Wine Dictionary

Hello guys, 

The world of wine use a specific vocabulary and this is why I propose to you this list of words traducted in English to French. 

I hope that this article will help you. 

White wine => vin blanc
Red wine => vin rouge
Still wine => vin tranquille
Rosé  => rosé
Sweet natural wine => vin doux naturel
Liqueur wine => vin de liqueur
Sparkling wines, fizzy => mousseux, effervescent, pétillant
Table wine => vin de table
Yellow wine => vin jaune
Dessert wine => vin de dessert
Aeration => aération
Alcoholic fermentation => fermentation alcoolique
Aging => vieillissement
A hint of… => une pointe, un gout de…
Alcohol => alcool
Aluminium tank => cuve en aluminium
Aperitif => apéritif
Appellation wines => vins d’appellation
After taste => arrière-goût
Alcoholic fermentation => fermentation alcoolique
Aroma => arômes
Balanced => équilibré
Body => corps
Barrel => tonneau
Blend => assemblage
Blind testing => dégustation à l’aveugle
Bottle => bouteille
Breathing => respiration
Buttery => beurré
Barrel => barrique, fût
Capacity => capacité, contenance
Cask => tonneau
Cellar => cave
Cork => bouchon
Corked => bouchonné
Chilled => frappé
Champagne glass => flûte
Crusher => fouloir
Delicate => fin
Domaine, Estate => domaine
Dry => sec
Enjoy your tasting! => bonne dégustation !
Enology => oenologie
Fairly, medium-sweet => demi-sec
Fermenter => cuve de fermentation
Fine colour => une belle robe
Fermenting time / Vatting time => Temps, durée de cuvaison
Full-bodied => corsé, charpenté
Finish => arrière-goût
Fresh, cool => frais
Fleshy, medium bodied => charnu
Fortified wines => vins mutés
Fruity => fruité
Grape => raisin
Grape skin => peau de raisin
Grape variety => cépage
Growth / Cru => un cru
Glistening => chatoyant
Harvest => vendange
Iced => glacé
Label => étiquette
Late harvest => vendange tardive
Light => léger
Maturing in… => élevage en…
Must => moût
Nose => nez
Nut => noisette
Oak => chêne
Oak cask => fût de chêne
Oak barrel => tonneau en chêne
Oaky => boisé
Owner => propriétaire
Oxidation => oxydation
Press => pressoir
Powerful => puissant
Picking, harvesting of grapes => vendange
Preservation => conservation
Perfumed => parfumé
Powerfull => puissant
Round => rond
Robust, strong, rich => corsé
Ruby => rubis
Sediment => dépot
Small cellar => caveau
Spicy => épicé
Spittoon => crachoir
Straw wines => vins de paille
Sweet => doux, moelleux
Tannin => tanin
Tasting => dégustation
Tank => cuve (fermée)
Taste => arôme, goût
Tools, equipment => les outils, le matériel
Vat => cuve (ouverte)
Vinification => vinification
Vintage (year) => millésime, récolte
Vineyard => vigne, vignoble
Very dry => brut
Vat => cuve
Wine-growing, vinicultural, wine industry => vinicole
Wine merchant => négociant
Wine picker, harvester => vendangeur
Wine-waiter => sommelier
Wine grower => viticulteur
Winery => cuverie
Wine tasting => dégustation
With a short finish => cours en fin de bouche
Wine-tasting cellar => caveau
Woody taste => boisé
Wood => bois
Wooden => en bois

South Africa

Vineyard in South Africa

South Africa is one the oldest place in the world producer of wine. Since 1994 with the end of the Apartheid,  the country have engaged a lot of changements and obviously about the wine.

The South African vineyard was implanted during the XVIIe century by French Huguenots. At this period, the producted wine was very famous and especially the Vin de Constance that was very apprecied by all the Europe.

95% of the wine is produce on the Western Cap. We can split the wine estates in five districts:

- Orange River
- Olifants River
- Klein Karoo
- Breed River Valley
- Coastal Region

The country propose two different climatic conditions to make some wines:

- A maritim climate that allows essentialy to make some white whites. (Sauvignon Blanc, Sévillon and Riesling). We can quote the vineyard of Constantia in Walker Bay.

