WSET LEVEL 3 Ch 1-17 Flashcards
What three tastes make wine “harder” or more bitter?
Sweetness, bitterness & Umami
What taste makes wine “softer”?
Acidity
What taste increases perception of body?
Salt
What kind of wine should be paired with Umami?
Fruity wine to balance bitterness
Long term storage temp
10-15 degrees C, 50-59 degrees F
Temp for med/full body white wines
10-13 degrees C, 50-55 degrees F
Temp for light/med bodied whites
7-10 degrees C, 45-50 degrees F
Temp for sweet wine
6-8 degrees C, 43-45 degrees F
Temp for sparkling
6-10 degrees C, 43-50 degrees F
Temp for light bodied reds
13 degrees C, 55 degrees F
Temp for med/full bodied reds
15-18 degrees C, 59-64 degrees F
What is cutting a vine?
Taking a section of a vine shoot and planting it
What is layering a vine?
A cane is bent downwards and roots in the ground and begin to grow up. The connection is then cut.
What are inflorescences?
Bunches of flowers are the vines’ reproductive organs with both male and female parts
Difference between a cane and spur
Cane: Long with 8-20 buds
Spur: Short with only 2-3 buds
What do the shoots that turn woody during the winter become the following spring?
One-year-old wood
What is the trunk and arms of the vine, any part more than 1 year old called?
Permanent wood
When a new variety is produced by two parents of the same species
Crossing
When a new variety is produced by two parents of different species
Hybrid
What are the two types of root grafting?
Head (cut to trunk and grafted on) and Bench (two roots fused by machine)
The 5 things a vine needs to grow
Sunlight,CO2, water, heat and nutrients
What is an advantage of grafting?
Allows growers to adjust to market demand
What latitudes can vines grow in?
Between 30 and 50 degrees north and south of the equator
At what temp do vines stop growing?
10 degrees C, 50 degrees F
What are the types of irrigation from most to least expensive?
Drip irrigation, Sprinklers, Flood Irrigation
What climate type?
High continentality. High risk for spring frost and low temps during the growing season
Continental
What climate type?
Cool to moderate temps with low difference between hot and cold months. Grapes can continue to ripen into autumn.
Maritime
What type of climate?
Low continentality and summers tend to be warm and dry. Less rainfall can be good but also risks drought.
Mediterranean
What are the most important nutrients in soil?
Nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium
What is the part of the soil made up of decomposing plant and animal materials? It’s great for water retention.
humus
What type of soils retain heat?
Stones/Gravel
What kinds of soils stay cool?
Sand and clay
What is loam?
Soil that is a mixture of sand and clay
What kind of vine training?
Vines a relatively little/no permanent wood, some with only a trunk.
Head Training
What kind of vine training?
Trunk with one or more permanent horizontal arms or “cordons”. Vines are usually spur pruned
Cordon trained
What kind of pruning?
Spurs are short sections of one year old wood that have been cut down to 2-3 buds
Spur pruning
What kind of pruning?
Canes are long sections of 1 year old wood that have 8-20 buds. Typically 1-2 canes are retained and tied to a horizontal trellis.
Replacement cane pruning
Where are bush vines advantageous?
hot, dry, sunny regions
What is VSP?
Vertical shoot positioning
What is a hectare?
An enclosed square with 100-meter sides
What are nematodes?
Microscopic worms that attack the root of a vine
What is a risk in warm, humid environments and makes grapes taste moldy and bitter?
Downy and powdery mildew
What fungus is caused by botrytis cinerea?
Gray rot and noble rot
What spreads bacterial disease?
Small insects called sharpshooters
Is there a cure for viruses or bacterial diseases in vines?
No
What is the difference between sustainable, organic and biodynamic farming?
Sustainable: limits chemical use
Organic: A few traditional methods are allowed to prevent pests and disease, need accreditation from a certification body to claim on the label
Biodynamic: Organic practices along with physiology and cosmology, also need approval from a certification body
What is the vineyard lifecylce?
Winter dormancy, Budburst, Early shoot and leaf growth, Flowering and fruit set, Version and Berry ripening, Harvest
What is bloom?
Waxy surface on the grape that contains yeast that can be used to ferment wine
What gases can you use to limit oxygen contact during winemaking?
Sulfur dioxide, nitrogen or carbon dioxide
What is anaerobic winemaking?
Protective winemaking - preventing oxygen exposure
What acts as an antioxidant and antiseptic in winemaking?
Sulfur Dioxide
What are two kinds of presses?
Vertical basket presses and pneumatic presses
What is the must weight?
Level of sugar in the grape juice
What is RCGM?
Rectified Concentrated Grape Must
What is chaptalization?
