Habersham Wine Dictionary

Qba (Qualitatswein bestimmter Anbaugrbiete) - German term for quality wines of designated regions; see Qualitatswein

Qualitatswein (Kval-ee-tates-vine) - "quality wine" in German; used to classify German wines of designated regions

Qualitätswein mit Prädikat (Kval-ee-TEHTS-vine mit PREH-dee-kaht) - Often abbreviated "QmP" for obvious reasons, this is the highest quality rating for German wines.

Quincy (Can-see) - French white wine (dry and spicy) made of the Sauvignon Blanc grape; produced in the village of the same name

Quinta (Keen-ta) - Portuguese term for a vineyard estate

Rasteau (Rass-toe) - sweet, amber fortified wine produced in the Rhone valley

Recioto (Ray-CHO-toe) - Wine from the Veneto region of Northeastern Italy, made from especially ripe grapes (hence the name, from the dialect word for "ears," referring to the upper edges of the grape bunches that get the most sunlight and thus ripen the most. The juice is further concentrated by the "passito" process in which freshly harvested grapes are allowed to dry into raisins before they're pressed and fermented. Usually sweet, although the well-known style Amarone is dry. See also "Ripasso."

Reserva (Ray-zair-vah) - Spanish legal term for wines aged before sale; for reds, at least three years, including at least one year in wooden barrels. The Italian "Riserva" is similar, but note that the English "Reserve" has no legal significance and may mean anything the winery (or its advertising agency) wishes.

Retsina (Ret-seen-uh) - Greek wine that displays a turpentine-like flavor (often an acquired taste)

Rheingau (RINE-gow) - German wine region along the Rhine ("Rhein" in German) where steep vineyards face directly south along an east-west stretch of the river and thus are considered some of the most favored of the region. The neighboring Rheinhessen (Rine-HESS'n) and Rheinpfalz (Rine-PFALTZ, sometimes abbreviated to "Pfalz") regions are also well regarded.

Rhône (Rone) - Great French wine region along the river of the same name. Best known for hearty red wines based on Syrah, Grenache and others, with a wine history certainly going back to the 14th Century, and at least by local legend, to the Romans.

Ribera del Duero (Ree-BEHR-ah dell Doo-AY-roe) - Challenging Rioja (below) for the title of Spain's greatest red wine, these Tempranillo-based reds -- particularly the fabled Vega Sicilia -- can last and improve for decades.

Riesling (REESE-ling) - The classic German grape of the Rhine and Mosel, certainly ranks with Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Noir among the most noble wine grapes. Germany's great Rieslings are usually made slightly sweet, with strong, steely acidity for balance, a style of wine so variant from the French, Italian and U.S. tradition that it requires a real paradigm shift for many of us to enjoy; but objectively, the greatest German Rieslings stand comparison to the best the world has to offer. Alsatian Riesling is also excellent, though usually made in a different style, equally aromatic but typically stronger and usually dry or nearly so. California Rieslings, in my opinion, are much less successful, usually sweet without sufficient acidity for balance, although some compelling "Alsace-style" Rieslings have come from the Eastern U.S. Another wine so complex that it defies easy description, but I often find fresh apples, sometimes pleasantly resinous notes like pine, and occasionally an odd mineral quality that's half-jokingly described as "diesel" or "petrol" or even "bus exhaust," although it's not at all unpleasant.

Rioja (Ree-OH-hah) - Perhaps the best red wines of Spain, grown in arid, mountainous Northern Spain and named for the Rio Oja river there. The wines are made from Tempranillo and other grapes, are often aged in oak, and trace some heritage to Bordeaux, from where many wine makers emigrated after the phylloxera scourge of the mid-19th Century.

Ripasso (Ree-PAH-soe) - Unusual wine-making practice of Valpolicella, in which wine made during the recent vintage is reserved, then placed atop the pressed grapeskins and lees in the vats just used for Amarone and allowed to ferment further in contact with those skins, thus acquiring additional body, extract and flavor.

Riserva (Ree-SEHR-vah) - Under Italian wine law, a wine aged for a designated period before bottling; regulations vary from one region to another in terms of the exact period and whether wood aging is required, but are always specific. (See also "Reserva," above.)

