The Living Wine
Dictionary
"C" |
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| Cabernet d'Anjou |
French - Appellation of Loire Valley |
| Cabernet de Saumur |
French - Appellation of Loire Valley |
| Cabernet
Franc |
red wine grape |
| Cabernet
Sauvignon |
red wine grape |
| Cacc'e mmitte di Lucera |
Italian - Appellation of Puglia |
| Cadillac |
French - Appellation of Bordeaux |
| Cagnina di
Romagna |
Italian - Appellation of Emilia
Romagna |
| Caiño Blanco |
grape used in some Spanish wines |
| Caiño Tinto |
grape used in some Spanish wines |
| Calabria |
Italian Wine Region |
| Calatayud |
Spanish Wine Region |
| Caldaro |
Italian - Appellation of Trentino
Alto Adige |
|
Calificada
|
The Spanish wine authorities have
given Rioja it's own D.O. designation .. "Rioja Calificada".
This means that to be labeled as such, the wines must be bottled
in the Rioja area. You will also find within Rioja the following
districts .. Rioja Alta, Rioja Alavesa and Rioja Baja |
| Calon Segur,
Ch. |
French wine producer |
| Caluso Passito |
Italian - Appellation of Piedmont |
| Campania |
Italian Wine Region |
| Campidano di Terralba |
Italian - Appellation of Sardinia |
| Campo de
Borja |
Spanish Wine Region |
| Campo Viejo |
Spanish wine producer |
| Candia dei Colli Apuani |
Italian - Appellation of Tuscany |
| Cannonau di Sardegna |
Italian - Appellation of Sardinia |
| Canon Fronsac |
French - Appellation of Bordeaux |
| canopy |
that part of the grape vine that
is above the ground .. the leaves, the grapes, etc.. It is through
how the canopy is trimmed, trained, etc that that the concentration
and taste of the wine is effected. |
| Cantemerle,
Ch. |
French wine producer |
| Cantenac
Margaux |
French - Appellation of Bordeaux |
| Capo Ferrato |
Italian - Appellation of Sardinia |
| Capri |
Italian - Appellation of Campania |
| Capriano
del Colle |
Italian - Appellation of Lombardia |
| capsule |
That wrapping on the top of the
wine bottle that we all hate to deal with. It can be made from plastic,
lead, wax, or tin. |
| carbonic maceration |
This way of making wine is where
whole grapes are put into the cuve* and allowed to ferment for a
period of time. Then they are crushed ( this is opposite from the
normal .. crush/ferment operation). Used in Beaujolais .. the wines
that are produced in this manner usually have mild acids and are
very fragrant |
| Carbonnieux,
Ch. |
French wine producer |
| Carcavelos |
Portugese Wine Region |
| Carema |
Italian - Appellation of Piedmont |
| Carignano del Sulcis |
Italian - Appellation of Sardinia |
| Carinena |
Spanish Wine Region - also, grape
used in some Spanish Wines |
| Carmignano |
Italian - Appellation of Tuscany |
| Carso |
Italian - Appellation of Friuli
Venezia Giuli |
| casein |
this is a fining ( see FINING )
agent that is made from milk. |
| Cassis |
appellation near Marseilles, producing
mostly white wines. However it ( as do so many things in France )
has another use.. it can be translated to mean "black currant" and
is used as a way of describing a taste often found in red wines.
And yet another meaning .. if you mix up some black currant liqueur and some
white wine you get something that is called Kir or sometimes blanc cassis. |
| Castel del Monte |
Italian - Appellation of Puglia |
| Castel San
Lorenzo |
Italian - Appellation of Campania |
| Casteller |
Italian - Appellation of Trentino
Alto Adige |
| Cava |
Spanish sparkling wine |
| Cellatica |
Italian - Appellation of Lombardia |
| Cencibel |
grape used in some Spanish Wines |
| Cepa |
grape name - often used on Spanish
wine labels |
| cepage |
Hmm a word that perhaps U.S. wines
should use. This is french for the grape variety. ( ie chardonnay
). Not used all that much in labeling french wines due to the fact
the the A.O.C. rules take care of that. But in the U.S. where to
call a wine by it's variety name ( ie Chardonnay ) the majority of
the grapes must be from that variety we might even see some hip marketeer
put out a "Chardonnay de Cepage" !! ...
"vin de cepage" simply means wine of a given grape variety
Hmm a word that perhaps U.S. wines should use. This is french for the grape
variety. ( ie chardonnay ). Not used all that much in labeling french wines
due to the fact the the A.O.C. rules take care of that. But in the U.S. where
to call a wine by it's variety name ( ie Chardonnay ) the majority of the
grapes must be from that variety we might even see some hip marketeer put
out a "Chardonnay de Cepage" !! ...
