French Wine Confidence Step #3 – Start Speaking the Language

2011-03-17

We all know that learning to speak a new language isn’t the easiest thing in the world to do. But I can promise you that adding a glass of wine to the mix will definitely help to get the vocabulary flowing!

This weekend I found myself talking a lot about “le Vin”, and although my whole conversation wasn’t in French, I took notice that many of the concepts and terms coming up in my wine-speak were in fact of French origin.

As I sipped a great bottle of Burgundy to study for my upcoming wine school class, I put together a short list of 10 French wine words you can confidently use in your wine discussions. These words have become so much ingrained in wine culture that they are used interchangeably between French and English. Although these need no translation to use – a short explanation in plain ‘Anglais’ helps to make them more approachable!

1) Barrique - French for "barrel," generally with a capacity of 225 liters which is equal to 300 bottles.

2) Aperitif - An alcoholic beverage consumed before a meal to stimulate the appetite, such as sparkling and fortified wines. Serving an aperitif is a great way to welcome your guests to your home. Ordering an aperitif before my main course, such as a glass of sparkling wine, is one of my favourite things to do when I’m out for dinner.

3) Champagne - A region in France known for their sparkling wine called “Champagne”. Note that you can only call a sparkling wine “Champagne” if it comes from Champagne, France – otherwise it is known as a sparkling wine (or another name localized)

4) Blanc de Blanc - The name for Champagne/sparkling wine made entirely from Chardonnay grapes.

5) Blanc de Noir - The name for Champagne/sparkling wine made entirely from red grapes – either Pinot Noir or Pinot Meunier, or both.

6) Brut - Means "very dry". Typically it is used to describe the driest Champagnes, ciders, or sparkling wines. Often times you may even see this word on a wine label.

7) Cru - A French term for ranking a wine's inherent quality, for example "premier cru" and "grand cru".

8) Cuvee - A specific vat/barrel selection of wine selected for its good/great quality.

9) Assemblage - The process of making and assembling a wine by blending different varietals into one bottle.

10) Terroir – “Terroir” refers to the vineyard-specific environmental differences (such as soil types, drainage, local micro-climate and sun exposure). Terroir is the biggest difference as to why the same varietals all taste differently from around the world and even from back to back vineyards.

So there you have it – 10 essential wine words to make you sound like a French wine professional. Now you know what to talk about the next time you’re at a party and need to start a conversation about the wine in your glass. Simply start sipping and socializing with the above lingo, and you’ll be using your new vocabulary in no time!

Cheers to tasting and talking wine!

Ange