Rosato (Roah-sah-toe) - Italian word for 'rose' wine

Rosé (Roe-zay) - Pink wine, traditionally made not by blending red and white juice (although some inexpensive wines do this), but by using red grapes and removing the skins from the fermenter before they have had time to impart much color. Also sometimes labeled "Vin Gris" ("VaN Gree," literally "gray wine") and, among popular, low-cost American pink wines, "blush." Although the blush fad included many forgettable wines, a good, dry, crisp rosé or vin gris can be a refreshing treat on a hot summer day.

Rossara (Roa-sahr-ra) - high-quality Italian red wine grape

Rosso (Ross-so) - 'red' in Italian

Rosso di Montalcino (ROE-soe dee Mon-tahl-CHEE-noe) - "Little brother" to Brunello (which see), a good dry Italian red from Tuscany, requiring no aging in wood and permitted to be sold with less aging; often particularly good value.

Rouge (Roojh) - 'red' in French

Roussanne (Roo-sahn) - White Rhone grape, often grown with and blended with Marsanne, but somewhat supplanting the latter for economic reasons -- it is considered more productive and easier to grow; may also be called Rousette (Roos-set)

Ruby Port - Port wine with a deep red color and a fruity character

Rueda (Rue-eh-dah) - Spanish white wine (often of high quality)

Rulaner (Rew-len-der) - German for "Pinot Gris"

Ruwer (Roo-ver) - wines produced here carry "Mosel-Saar-Ruwer" on their labels; usually high-quality (some of the best German wines); always the Riesling grape

Sacramental Wine - wines made in accordance with church regulations for use in service

Sagrantino - unique Italian red wine grape; produces wines full of flavor (spice) and tannins

Saint-Chinian (SahN Shee-nee-ahN) - Another once little-known and lightly regarded region of the Languedoc gaining new attention in recent times as the wines of this region become more well-known.

Saint-Emilion (San'Tay-meel-yon) - Bordeaux region on the right bank of the Dordogne, upriver from Pomerol, and like the latter, best known for its red wines made with Merlot and sometimes Cabernet Franc dominating the blend.

Saint-Estephe (San'Tes-teff) - Northern portion of the Haut-Médoc in Bordeaux, producing wines considered somewhat less "refined" than Pauillac to the south (there are no first growths in Saint-Estephe), but still generally excellent, and perhaps more affordable.

Saint-Julien (San Zhoe-lee-eh) - township in the center of the Haut-Medoc that produces wonderful Claret

Saint-Laurent (San Law-rah) - wine-producing township in the Haut-Medoc

Sancerre (SahN-sehr) - Loire village known for deliciously dry and tartly acidic white wines made from Sauvignon Blanc, a classic match with oysters.

Sancocho (San-coach-O) - liquid used to sweeten Sherry

Sangiovese (Sahn-joe-VAY-zeh) - The predominant red-wine grape of Tuscany in Central Italy, primary player in the Chianti blend; also sometimes used as a varietal there and in California. Makes a hearty, dry red with flavors of black cherries, often with a characteristic orange glint in the color.

Sangria (Sahn-gree-ah) - fruity wine punch that originated in Spain

Sansevero (Sahn-say-veh-ro) - dry white wine produced in Italy

Sassella (Sah-sell-la) - red wine made from the Nebbiolo grape in Lombardy

Sauternes (So-TAIRN) - Great French dessert wine from the Bordeaux district of the same name, made from a blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon grapes harvested late and usually affected by botrytis, which see above. The most famous (and expensive) rendition is Chateau d'Yquemm although there are many other excellent examples. Not to be confused with "Sauterne," a cheap sweet jug wine from the U.S. under a naming convention that has now, happily, almost entirely died out.

Sauvignon Blanc (So-veen-yawn BlahN) - Noble white grape, native to the Loire and Bordeaux (where it is usually blended with Semillon); also widely planted in the Western U.S., South America, Australia and New Zealand and elsewhere. The wine comes in many styles, depending largely on canopy management or leaf pruning (shaded grapes make a "green," "grassy" style while grapes exposed to sunlight make a characteristically citric style) and whether the wine maker chooses to age the wine in oak. One of my favorite white varietals and, in my opinion, preferable to Chardonnay as a table wine with meals.