"vin de cepage" simply means wine of a given grape variety
Hmm a word that perhaps U.S. wines should use. This is french for the grape
variety. ( ie chardonnay ). Not used all that much in labeling french wines
due to the fact the the A.O.C. rules take care of that. But in the U.S. where
to call a wine by it's variety name ( ie Chardonnay ) the majority of the
grapes must be from that variety we might even see some hip marketeer put
out a "Chardonnay de Cepage" !! ...
"vin de cepage" simply means wine of a given grape variety |
| Cerasuolo di Vittoria |
Italian - Appellation of Sicily |
| Cerons |
French - Appellation of Bordeaux |
| Cerveteri |
Italian - Appellation of Latium |
| Cesanese
del Piglio |
Italian - Appellation of Latium |
| Cesanese
di Affile |
Italian - Appellation of Lazio |
| Cesanese
di Olevano Romano |
Italian - Appellation of Latium |
| Chablis |
French - Appellation of Burgundy |
| Chablis Grand
Cru |
French - Appellation of Burgundy |
| Chablis Premier
Cru |
French - Appellation of Burgundy |
| Chacolí de
Getaria |
Spanish Wine Region |
| Chacolí de
Vizcaya |
Spanish Wine Region |
| chai |
The long, low generally above
ground wine cellar where wine ages, either in vats or barrels. |
| Chambave Moscato |
Italian - Appellation of Val D'Aosta |
| Chambave Moscato Passito |
Italian - Appellation of Val D'Aosta |
| Chambave Rosso |
Italian - Appellation of Val D'Aosta |
| Chambertin |
French - Appellation of Burgundy |
| Chambertin
Clos de Beze |
French - Appellation of Burgundy |
| Chambolle
Musigny |
French - Appellation of Burgundy |
| Champagne |
French Wine Region - 1) Area in
France famed for its sparking wines made
2) Sparkling wine made in the Champagne area using traditional methods. These
include using only certain grape varieties grown in delimited areas (Chardonnay,
Pinot Noir and Petite Meunier ) and causing a secondary fermentation in the
bottle. In Europe by law ( and elsewhere morally) the term Champagne may
only be used for sparkling wine from Champagne. |
| Champagne
rose |
French - Appellation of Champagne |
| chapeau |
French for "hat" ... Refers to the bunch
of grape skins, solids, etc ( "cap" ) that floats to the
top of the fermentation tanks during fermentation. |
| Chapelle
Chambertin |
French - Appellation of Burgundy |
| chaptalisation |
Chaptalization is the addition
of sugar to the grape juice BEFORE the fermentation (before it is
wine) in order to increase the alcohol of the wine by fermenting
the amount of sugar added. It does not contribute to sweetness of
the wine at all but changes the body and mouth-feel of the wine by
increasing the alcohol content. |
| Chardonnay |
white wine grape |
| Charmes Chambertin |
French - Appellation of Burgundy |
| Chassagne
Montrachet |
French - Appellation of Burgundy |
| Chasse-Spleen,
Ch. |
French wine producer |
| Chateauneuf
Du Pape |
French - Appellation of Rhone Valley |
| chauffe |
The "heating" of wine ... often done in
the production of Armagnac |
| Cheilly les
Maranges |
French - Appellation of Burgundy |
| Chenas |
French - Appellation of Burgundy |
| Chenin Blanc |
white wine grape |
| Cheste |
Spanish Wine Region |
| Chevalier
Montrachet |
French - Appellation of Burgundy |
| Chianti |
Italian - Appellation of Tuscany |
| Chianti Classico |
Italian - Appellation of Tuscany |
| Chignin Bergeron |
French wine from the Savoie region |
| Chinon |
French - Appellation of Loire Valley |
| Chiroubles |
French - Appellation of Burgundy |
| Chorey les
Beaune |
French - Appellation of Burgundy |
| Cigales |
Spanish Wine Region |
| Cilento |
Italian - Appellation
of Campania |
| Cinque Terre |
Italian - Appellation of Liguria |
| Cinque Terre
Sciacchetra |
Italian - Appellation of Liguria |
| Cinsault |
Grape Variety |
| Clairette
de Bellegarde |
French - Appellation of Languedoc |
| Clairette de Die |
French - Appellation of Rhone Valley |
| Clairette
du Languedoc |
French - Appellation of Languedoc |
| claret |
This is a term most often used
in England to refer to bordeaux red wines and sometimes simply used
as a name for dry, red table wines. |
| Clos |
French for "enclosed" ..
