Essential
vocabulary
The Spanish department of GIRALDA
CENTER-SPANISH HOUSE offers you the following information to help
you discover the wealth of Spanish wines. We consider that it
forms part of the gastronomic culture of this country, and it
will also help you to learn Spanish.
How is it possible to translate
these sensations; to express the colour, the aroma and flavour
of a wine?.
AFRUTADO/FRUITY: Any wine with
a fruity aroma (peach, apricot, banana, currants, raspberries,
strawberries, cherries, plums, blackberries, etc).
AGUJA/PRICKLE: Presence of
tiny natural bubbles which is present in certain young wines.
AMONTILLADO: A fino-style wine
from Jerez, gold to amber in colour and with a dry hazel flavour.
Alcohol content of between 17 and 18 degrees. From Córdoba,
Andalusia. Drink chilled as an apéritif.
AÑADA/VINTAGE: The year
in which the wine was harvested. This should appear on the bottle.
BARRICA/CASK: Wooden barrel
used to age the wines.
BLANCO/WHITE: Classic style
of very clear wine, with a dominance of yellow shades running
to greenish and golden hues.
BOUQUET: A word of French origin
used to describe the complex blend of fragrances in a wine.
BRUT: Very dry sparkling wine.
Characteristic of cavas. There are different varieties depending
on the sugar content: brut zero, brut sauvage, brut integrál,
extra brut, etc.
CAVA: High quality Spanish sparkling
wine made using the Champagne method, with the second fermentation
taking place in the bottle sold to the public. This term is also
used to refer to the cellars used for ageing wines.
CEPA/VINE: The main trunk of
the vine from which the shoots grow.
CHACOLI: A light acidic wine
made from grapes which have not fully ripened. 9% alc. vol. From
the Basque Country.
CLARETE/CLARET: Fruity, light
red wine with a fermentation process involving a very slight maceration
of the grape skins. To be consumed young. In the UK the term is
also used to mean red wines from Bordeaux.
CRIADERAS: Barrels in which
the wines of Jerez (sherry) are aged using the soleras system.
They are arranged on different levels.
CRIANZA/AGEING: Controlled
ageing of a wine, whether in the barrel or in the bottle.
CUERPO/BODY: Smoothness, fleshiness,
substance and structure of the wine.
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