When sugar is added from other sources
What is used to acidify wine?
Tartaric acid
What is used to deacidify wine?
Alkali
What temp does fermentation happen?
Between 5 and 35 degrees C, 41-95 degrees F
What is Saccharomyces cerevisiae?
A type of commercial yeast in winemaking - resistant to alcohol and SO2
What is MLF?
Malolactic fermentation: converts malic acid into lactic acid to soften and reduce acidity
Difference between gross lees and fine lees
Gross lees: Sediment that forms and falls to the bottom of the tank and are removed
Fine lees: Smaller particles settle more slowly and are called fine lees
What is sedimentation?
Racking by pumping the wine into another vessel after sediment has settled to the bottom
What is fining?
Forces the particles to clump and be removed pre bottling
What is the difference between depth and surface filtration?
Depth filtration: run through a thick filter
Surface filtration: run thought a very fine filters that the wine is run through - done after depth filtration
What are tartrates?
Crystals that form when tartaric acid binds in cold temps
What is Sussreserve?
Unfermented grape must
What is Passerillage?
Drying the drapes on the vine
What is the cap in winemaking?
Thick mass of pulp and skins on the surface during fermentation
What is Carbonic Maceration?
Whole bunches are placed in a vat full of CO2 and intracellular fermentation begins - once it hits 2% alc, the skins split and juice is released, then they are pressed
What is semi-carbonic maceration?
Vats are filled with whole bunches, but not CO2 - the grapes at the bottom are crushed and ambient yeast starts fermentation, this creates CO2 and that kicks off carbonic maceration
Where is Merlot dominant in Bordeaux?
Saint-Emilion and Pomerol
What is the most widely planted grape in southern Rhone?
Grenache
What is usually the largest cost in an established vineyard?
Labor
What are the 3 types of wine producers and what is the difference
Co-operatives: Wine businesses owned by their members, grape growers sell their grapes to a winery run by the co-op
Merchants/Negociants: Many large wine brands operate this way,, buy grapes, juice or wine from growers or co-ops and work with suppliers
Estate/Domaine: Make wine only from the grapes they grow
What are the EU GIs?
PGI - larger areas
PDO - smaller areas, more regulation
What is a French PDO?
AOP, AC or AOC
What is a French PGI?
IGP, VdP or Vin de Pays
What is a French wine without a GI?
Vin de France
What kind of climate does Bordeaux have?
Moderate maritime
What are the top black varieties in Bordeaux?
Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc
What are the top white varieties in Bordeaux?
Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon
What determined the top chateaus in Bordeaux that still stands today?
The classification of 1855
What are the top chateaus in the Medoc?
Chateaux Laffite Rothschild, Chateaux Latour, Chateaux Margeaux, Chateaux Mouton Rothschild
What is the top Chateaux in Sauternes?
Chateaux d’Yquem
What are the 3 main areas or Bordeaux?
Left bank, right bank and Entre-Deux-Mers
What are the main areas of the Left bank in Bordeaux?
Medoc, Graves and Sauternes
What are the areas of the Right Bank in Bordeaux?
Saint Emillion and Pomerol
What are the generic appellations for Bordeaux?
Bordeaux and Bordeaux Superieur
What are the soils of Pomerol and Saint Emillion?
clay/limestone
What is there a higher proportion of in Bas-Medoc or Medoc and why?
More merlot in the blends because of the clay soil
What are the four highest rated communes in the Haute-Medoc?
Saint-Estephe, Paulliac, Saint-Julien and Margeaux
What is there a higher proportion of in the Haute-Medoc?
Cabernet Sauvignon
What area is south of the city of Bordeaux on the left bank?
Graves
What is the most highly rated area in Graves and what grape shines there?
Pessac-Leognan, Cabernet Sauvignon
What are the 3 distinct areas of Saint-Emilion?
Plateau, escarpment and foot of the escarpment
What does Cote de Bordeaux refer to?
Easy drinking Merlots from a group of lesser known appelations
What is used to concentrate sugars in grapes for Sauternes when there is minimal noble rot that year?
Passerilage
What region has a similar climate to Bordeaux, makes similar wines and contains the Bergerac and Monbazillac appelations?
The Dordogne
What is the climate in Burgundy?
Moderate to cool continental
What grapes other than Pinot Noir and Chardonnay are grown in Burgundy?
Gamay and Aligote
What are the four major appellations in Burgundy?
Chablis, Cote d’Or, Côte Chalonnaise and Maconnais
What are the two main parts of the Cote d’Or and what do they specialize in?
Cote de Nuits - fullest body and longest lived Pinot Noirs - all grand cru Pinot Noirs but one come from this region
Cote de Beaune - fruitier style and more famous for producing Chardonnays
What are the notable villages in the Cote de Nuits?