means a "walled in" vineyard, very common in Burgundy |
| Clos de la
Platiere |
French - Appellation of Burgundy |
| Clos de Vougeot |
French - Appellation of Burgundy |
| Clos du Bois |
U.S. wine producer |
| Clos St Denis |
French - Appellation of Burgundy |
| Close de
la Roche |
French - Appellation of Burgundy |
| Close de
Tart |
French - Appellation of Burgundy |
| Colares |
Portugese Wine Region |
| Coli Tortonesi |
Italian - Appellation of Piedmont |
| collage |
( see Fining ) |
| Colli Albani |
Italian - Appellation of Latium |
| Colli Altoberini |
Italian - Appellation of Umbria |
| Colli Amerini |
Italian - Appellation of Umbria |
| Colli Berici |
Italian - Appellation of Veneto |
| Colli Bolognesi |
Italian - Appellation of Emilia
Romagna |
| Colli del Trasimeno |
Italian - Appellation of Umbria |
| Colli dell'Etruria Centrale |
Italian - Appellation of Tuscany |
| Colli di Bolzano |
Italian - Appellation of Trentino
Alto Adige |
| Colli di Conegliano |
Italian - Appellation of Veneto |
| Colli di Lumi |
Italian - Appellation of Tuscany |
| Colli di
Parma |
Italian - Appellation of Emilia
Romagna |
| Colli Euganei |
Italian - Appellation of Veneto |
| Colli Lanuvini |
Italian - Appellation of Latium |
| Colli Maceratesi |
Italian - Appellation of The Marches |
| Colli Martani |
Italian - Appellation of Umbria |
| Colli Morenici
Mantovani del Garda |
Italian - Appellation of Lombardia |
| Colli Orientali del Friuli |
Italian - Appellation of Friuli
Venezia Giuli |
| Colli Perugini |
Italian - Appellation of Umbria |
| Colli Pesaresi |
Italian - Appellation of The Marches |
| Colli Piacentini |
Italian - Appellation of Emilia
Romagna |
| Colline Lucchesi |
Italian - Appellation of Tuscany |
| Collio |
Italian - Appellation of Friuli
Venezia Giuli |
| Collio Goriziano |
Italian - Appellation of Friuli
Venezia Giuli |
| Conca de
Barbera |
Spanish Wine Region |
| Condado
de Huelva |
Spanish Wine Region |
| Conde de
Valdemar |
Spanish wine producer |
| Condrieu |
French - Appellation of Rhone Valley |
| Constantia |
South African Wine Region |
| Contessa Entellina |
Italian - Appellation of Sicily |
| Copertino |
Italian - Appellation of Puglia |
| Cori |
Italian - Appellation of Latium |
| corkage |
Ok .. you wanted to bring your
own bottle to a restaurant .. well guess what - there are many that
don't want you to do this...even those with lousy wine lists, simply
because they want the revenue from the sale of wine. For those that
do allow this, they often charge a "corkage" or "cork
fee". These range from $5 to $15 per bottle. If you are lucky
enough to find a restaurant that allows "BYO" .. be sure
to let your waiter taste some of your wine .. even send a glass back
to the chef and be sure to tip just as if you had purchased the wine
there. |
| corked ( or corky ) |
the description of a wine that
has gone bad due do an inferior cork. This is caused by parasites
that live within a cork ( heck they do come from trees ) that are
not killed in the manufacturer of the cork. Also called bouchonne*
... If you drink a lot of wine like we do, you can expect to run
into this from time to time. The smell is like moldy mushrooms that
are full of petroleum. We've often seen where one bottle of a case
is "corked" and all the rest are fine. Finding a corked
wine is just cause to return it from where you got it. |
| Cornas |
French - Appellation of Rhone Valley |
| Cortese dell'Alto
Monferrato |
Italian - Appellation of Piedmont |
| Corton |
French - Appellation of Burgundy |
| Corton Charlemagne |
French - Appellation of Burgundy |
| Cos D'Estournel,
Ch. |
French wine producer |
| Cosecha |
Spanish - vintage year |
| Costers del
Segre |
Spanish Wine Region |
| Cote de Beaune |
French - Appellation of Burgundy |
| Cote de Beaunne
Villages |
French - Appellation of Burgundy |
| Cote de Brouilly |
French - Appellation of Burgundy |
| Cote Rotie |
French - Appellation of Rhone Valley |
| Coteaux de
l'Aubance |
French - Appellation of Loire Valley |
| Coteaux de Saumur |
French - Appellation of Loire Valley |
| Coteaux du Layon |
French - Appellation of Loire Valley |
| Coteaux du Loir |
French - Appellation of Loire Valley |
| Coteaux du Tricastin |
French - Appellation of Rhone Valley |
| Cotes de
Blaye |
French - Appellation of Bordeaux |
| Cotes de Bordeaux St. Macaire |