- A continental climate that characterises the vineyard of Stellenbosch, Paarl, Wellington and Robertson. This region allows to put the grapevine of the mountain to research coolness.

Vineyard in South Africa

The land owns five grapes (Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Merlot and Chardonnay) and product a metis grape called the Pinotage issued of the Pinot Noir and the Cinsault that make originality of South Africa.

After having explained the situation of the wine in South Africa, I'm going to quote the best vineyard of the country.

Klein Constantia

This vineyard is one the most historic place of the country. After the changements issued of the Apartheid, this place try to refind the quality of its famous "Vin de Constance". 

Klein Constantia wines

Ken Forester Vineyards

This vineyatd propose some great dry and liquorous white wines issued of its sandy terroir of Scholtzenhof.  The cuvées sell under the name of Petin Chemin are very apprecied in United Kingdom. 

White wine Chenin Blanc

Rustenberg wines

This is the pioneer place of the South African viticulture. Installed at the top of a mountain, the vineyard propose some wines issued from bordelais grapes. The best wines are the Cabernet-Sauvignon Peter Barlow and the vintage Rustenberg.

Rustenger wines

Australia

Vineyard in Australia

Australia is another country producting of wine in the world. This country owns the 11th vineyard of the world with a square of 154, 000 hectares.

The principales regions are :

- South Australia
- New South Wales
- Victoria
- Western Australia
- Tasmania

The Australia have the advantage to own an ideal climate to grown some wine. Indeed, the different localisation of the vineyard around the country allow it to make some different wines.
We number three red grapes in Australia: the Syrah (28% of the vineyard square), the Cabernet Sauvignon (17.5%) and the Merlot (6.3%).
About the wine grapes, there are the Chardonnay (44.6%), the Sémilion (9.9%) and finaly the Sauvignon Blanc (12.1%).

Vineyard in Australia

This land is the 6th producter of wine in the world with 1,256 millions litre of wine in 2015.
Approximately 60% of the total production comes from the red grape. Five major groups control the wine market in Australia:

- Accolade Wines
- Treasury Wine Estates
- Casella Wine
- Pernod Ricard Wine Makers
- Australian Vintage

The Australian wines are apprecied because of their savor and their taste of fruit. They are often more alcoholic as the other (12 to 14%).

So if you feel like flavor some australian wines, I advised you this different wines.

Grant Burge

This vineyard is deemed for its red wines and obviously Holy Trinity and Filsell Shiraz.

Charles Melton

His wines are really interested because they respect the classic tradition. The method use no irrigation, and old grapevines. One of his wine is called Nine Popes, in tribute to Châteauneuf-du-Pape, and propose a taste very fine, fruity and warm.

Petaluma

This vineyard propose large product range that are interesting to discover. You can taste their riesling or the great Cabernet-merlot of the Coonawara Valley.

South America

Map of the South America region producer of wine

The South America is the second producer of wine in the world behind Europe. The viticulture and the wine tradition has been brought by the Conquistadores in the XVIe century. The grapevine is generally planted in the Andes in South America because of the ideal climate.
The echanges with Europe have allowed to South America to develop its culture of the wine thus to realize the production of excellent wines.

The Chili was the first country growing of wine in South Africa. Thanks to the travels realized by the landowner natives from Europe, the wine culture took its boom at the beginning of the XVIIe.
During this century was borned all the famous vineyard like Concha y Toro, Carmen, Santa Rita and Santa Carolina in the valley of Maipo.
The most famous chilean wines are today Casillero del Diablo, Marqués de Casa Concha, Almaviva and Montes Alpha.

