Accolage Tying of the new vine shoots to the wires which support the plants (see palissage).   Acquit Document which must accompany all shipments of wine on which tax has not yet been paid.   AFAQ Association Francaise d'Assurance Qualité) body authorised to deliver quality-assurance certification.   Alcoholic fermentation Conversion of sugar to alcohol+CO2+heat by the action of yeasts.The process by which grape juice becomes wine.   Anthocyanins Phenolic compounds found in grapes which contain most of the colouring matter.   Anti-oxidant Substance which modifies the oxidising tendency of free radicals, a major factor in the ageing process.   Atheroma Fatty deposit on the inner lining of the arterial wall.   Atherosclerosis Degeneration of the arteries characterised by patchy thickening of the arterial wall due to fatty deposits.   AOC (Appellation d'Origine Controlee) Controlled Appellation of Origin.On a wine label, these words indicate the provenance of the wine and guarantee its conformity to the relevant production standards.See Appellation.   Appellation Since the appellation ties the product to its place of origin, the word "appellation" may mean either a wine or a wine-growing locality.The higher the quality of the wine, the more exactly the place of origin is pinpointed.This gives rise in Burgundy to 4 categories of appellation: (1) regional, e.g. Bourgogne Rouge; (2) communal, which mention the name of the producing village, e.g. Vosne-Romanée; (3) Premier Cru appellations which mention the name of the village plus that of a named plot of recognised excellence, e.g. Vosne-Romanée "Les Chaumes"; (4) Grand Cru appellations grown from a named plot of such quality that it has won the right to constitute an appellation of its own without mentioning the name of the village, e.g. "La Tâche", which is a plot within the commune of Vosne-Romanée.   Assemblage The process of blending wines.

Ban de vendanges A prefectural decree which, each year, lays down the date on which the grape harvest may begin in each district.   Barrel The oak barrels used for élevage may be new or used.If they have been used once before, they are called "one-wine" barrels, if twice, "two-wine" barrels, and so on.   Batonnage (white wines only). The process of stirring the wine during elevage to return the lees to suspension which prolongs the activity of the yeast cells of which they are composed.This is done to improve the taste and body of the wine.   Botrytis cinerea Fungus which causes grey rot in grapes and stimulates production of resveratrol.   Bourbes Solids contained in the must after pressing (white wines).Normally allowed to settle out before fermentation, a process known as débourbage.

Cap punching See pigeage.   Carbonic maceration Technique employed in the making of Beaujolais wines whereby CO2 generated during fermentation is used to break down the grape-bunches and release their juice.   Cépage Grape variety, e.g.: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Gamay, etc   Cholesterol Lipoprotein contained in animal tissues and blood.Two sorts are recognised: LDL (low-density lipoprotein) which encourages the formation of undesirable fatty deposits; HDL (high-density lipoprotein), the "good" cholesterol, which promotes transport of surplus cholesterol to the liver where it is destroyed.   Climat Named and delimited plot of wine-growing land, equivalent of a Bordeaux cru.The best of these named plots form part of the appellation and appear on the label.E.g.: Nuits-Saint-Georges Premier Cru "Les Damodes".   Clones Organisms or cells which, because they have a single common parent, have identical genetic make-up.   Collage Fining - addition of a substance such as albumen to red wines to bring about precipitation of fine suspended matter as part of the clarification process which precedes bottling.   Crémant Type of effervescent wine made by the "traditional" (i.e. champagne) method.   Cuvée Literally "vatful".I.e. one "lot" of wine from a given appellation.

Débourbage See bourbes.   Débourrement Bud-burst.The first stage in the annual growth-cycle of the vine.   Dégorgement The process of removing unwanted solids from bottles of sparkling wine such as Crémants. The technique involves freezing the contents of the neck of the bottle where the solids have concentrated. (See remuage).   Dégustation Wine-tasting.Two kinds of tasting are common: "horizontal" tastings, in which a number of wines of the same year are sampled, and"vertical" tastings which sample different years of the same wine.   Décuvage De-vatting (compare encuvage).   DNA Deoxyribonucleic acid.Protein chain present in the nucleus of every cell and containing the entire suite of the organism's inherited genetic information.

Élevage Handling and care of wines during the period between vinification and bottling.   Encuvage (or entonnage) Vatting.   Enherbement See grassing-down   Epidemiological study Statistical study of disease.   Éraflage (or égrappage) Separating the stems from the grapes before vinification.

Fining See collage.   Foulage Crushing the grapes to liberate the juice.One of the first operations in vinification.   Free radicals Unstable molecules containing at least one unpaired electron and implicated in the ageing process at the cellular level.

Glycérol A form of alcohol and the constituent of the wine which adds mellowness.   GMO Genetically-modified organism.Any organism whose genetic make-up has been altered by the importation of genetic material from another species.   Grassing-down (enherbement) Allowing grass to grow between the vines as a means of combating soil erosion.   Gris Another word for rosé.

Hectare 2.471 acres   Hectolitre 100 litres

INAO Institut National des Appellations d'Origine.Body created in 1935 to regulate the production and sale of controlled appellation wines.   INSERM Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale.Body created in 1964 to investigate the research into general health.   In vitro Experimental work not involving living subjects.   In vivo Experimental work involving living subjects.

