Bodegas Terras Gauda, S.A.
Glossary
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- Oaky:
- The taste or aroma of freshly sawn oak. A wine, especially a red, is considered
as correctly "oaked" when the "nose" carries a bare whiff of vanilla aroma.
Sometimes oak flavors overpower other component wine flavors in which case
it is considered overoaked. Oak flavor is introduced from contact with storage
barrels made from that wood. New oak barrels contribute stronger flavor to
a wine than older storage barrels. The "oaky" components encountered include
"vanillin", and so-called "toasty", "charred" or "roasted" elements. "Vanillin"
comes from the character of the hardwood. The three others derive from the
"charring" of the barrel that occurs from heating the broad iron rings which
hold the barrel staves in place after contraction and the flaming of the interior.
- Oily:
- Describes the vaguely fat, slippery sensation on the palate in contact with
the combination of high glycerin and slightly low acid content. Mostly encountered
in high quality Chardonnays and late harvest sweet wines (see also fat, glycerin/glycerol).
- Open-up / Opening-up:
- Some bottled cellar-aged red wines possess the peculiarity that, when the
cork is first pulled and the wine poured, the full flavors do not immediately
make an appearance. However, after the passage of several minutes in an open
glass goblet, the wine develops unsuspected flavor characteristics that can
verge on the sublime. This phenomenon is referred to as "opening-up". Conversely,
these flavors can disappear just as fast in just 30 minutes, leaving a subsequent
impression of a flat, stale, "over-the-hill" and/or mediocre wine (see also
closed-in).
- Overipe:
- A grape precondition necessary for making certain styles of Californian
Zinfandel wines. Left on the vine to dry in the sun, certain grape varietals
will develop the desirable "raisiny" character and concentrated sugar necessary
for making specialty wines such as the Hungarian "Tokay".
- Oxidation:
- Group of chemical reactions which occur when wine comes into contact
with air. Slight oxidation results in a loss of fruit and freshness and browning
in white wines. More severe oxidation results in a high level of volatile acidity
and, eventually, transformation of the wine into vinegar.
- Oxidized:
- Tasting term
indicating that the wine has suffered from contact with air, resulting in browning
in white wines, loss of fruit and freshness, and possibly a high level of volatile
acidity.