What does corked mean ?

What are the little bits in the bottom of older wines ?

What is decanting ?

What does "to Chamber" a wine mean ?

What is meant by the nose, legs and balance of wine ?

What is a Claret ?

What do the words "Sur lie" mean on the label ?

What is Nobel Rot ?

What do the words sec, demi-sec, and moelleux mean on a wine label?

What does the word "Cru" mean on the label?

How do I store wine?

What does corked mean ?
This is a mould that affects the cork which then becomes diseased. There will be a damp musty odour and the wine will taste and smell of cork. It can happen to wine of any quality that has a cork seal.

What are the little bits in the bottom of older wines ?
This is called sediment and is caused by the natural ageing of the wine in the bottle. Sediment does not effect the taste and does not indicate a bad wine. The best thing to do with such a wine is to decant it.

What is decanting ?
Decanting is a process by which the wine is taken from the bottle and transferred into another receptacle (usually glass) in order to allow it to breathe. The wine can be filtered during this process which gets rid of the sediment.

What does "to Chamber" a wine mean ?
It means that the wine is gradually allowed to reach room temperature before drinking.

What is meant by the nose, legs and balance of wine ?
These are terms which are used to describe a wine. The nose is the wine's scent and conveys information about the wine's condition. The legs are the tears of glycerine that can be seen along the inside of a glass after it has been swirled about. Wine that has legs is usually young, and high in flavour and alcohol level. The balance refers to the proportion of acids, tannins, alcohol, fruit and flavour of the wine.

What is a Claret ?
Claret is an old English term given to wines from the Bordeaux area of France.

What do the words "Sur lie" mean on the label ?
This is a French expression referring to the way the wine is made and means that the wine is bottled directly off its lees (the dead bits of yeast which are left in the wine after fermentation). This technique gives the wine the maximum amount of flavour and the wine does not need to be filtered.

What is Nobel Rot ?
This is a benevolent fungus which grows on white grapes adding a unique and highly prized flavour to sweet white wine. If you see the word "botrytis" on the label it means that the grape has attracted the fungus.

What do the words sec, demi-sec, and moelleux mean on a wine label?
The words refer to the sweetness of wine. Sec means dry, Demi-sec means medium dry/sweet and Moelleux means sweet.

What does the word "Cru" mean on the label?
The best wines of Bordeaux are split into 5 different crus (quality) ranging from premier cru classé (best) to cinquième cru classé.

Storing wine

Wine is very sensitive to abrupt changes in temperature and exposure to light. Any storage space that is dark, reasonable humid, free from vibrations and strong odours, and has an even temperature (no extremes) can be used. The best places in modern houses are the cloakroom and the space beneath the stairs. Places to avoid include kitchens, attic spaces, the boiler room and outside garages.

Wine is best stored at a fairly constant temperature of between 8 and 13 degrees celsius. The cork needs to remain damp and swollen to keep out the air so all bottles should be stored on their side as this prevents the corks from drying out and shrinking.