Vineyard in Chili

The first grapevine was planted in 1550 in Argentina thanks to the Conquistadores. This country owns the seventh vineyard of the world with a surface of 220 000 hectares. This vineyard is located in three different regions:

- The West-Center of Argentina that represents 92% of the vineyard

- The North-West including the Rioja, Catamarca, Salta and Jujuy (5% of the vineyard)

- The South with the Rio Negro, Neuquen and La Pimpa (3% of the vineyard)

The Argentina use basicaly three grapes, the malbec, the cabernet and the pinot noir. The red wnes represent 60% of the global production but rosé are also important with 30% of the production. Today this country has developed its agriculture of wine and product some great wine. In 2014, Vinalies Internationales elected "Famiglia Blanchi Reserve" the best red wine of the world. 

Vineyard in Argentina

The Brazil is non known country about wine but it's important to say that its product some great wines. 
The production of wine is concentrated essentially in the state of Rio Grande do Sul and in Sao Francisco River Valley. The Brazil respect a german and italian tradition and thus use five differents grapes like the riesling, the tannat, the cabernet-sauvignon,the gamay and finally the gewurztraminer. 
In term of quality, the brazilian wines are considered as medium but according to specialists it will gradually improve. 

Vineyard in Brazil

North America

The North America is a region in the world who product some good red wines. This country is the sixth producer of wine in the world behind Spain, Italia and France and owns a surface of  425,000 hectares. 

90% of the american wine production in concentrated in California that has able to develop the culture of the wine thanks to the importation of grapes from regions of Europe in the 17th century like Bourgogne, Bordeaux or North Italia.
The principales grapes are for red wines the pinot noir, the cabernet sauvignon, the Zinfandel, the merlot and the shiraz. In parallel, they product three different white wines like the chardonnay, the sauvignon blanc and the viognier. 


The California  is the most famous place for wines in USA because of its great climatic situation. The climate is very similar to the France, and more precisely of the Bordeaux. These similarities allow to this state to produce some quality wines.

The Santa Clara, Ridge wineyards (Monte Bello) is part of the best wines in California. This castle of wine is one the oldest of USA (1892) and respect a strict tradition of the production of wines. 

The second one is the Alexander Valley, Vérité Estate, considered as the future star of the Californian wine. The wineyard have three tank of wine (la Muse, la Joie et le Désir) established with Bordelais variety grapes.

You can also find some great other wines in California a little known fact but interested to taste. ( Picture Below)

Lang & Reed 

This vineyard was founded in 1996 by John and Tracey Skupny. They product some wines with the utilisation of the cabernet franc grape orginating from France (Chinon, Bordeaux and Bourgueil). Their willingness is to associate this specific grape with the charateristics of the californian terroir. 

Cartlidge & Brown

Founded by Tony Cartlidge and Glenn Browne, this wine est very famous according to its price quality. This vineyard use the pinot noir grape and product generally suave and souple wine. 

Europe

The wine is very often linked with the image of Europe. In fact, even if today a lot a countries tried to product some wines, the Europeen Union is the first producer and consumer of wine in the world (65% of the world's production and 57% of the world's consumption).

The EU spends 3.5 millions héctare of its territory for the production of wine.

The wine is part of the history of Europe since a long time. Its consumption and utilisation  have started from ancient times so far. The wine has crossed all the civilization in Europe and took a important place in the way of life of the europeans. 

There are a lot of different wines threw all the Europe. Indeed, following your personal preference, you can easily find what you would like to flavor. In view of the large number of wines in Europe, I will present you the three most famous countries. 

-French wines

The France in globally known for its wines. The Bourgogne, the Bordeaux, the Languedoc or the Côte-du-Rhône have make famous all the winegrowers of this country. The french wine stay one of the best wine in the world due to its tradition producing and its climatic conditions. 

-Spanish wines

The Spanish wines are also known globally. There are known for their fruity and strong taste wines due to the dry climate present in Spain. We can mention here its two famous red wines, the Rioja and the Ribera del Ruedo. 

-Italian wines

About Italy, we can talk about their famous wines of Toscane, the Chianti and the Sangioveto and also the prestigious Brunello di Montalcino that comes from the region of Sienne. 

- German wines

The Germany has also some great wines and above all some excellent white wines. Indeed, we can quote of course the Bernkasteler Lay, the Wehlener Sonnenuhr and the Rauenthaler Nonnenberg. 

