German wine glossary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Xarel-lo
a white-wine grape variety grown widely in Spain, particularly in the Catalonia region in the northeast, where it is normally blended with other grapes to produce sparkling wines. It is also known as Pansa Blanca.
Xinomavro, Xynomavro
an important Greek red grape variety grown especially in the Macedonia region in the northeast of Greece .
Xylem
The woody, center portion of a vine trunk, arm or cane.
Yeast
Unicellular microorganisms which occur naturally in the air, especially in areas where fruits are grown. Whether "wild" or "cultured," yeast can quickly metabolize natural sugar into alcohol and carbon dioxide (called fermentation). When all, or most, of the natural sugar of grape juice has been transformed into alcohol, the juice is said to have been changed into wine.
Yeast lees
Solid sludge-like sediment, primarily spent yeast, which settles to the bottom of a fermentation tank after the fermentation is completed. Yeast lees should not be allowed to remain in contact with the wine any longer than necessary. This is because spent and decomposing yeast is the primary source of H2S (the odor of rotten eggs) in wine. This can be confusing: the world's best sparkling wines are produced by deliberately leaving wine in intimate contact with spent yeast in bottles during the secondary fermentation. Also, some table wines, notably Chardonnay, are sometimes fermented and aged "sur lies" in which the fermented mass is held in contact with the yeast lees for an extended time period. The answers lie in the strains of yeast used, their freshness and the conditions inside a champagne bottle compared to a wine tank.
Back to the Top of wine glossary
Zentralkellerei
German a central cooperative that gets its wine or must from
smaller cellars in the area and blends, produces and bottles the
wines
Zesty
(tasting term) used to describe an assertive, especially young
Wine
Zin abbreviation Zinfandel (informal)
Zinfandel
a red grape variety that is most commonly grown in California, USA, where it is now the most planted red variety.It is used to produce a wide range of wine styles from slightly pink (called blush) medium sweet white wines to a range of red wines that include light, fruity reds best drunk young and full-bodied reds that could stun a horse. Zinfandel is generally considered to be decended from the Primitivo grape variety from Apulia, Italy.
Zierfandler for a full list of grapes click HERE
(red grape) Also known as the Spatrot grape.
zones
1. in general use, a wine-producing area that does not usually coincide with any particular geopolitical or administrative boundarys
2. in the Australian system of Geographic Indications, a zone is any area of land, not strictly defined in the way that a region or subregion is. Most Australian states are zones.
Zweigelt for a full list of grapes click HERE
(red grape) a crossing of St Laurent and Blaufrankisch created in Austria by Dr Zweigelt in 1922.
Zymase
Common name given to the complex of enzymes, taken as a group, which the yeast cell uses to transform sugar into ethyl alcohol and, thereby, to transform grape juice into wine.