Wine Speak

Acidity: the natural tartness in grapes and other fruits, contributing to the vibrant flavours.

Aroma: a nice word for smell and your impression of the aroma of the wine

Appellation: a geographical definition of a wine region, BC has 4: the Okanagan Valley, the Similkameen Valley, the Fraser Valley and Vancouver Island

Balanced: the relationship between alcohol, acid, fruit and tannin. If no one element is overly lacking or dominating the result is harmonious balance.

Body: the impression of weight and consistency in the mouth, related to alcohol and extract

Bouquet: similar to aroma, but tends to refer to more mature and developed smells

Clean: free of faults and impurities

Complex: the opposite of a one-dimensional wine with many layers of smells, tastes and textures

Corked: a wine fault, caused by a contaminated cork, and which gives the wine a musty ‘wet cardboard’ smell.

Estate Winery: a winery with its own vineyards, only using BC grapes or fruit. Estate bottled means the grapes are from the winery’s vineyards. A commercial winery can bottle and sell wine made with imported fruit.

Finish: the sensation of taste and texture you continue to perceive after swallowing; the longer the better. When someone refers to the ‘length’ of the wine, they are referring to the finish.

Lees: Dead yeast cells that settle in the bottom of the tank or barrel after fermentation

Must: the unfermented mixture of juice, stems, seeds and pulp after the grapes are crushed and de-stemmed.

Residual Sugar: sugar that remains in a finished wine because it was not fermented out.

Tannin: a natural compound found in the skin, seeds and stems of grapes. It provides the structure for red wines and acts as a preservative, but in excess it is bitter and astringent.

Terroir: a French term referring to all the characteristics of one particular vineyard and how they are reflected in the wine from that site.

Vitis Vinifera: the premier grape species used for the world’s most admired wines; also called the European Vine. Vitis Labrusca is native to N. America (eg Concord grapes) and they make tasty jelly, not wine.

VQA: (Vintner’s Quality Alliance) All BC wines with the VQA seal must be made from BC grapes; the wines are also submitted for tank samples before being approved. It is a sign of quality, but bear in mind there are many wonderful non-VQA BC wines as well; the winery proprietors simply may choose not to be VQA.