The champagne

The champagne is an effervescent french wine inherent of the Champagne region situated in the Nord-East of the France.  

It's important to know that the elaboration of the champagne incluse certains specificities:

- The harvest is done manually to not damage the grape
- Pressing is performed on traditional presses
- The assembly must marry different grapes and vintages of different years
- The champagne must be created following a double fermentation ( first of all in tank and the second time in a cylinder)
- The champagne must be a effervescent wine kept under pressure by a mushroom-shaped plug. 
- Champagne must comes from a official bran. 

Mushroom-shaped plug

The champagne is made out of three grapes : 

- The pinot noir is used to make strong wines with low acidity.

- The pinot meunier is a grape variety that make the wine fruity with low acidity. When it assembled with the other grape to make champagne, it brings suppleness and coherence.

- The chardonnay brings finesse and freshness during the blend.

Vineyard in Champagne

You can fin different types of champagne in the world that decompose in six categories: 

- The champagne brut, extra-brut, dry or semi-dry which designates wines with more or less proportion of liqueurs. 

- Blanc de Blancs which designates some champagnes exclusively makes with chardonnay white grapes.

- Blanc de Noirs designates champagnes exclusively makes with pinot noir and/or pinot meunier. 

- Grand Cru or Premier Cru mention champagne make from classed vineyard. (100% of the vineyard for the first mention and 90% to 99% of the vineyard to the second mention).

- Millesimé means that the champagne is from a single year. 

- The champagne rosé

Otherwise, the champagne became a luxury product and celebration beverage consuming in special occasion. This wine is famous around the world because of its protected appellation. 

We say that a quality champagne owns "Nonaggressive fine bubbles that rise in continuous column". 

Champagne with fine bubbles

You can taste the champagne with flute glasses (picture below) during the aperitif or the dessert. 

Champagne with foie gras

The rosé

The rosé is characterized by its pink or red color. In addition to the must's fermentation required for every wines, the rosé needs a controlled maceration of the black grapes. At the difference of the other wines, the grape juice is macerate during a short period (few hours or one day). 

Contrary to what the legends says, the rosé is not the mixture between the white wine and the red wine. It demand a lot of expertises to make it. Today, we number three types of rosé: 

- The rosé made by maceration is made from a black grape harvest placed in tank 24h before the beggining of the fermentation. This method allow to liberate the pulp, the grape skin, the pips and the grapejuice. Durinf this short vatting period, the pigments and the aromas contained in the grape tint the juice to make the rosé colour. 

- The pressing rosé is made from the direct pressing of the grape after the harvest. This technique brings to the wine a lighter robe like salmon coulour. 

- The rosé de Saignée is obtained from the harvest placed in tank as the rosé made by maceration but destined to make some red wine. After few hours of maceration, the winemakers liberate some coloured juice to make some wine besides. 

The experts used a swatch of nine colours to identified the rosé; 

- Currant
- Raspberry
- Rosewood
- Pink marble
- Meat
- Salmon
- Onion skin
- Brick 
- Coral

The different colours of the rosé

We use a lot of wines grape to create a rosé. By regions, there are:

- The cabernet sauvignon is one of the grape variety used to make some rosé. Its very common in the South East of the France, in Provence. This grape variety bring a tannic and strong structure of the wine.

- The syrah is one tof the most currant grape variety used to make some rosé. Its utilisation in the elaboration of rosé allow to product some strong and coloured wines. With the time, the wines derived of the syrah grape variety develop aromas of vanilla, havana and red fruits. 


This wine is considered as a friendly, fresh and light drink. During a long time, it was exclusively tasted during aperitif because this product was not considered like a wine. However this product has earned its place in the world of wine and today it accompany meals of meat and fish. 