Gevrey-Chambertin, Vougeot, Vosne-Romanee, Nuits-Saint-Georges
Where are the villages of Aloxe-Corton, Beaune, Pommard, Volnay, Meursault, Puligny-Montrachet, Chassagne-Montrachet located?
Cote de Beaunne in the Cote d’Or
What villages have the best reputation for white wine in the Cote de Beaunne?
Meursault, Puligny-Montrachet, Chassagne-Montrachet
What appellation is below the Cote d’Or with a higher altitude and lighter wines?
The Côte Chalonnaise
What appellation in Burgundy primarily grows Chardonnay and also grows Gamay?
Maconnais
What is special about Pouilly-Fuisse and Saint-Veran in Macon?
They have amphitheater south-east slopes and create ripe Chardonnays
What are the most generic appellation labels in Burgundy?
Bourgogne Rouge and Bourgogne Blanc
What are the hierarchies of Burgundy appellations from least to most prestigious?
Regional, commune and single vineyard
What is a monopole?
A vineyard with a single owner - France
What are two things that reduce yield of the Gamay in Beaujolais?
Granite soils, goblet pruning method
What winemaking method is common in Beaujolais, especially with Beaujolais Nouveau?
Carbon and semi-carbonic maceration
What is the climate of Alsace?
Cool to moderate continental
What are the noble grapes of Alsace?
Pinot Gris, Gewurztraminer, Riesling, Muscat
What is unique about wine labeling in Alsace?
It is varietal named - village is rarely mentioned
What’s the requirement for an Alsace Grand Cru?
Must be 100% of one of the noble varieties
What are the two sugar ripeness classifications in Alsace?
Vendanges Tardives (VT) - Late harvest - the best will have undergone passerillage
Selection de Grains Nobles (SGN) - Higher ripeness level that VT and normally achieved with noble rot
Both must be noble varieites
What are the natural factors that affect the style, quality and price of a wine?
Grapes, climate, weather, soil
What are the human factors that affect the style, quality and price of a wine?
Grape growing, winemaking, maturation, market forces
What insect normally spreads bacteria to a vine?
Sharp shooter
What is an example of integrated pest management?
Introducing lady bugs to the vineyard to keep other bugs away
What is sussreserve?
Unfermented grape juice added to sweeten a wine
What is a famous DAC for Gruner in Austria?
Weinvertel DAC
What area is known for the main red grapes of Austria?
Muttelburgenland DAC
What are the 3 ways to make Rose?
Mix, Direct Pressing, Short Maceration
What is chaptalization?
The addition of RCGM or sugar
Where are the villages Brouilly, Morgon, Fleurie and Moulin-a-vent located?
Beaujolais
Another name for Tempranillo
Tinto Roriz
What are the two kinds of presses?
Vertical basket press (old school), pneumatic press (new tech)
What does TCA (Trichloroanisole) do to a wine?
Taint it - makes it smell like wet cardboard
What does a wine smell like when it’s been effected by Reduction?
Rotten eggs, boiled cabbage
What does volatile acidity smell like in a wine?
Vinegar or nail polish remover
What does Brettanomyces cause wine to smell like?
Gives it plastic (hot vinyl) or animal aromas (smoked meat, sweaty horses)
What are the top two villages in Maconnais?
Pouilly-Fuisse and Saint-Veran
Where are Rully, Mercurey, Givry and Montagny?
Cote Chalonnaise
What are the 4 main parts of the vine?
Roots, Permanent wood, 1 year-old wood , Green parts (also known as the canopy: leaves, grapes, tendrils, etc.)
What is 1 year old wood/cane?
Last years shoot
Difference between and cane and a cordon
Cane is 1 year old wood and cordon is permanent wood
What is a vines annual cycle?
Budburst: early spring
First shoot/leaf growth: spring
Flowering: late spring/early summer
Fruit set: early summer
Véraison: summer
Ripening: summer/late summer
Harvest: late summer/early autumn
Dormancy: winter
What current warms Bordeaux and extends the growing season?
Gulf Stream
What protects Bordeaux from the worst Atlantic storms?
Landes forest
What are the three areas of St Emillion and what are their soils?
Plateau (gravel/limestone), Escarpment (clay/limestone), Foot of the escarpment (sandy) - first two are most prestigious
What grape and region is Pouilly-Fuisse and the similarly names Pouilly-Fume
Pouilly-Fuisse is in Burgundy in Macconais and is known for Chardonnay - Pouilly-Fume is in the Loire Valley in the Central vineyards near Sancerre and is known for Sauvignon Blanc
What is racking?
Pumping wine into a new vessel