French - Appellation of Bordeaux |
| Cotes de Bourg |
French - Appellation of Bordeaux |
| Cotes de Canon Fronsac |
French - Appellation of Bordeaux |
| Cotes de
Castillon |
French - Appellation of Bordeaux |
| Cotes de
Francs |
French - Appellation of Bordeaux |
| Cotes de Fronsac |
French - Appellation of Bordeaux |
| Cotes du Jura |
French - Appellation of Jura |
| Cotes du Rhone |
French - Appellation of Rhone Valley |
| Cotes du Rhone Cairanne |
French - Appellation of Rhone Valley |
| Cotes du Rhone Chusclan |
French - Appellation of Rhone Valley |
| Cotes du
Rhone Gigondas |
French - Appellation of Rhone Valley |
| Cotes du Rhone Laudun |
French - Appellation of Rhone Valley |
| Cotes du Rhone Rasteau |
French - Appellation of Rhone Valley |
| Cotes du Rhone Roaix |
French - Appellation of Rhone Valley |
| Cotes du Rhone Rochegude |
French - Appellation of Rhone Valley |
| Cotes du Rhone Saint Maurice
sur Eygues |
French - Appellation of Rhone Valley |
| Cotes du Rhone Seguret |
French - Appellation of Rhone Valley |
| Cotes du Rhone Vacqueyras |
French - Appellation of Rhone Valley |
| Cotes du Rhone Valreas |
French - Appellation of Rhone Valley |
| Cotes du Rhone Vinsobres |
French - Appellation of Rhone Valley |
| Cotes du Rhone Visan |
French - Appellation of Rhone Valley |
| Cotes du Ventoux |
French - Appellation of Loire Valley |
| coupage |
chuckle .. this kind of translates
into a "child with many fathers" .. actually it's used
in vins de coupage to mean that this is a blended wine that comes
from using the same type of grapes but from different vineyards and
even different vintages. |
| courtier |
These dudes go all the way back
to the 15 century and their job today is still one that wine lovers
would kill for. They go around to all of the wineries and "inspect/taste" the
wines so that they can give recommendations to the negotiants as
to which wine is good and which is bad |
| Covilha |
Portugese Wine Region |
| Crepy |
French - Appellation of Savoie |
| Crianza |
Spanish quality level .. Aged for
at least 2 years - min. of 6 months in oak |
| Criots Batard
Montrachet |
French - Appellation of Burgundy |
| Crozes Hermitage |
French - Appellation of Rhone Valley |
| cru |
French term for a vineyard. ie
Grand Cru .. Priemer Cru etc |
| Cru Classe |
means "classed" or classified
... also simply called Cru .. thus "Grand Cru" ... "Premier
Cru" .. etc. all refer to a class or quality of wine that has
been designated by the French government |
| cryoextraction |
Wine produced from frozen grape such as Eiswein. The
frozen grapes are picked and then then pressed, and the bits of ice
are removed. |
crystals
( in your wine) |
"Hey Honey -- There's glass
in this wine" - well don't worry, these are simply deposits
of tartrates. These can form in both red and (more commonly) in white
wines that have seen some age to them. You will often see these on
the very bottom of the cork when you pull it. Not to worry they are
harmless and tasteless. Many winemakers try to prevent this by a
complicated method call tartrate stabilization .. something only
chemists know about. The bottom line is that these tartaric crystals
nothing to worry about .. unless consumed by the ton over a 48 hour
period <grin> |
| Cussac |
French - Appellation of Bordeaux |
| cuve cuves |
This the the barrel ( wood, stainless
steel, even cement ) that the wine juice is poured into and where
fermentation begins. |
| cuvee |
This is the wine that is made in
the cuve ( one extra "e" and it means something else !!).
Ok .. nobody ever said that it wouldn't be confusing !!!
Besides the above information ... you've also got the folks in Champagne
that use cuvee to mean that wine which is made from the first ( and thus
the best ) pressing of the grapes ... but wait .. also in Champagne they
use it to mean the wine that is made from a blend of the wines used prior
to the 2nd fermentation.
We ain't done yet .. in other areas of the wine world .. cuvee is used to
mean a really good wine made from a blend of different varieties.
If you keep all of this straight .. you are better than us !! |
| cuvee blanc |
This is really just an advertising
description of a white wine. Literally translates to something close
to "a container of white wine" |
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