Rosé and aperitif

Fish soup and rosé

The white wine

The white wine is obtained by the fermentation of the must of non colored grap pulp. This type of wine is processed to maintain its final yellow color. There are a variety types of white wine due to the large amount of types of winemaking. Some exemples:

- The Chardonnay is the most famous white grape variety in the world.  Its situated in Bourgogne due to the geologic and climatic wealth. All the greatest white wines as the Chablis, the Pouilly-Fuissé or the Montrachet use this grape because its allow to bring to light the subtilities of the native terroir. The Chardonnay is use in France, Spain, Italy, America, South Africa and Australia.

- The Sauvignon is also globaly known in the world of wine. Its situated in the South West of the France, in the region of Bordeaux. This grape variety is generally aromatic and acid. We use it to make some different white wine in France as the Pouilly Fumé, the Sancerre and the Saint-Bris. You can find it around the world in New Zeland, in South Africa, in Italy and of course in France.

- The Muscat product some aromatic wine that expresse the flavor of the fresh grape. It use to the elaboration of different wine as the Alsace Muscat, Muscat of the South East of the France or more some rosé muscat called "Moscato" in Italy. The Muscat is largely farmed in the North of the Spain,in Italy and in France. 

White grape variety

We can decomposed the white wine in two categories, the dry white wine and the sweet white wine.

The first one is the most common wine to flavor. It's generally acidic and more or less aromatic. This wine is characterized by a complete fermentation of the must.
The second white wine is sweet because of the interruption of the fermentation of the must. This technique avoids the total transformation of the sugars in alcohol.

The white wine is used as an aperitif drink or more to accompany some food (starters, dishes, and desserts). It recommanded to consume it with seafood like oysters, shellfish or fishes.

Fishe

Oyster

Seafood

Otherwise, this product is eather used for the creation of dishes. Its acidity allow to balance the fat foodstuffs and to tenderize certain meets and fishes. The white wine take part in the realization of sauces and marinades.
Some examples:

The Sauerkraut

The Béarnaise sauce

The cheese fondue

                                                                     Molds in the white wine

The red wine

Red wine is one of three types of wine existing. It's obtained by the fermentation of the must of black grapes, pome and cob (the frame of a bunch of grapes). The red wine production is global, in fact, you can taste a wine comes from each continent as Europe, Borth Amercia, South Amercia, Africa and Australia.

We call "grapes" the different variety of grape and grapevine. There are more that one thousand grape in the world that resulted of naturel mutations. Depending of the region, you can find this kind of grape for the red wine: 

- The cabernet sauvignon come from the Medoc in France. It's a resistant grape that can be adapted at different terroir. Today it is grown all around the world, especially in the South West of the France, in the North of the Spain, in Amercia, in South Africa and in Australia. 

- The malbec is a french grape that can be found principaly in the South West of the France but also in Argentina and in Chili. The Malbec product some velvety and concentrated wine with a higher alcohol containt. 

- The Pinot noir is grape that you can find in the region of Bourgogne in France. It allow to product some exceptional wines world recognized for their taste and their tannins. This grape is use around the world  in particular in France, in Italia, in Spain and in America. 

- The merlot is the second grape of the South West of the France. Its charateristics is that it is harvested earlier that the other grapes. The merlot product some coloured, round and supple wines. 

Red grape variety

Indeed, it exists a lot of criteria that determined how choose a red wine. According to your preference or your expectations (red wine fruity, light, strong, tannic, spicy..), the native region and its price, you have a large choice facing you ! 

Otherwise, on each bottle of wine is posted the classification (AOC zone), the natives regions (Bordeaux, Bourgogne, Languedoc..), the grapes, the cru or more the millesime that can help you to make your choice. 

From a culinary perspective, red wine is used either for tasting or to accompany food. Depending on its taste and fragrance, it is perfectly suited to certain types of food. Generally, red wine accompanied well the red meats, cold cuts and cheeses.

Meat and red wine

In parallel, somes red wines are used in the creation of starters, dishes, desserts or sauces. Its proprieties allow it to perfect dishes. Here some examples:

The beef bourguignon

A stew

The fruits wine

                                                             Vigneronne sauce

Lately, there is a byproduct of the red wine, the red wine vinegar which play an important role in the kitchen.