Lees Solid deposits found in wine after vinification and consisting mainly of dead yeast cells.   Liqueur d'expédition Sugar-based liquid used to top up sparkling wines after dégorgement.Its composition will determine whether the final product is brut, demi-sec, or sec   Liqueur de tirage Mixture of yeasts and sugar added to sparkling wines to promote in-bottle fermentation.   Lyre training Vines grown upwards on doubled palissage and planted at a density of 30,000 plants per hectare.

Macération Steeping the grape solids in the juice to liberate their constituents.   Malolactic fermentation Secondary fermentation by bacterial action, which transforms malic acid into lactic acid and reduces the overall acidity of the wine.   Marc The solids remaining in the vat during the vinification of red wines after the liquid has been racked off.(See vin de goutte and vin de presse).   Marl General term for any soil which combines clay and lime.   Mercaptan Form of alcohol in which oxygen is replaced by sulphur.Has a strong and disagreeable taste and smell.   Mildew Fungal infection of the vine.   Must Pressed grape juice before fermentation.

Néphropathie Kidney infection.

Oïdium A fungal infestation.   Ouillage Topping-up of barrels during elevage to eliminate air-pockets. (Cf. the English word "ullage").

Palissage System of support wires to which vines are trained.   Paulée Wine-growers' communal festive meal to celebrate the end of the grape harvest.   Phylloxera Insect-borne disease of the vine, countered by grafting French grape varieties onto phylloxera-resistant Americanrootstocks.   Pièce Traditional Burgundian barrel with a capacity of 228 litres, commonly used as a unit of measure.   Pigeage "Or cap-punching" consists of breaking up the solid mass which forms on top of the vat during fermentation in order to re-mix it with the liquid. (Cf. remontage).   Plaque formation Clumping or aggregation of blood platelets   Platelet Constituent of the blood involved in clotting.   Polyphenols Phenolic compounds having anti-oxidant properties and present in quantity in wine, mostly in the form of tannins, anthocyanins (red colouring matter), and flavones (yellow colouring matter).   Potential alcohol Since fermentation turns sugar to alcohol, the alcoholic content of the future wine can be estimated by measuring the sugar content of the grapes.(17g/l of sugar = 1° approx.)   Primeur Wines so described are meant to be drunk young and can be released to the market on November 15th following the harvest (as opposed to December 15 for other AOC wines). Beaujolais Nouveau is perhaps the best-known example.   Prise de mousse Secondary, in bottle fermentation of sparkling wines such as Crémant de Bourgogne.

Rafle Grape stalk. See éraflage.   Remontage "Pumping-over" - i.e. wetting the cap with the liquid from the lower part of the vat (red wines only).   Remuage Progressive turning and tilting of sparkling wines during in-bottle fermentation in order to deposit the lees in the neck of the bottle prior to dégorgement.   Resveratrol Polyphenol contained in wine, produced by the grapes in response to stress.Its exceptional antioxidant properties benefit the moderate wine-drinker by their ability to counter the deleterious effects of free radicals.   Robe The colour and general appearance of a wine.   Rognage (or écimage) Trimming back unwanted foliage on the vines to improve access and give better circulation of light and air.

Saignée Running off a part of the contents of a vat during fermentation to increase the concentration of the remainder.   Saint Vincent Patron saint of the vignerons.His feast day on January 22 is the occasion for numerous wine-related festivities.   Soutirage Racking, i.e. running off the contents of a vat or barrel in such a way as to leave behind the solids in the bottom of the container.   Sulfitage Treatment of wine with sulphur dioxide, which has valuable anti-bacterial and anti-oxidant properties.

Tastevin Traditional wine-taster's cup, usually made of silver.   Terroir Usually translated as "native soil" - a concept of crucial importance in Burgundy where the variability of the soil over quite short distances is the main reason for the plethora of Burgundian appellations and where bringing out the linkage between a product (such as wine) and its "home ground" is the aim of every wine-maker.   Triage Sorting.Grapes on arrival at the winery are picked over to eliminate damaged or unripe fruit.   Thrombosis Obstruction of blood circulation thank to the presence of a thrombus or clot.   Thromboxane (thrombin) Substance synthesised by blood platelets which causes clotting.

Vendange Grape harvest.   Vendange verte Removing surplus fruit bunches in July while they are still undeveloped in order to maximise maturation of the remainder.   Véraison Stage in the vegetative cycle of the vine when the grapes begin to take on their final colour.   Verjus Unripe grapes.   Vigne en lyre See lyre training.   Vigneron Person who works with vines for a living.   Vin de base Still wine from which sparkling wines are made.   Vin de garde Wine for laying down, i.e. one which will not reach its peak for a number of years after bottling.   Vin de goutte "Free-run wine" - i.e. wine obtained from the vat by racking (red wines only).   Vin de presse Wine obtained by pressing the marc after the vin de goutte has been run off.   Vinification The series of processes by which grapes are turned into wine.   Vintage The year in which a wine was made.The French word is "millésime".