Sauvignon Vert (So-veen-yawn Vair) - white wine grape used exclusively for blending in inexpensive wines

Savennières (Sah-ven-YARE) - Small Loire region making white wines of exceptionally high quality from Chenin Blanc. One of the few white wines that doesn't merely benefit from a few years of age but actually needs time to come into its own.

Savigny-les-Beaune (Sav-veen-yee lay Bone) - Burgundian town known for red wine production

Savuto (Sah-voo-toe) - Italian red wine

Schaumwein (Showm-vine) - German term for sparkling wine

Scheurebe (SHOY-ray-beh) - Modern German grape, a Riesling x Sylvaner cross, still rather uncommon but seen increasingly in sweeter, late-harvest wines from the Rhine. The better examples resemble Riesling, with a raisiny fruitiness.

Schiava (Ski-ah-va) - rare, light Italian red wine grape

Schloss (Shlawss) - German equivalent of the French 'chateau'

Schlossberg (Shlawss-bairg) - common German vineyard name; traslates as "castle hill"

Sec (Seck) - French for dry

Secco (Seck-o) - Italian for dry

Sediment - deposit from wines as they are aged in the bottle

Sekt (Zekt) - high-quality German sparkling wine

Sémillon (Say-mee-yoN) - White wine grape, native to Bordeaux and used there primarily in a blend with Sauvignon Blanc; increasingly seen as a varietal in the U.S. and Australia, where it makes a soft, medium-bodied, sometimes pleasantly musky white wine.

Sercial (Sair-see-al) - white grape used to make wines on the island of Madeira

Sevre-et-Maine (Secr A Main) - French district in which most Muscadet is produced

Seyval Blanc (Say-vahl BlahN) - French-hybrid grape so widely used to make white wines in the Eastern U.S. that it's sometimes jokingly called "Indiana (or fill in your state of preference) Chardonnay." It makes a dry, crisp white wine that's often aged in oak to enhance its otherwise rather neutral "vinous" flavor.

Seyssel (Say-sell) - light white wine produced in the French town of the same name

Sherry - pale gold or amber-colored fortified wine originally produced in Spain; also widely produced in the US, South Africa, and Australia

Shiraz (Shee-rahz) - Australian synonym for Syrah, now also turning up on occasion in South Africa.

Skin - outer covering of the grape

Soave (So-ah-veh) - dry Italian white wine produced predominantly from the Garganega and Trebbiano grape varieties

Solera (So-lehr-ah) - system in which fortified wines are matured and blended to produce a consistent quality

Sommelier (Soh-mell-yay) - The wine waiter in a restaurant.

Sorni (Sore-nee) - Italian red wine made largely from the Schiava grape

Spanna (Spahn-na) - Another name for bargain hunters: Local name for a dry Piemontese red made from Nebbiolo, similar to but generally much less expensive than the neighboring Gattinara. Unfortunately, in today's inflating world of wine prices, even Spanna can rarely be had for less than $15.

Spatburgunder (Shpate-boor-gun-der) - German for Pinot Noir

Spätlese (SHPAYT-lay-zuh) - Literally "late-picked," the ripeness level of German QmP wines between Kabinett and Auslese (which see).

Spiritueux (Speer-ee-two-uh) - French word describing a higher alcohol content when applied to wine

Spumante (Spoo-MAHN-tay) - Literally "foaming," Italian for sparkling wine, usually seen in combination with its source, as in "Asti Spumante."

Sylvaner (Sill-VAH-ner) - German grape (sometimes spelled Silvaner there), considered secondary to Riesling in quality but planted widely as a blending grape. Vinified as a varietal, it makes a light, fruity quaffing wine.

Syrah (See-rah) - The classic Rhone red grape allegedly brought back from Shiraz in Persia by the 14th-Century crusader Gaspard de Sterimberg. Blended in Chateauneuf-du-Pape and standing alone in Hermitage, Cote-Rotie and other Rhone reds, it makes tannic, ageworthy wines easily identified by a very characteristic floral black-pepper fragrance.