THURSTQUEEN PRESENTS: WINE SPEAK EXPLAINED PT DEUX
Oh hai, Thurstqueens. I hope you’re all slaying the wine game. Since Wine Speak Part 1 was such a success, I wanted to write a follow-up piece to that article.
There are so many freakin’ wine terms out there it’s impossible to know them all. But after reading this article, you’ll be able to speak fluent wine with the best of ‘em. And yes, that includes Dorothy and Stanford who live in that mansion on the side of the hill with their big, fancy, wine CELLAAAAAAHHHHH! Lez do dis!
AROMA: The smell of a wine. A wine’s aroma can be caused by esters, reactions amongst multiple compounds in a wine. People often describe the aroma of wine in the tasting notes.
ASTRINGENT: Bitter, or denoting a harsh drying sensation. Wines with heavy tannins tend to be described as “astringent.” Petit Sirah is typically an “astringent” wine.
BALANCE: When all the elements of a wine - sugar, acid, tannins, and alcohol - work together in harmony.
BARRIQUE: The fancy French word for a 225-liter oak barrel used to age wines. Barriques can be toasted to add more smoky, chocolatey, or coconut flavors to a wine. If they aren’t toasted they simply add structure.
BEAUJ or BOJO: A hipster abbreviation for Beaujolais.
BLEND: A wine made with multiple grapes.
CARBONIC: A winemaking technique typically used for light or medium-bodied red wines, where the fermentation process occurs intracellularly (from inside the grapes.) Carbonic wines are typically softer, fruitier, and very drinkable. Beaujolais is an example of a Carbonic wine.
CÉPAGE: A French word used to describe the ratio of each variety of grapes in the blend of wine. If you’re having a GSM from the Rhône Valley that is 60% Grenache, 30% Syrah, and 10% Mourvedre you would say the cépage is 60/30/10.
CLARET: Claret is typically used to refer to a blended red wine from Bordeaux, but sometimes the word Claret can be used to describe similar types of blends made in other parts of the world.
CLUSTER: A word used to describe a bunch of grapes. If grapes in a wine were fermented “whole cluster” it means the whole grape cluster is harvested, then crushed and fermented.
Clusters of grapes.
COMPLEX: A wine that has a lot going on and loads of character.
DEMI-SEC: I talk more about this on my piece on Champagne, but Demi-Sec is a French term that means “half dry,” to describe a sparkling wine with more sugar.
EARTHY: A wine that tastes or smells like damp dirt.
EXTENDED SKIN CONTACT: Usually used to describe an orange wine, but rosés fall into this category as well. When a wine has been fermented for a short period on its skins, leading to darker coloring.
FRESH: Fresh seems to be the holy grail tasting note if you’re a winemaker these days. When a wine is fresh, there is good acidity in the wine, balanced and lively. A wine that has a sort of “fresh squeezed” feel.
GLOU GLOU: Glou Glou is a cute French term for wines that are “gluggable,” but it’s becoming its own category. Glou Glou wines are a bit darker than Rosé and lighter than “traditional” red wines. A lot of them are considered, “Carbonic,” wines.
GREEN: When a wine has grassy or vegetal notes. Varietals that sometimes taste “green” are old school Cabernet Franc.
HERBAL or HERBACEOUS: When a wine tastes like fresh or dried herbs.
HIGH-TONED: A wine that has piercing acid, and a certain sharpness. These are the types of wines that go straight to your sinuses. Lively, bright and piercing.
HOT: A wine that is high in alcohol. Sometimes certain wines are so hot it feels like your nose hairs are burning off. If you’re feeling bold, you can taste a wine and say, “That’s hot,” a la Paris Hilton circa 2004.
LEES: Dead yeast cells, grape pulp, and other stuff that usually sinks to the bottom of the tank during fermentation. When a wine is aged on its lees, that usually gives it a fuller creamier mouthfeel.
OXIDIZED: When a wine is exposed to oxygen. Some oxidized wines go bad, others have a delicious nutty flavor. You can find a lot of really good oxidized orange wines.
PHENOLIC COMPOUNDS: Natural compounds that exist in the grapes.
TARTARATES: Little tiny red or white crystals that are created by the tartaric acid in the wine. This typically happens when a wine is chilled so far down that the acid solidifies and turns into these pretty crystals. If you see a wine with tartarates - don’t trip, it’s totally chill to drink it!
TYPICITY: When a wine expresses the characteristics that are “typical” of that grape. For example, Zinfandel typically tastes jammy, with aroma of hickory. If a Zinfandel expresses typicality well, it conveys a certain “correctness.”
PICK OF THE WEEK: ICONIC WINES “SIDEKICK” CABERNET SAUVIGNON $18.00
This was a wine I used to work with fairly extensively during my brokering days. It was such a great, everyday value Cabernet Sauvignon. I like my Cabs friendly and easy drinking, not overly austere and tannic. Because of this, I tend to gravitate towards Cabernets from Lodi or Paso Robles, as they’re loaded with super ripe and juicy fruit.
You can taste the heat on these wines, but honestly? I don’t mind, I guess they just speak to my inner Cali girl. Anyway, there’s just the lightest touch of oak on this wine. The folks over at Iconic - Birk and Karl - source fruit from all over California. The Cabernet Sauvignon for the Sidekick Cabernet is from places like the Anderson Valley and Lodi.
Birk is about creating “dogma free” wines, and wants to give the folks who buy Iconic Wines as good a value as possible. And I’ll be honest, as someone who has enjoyed wines across the spectrum that range from super conventional to natty wines, the Iconic Cabernet Sauvignon is a good everyday drinking value.
Consider pairing it with any slow cooker beef pot roast, fried chicken, or semisweet truffles.