vineyard after a heavy and erosive rain storm
écoulage (FR)
free running (drain off by gravity)
égrappage (FR)
de-stemming
saignée (FR)
bleeding off juice from a red wine fermentation to create a rosé wine
