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

Decanting
A technique that removes sediment from wine before drinking. After allowing the sediment to settle by standing the bottle upright for the day, the wine is poured slowly and carefully into another container, leaving the sediment in the original bottle.

Degree Days
A method of classifying the climate based on the number of days the temperature is within a range that vines can grow. In California, climates are rated from coolest (Region I) to the warmest (Region V). This classification can help winemakers determine where to plant which variety.

Délestage
French term for racking and returning a wine back to the tank. Wine is pumped out of the fermenting tank and back over the cap to facilitate extraction of color and flavor.

Delicate
Used to describe light- to medium-weight wines with good flavors. A desirable quality in wines such as Pinot Noir or Riesling.

Demi-Muid
A French term for 600-liter capacity oak barrels, typically used in the Rhône Valley.

Demi-Sec
A term describing sweetness in Champagne. It can be misleading; although demi-sec literally means “half-dry,” demi-sec sparkling wines are usually slightly sweet to medium-sweet. The scale, from driest to sweetest, is: Extra Brut, Brut, Extra-Dry, Sec, Demi-Sec and Doux.

Denominatión de Origen Calificada (D.O.Ca.)
Spain’s highest quality classification, created in the early 1990s.

Denominazione d’Origine Controllata (D.O.C.)
The Italian system for defining wine regions and wine names. In addition, the D.O.C.G. (Denominazione d’Origine Controllata Garantita) covers regions willing to submit their wines to tougher requirements, including tasting approval.

Dense
Describes a wine that has concentrated aromas on the nose and palate. A good sign in young wines.

Depth
Describes the complexity and concentration of flavors in a wine, as in a wine with excellent or uncommon depth. Opposite of shallow.

Destemming
The process of removing the grape berries from the stems once the grapes have been harvested and brought into the winery. The goal is to minimize the amount of astringent tannins that stems can add to wine.

Desuckering
The removal of young, non-fruit-bearing shoots from a vine.

Deutscher Tafelwein
A wine classification within Germany’s lowest level of wines, Tafelwein; indicates that the grapes were grown in Germany.

Dirty
Covers any and all foul, rank, off-putting smells that can occur in a wine, including those caused by bad barrels or corks. A sign of poor winemaking.

Disgorgement (or dégorgement)
When making sparkling wine, this technique is used to remove frozen sediment remaining in the bottle after the second fermentation. Sediment settles in the bottle neck and the neck is then dipped into a brine solution and frozen. Working quickly, the bottle is turned upright and the crown cork removed. The plug of frozen sediment is ejected by the pressure of the carbon dioxide.

Disjointed
Describes wine with components that are not well-knit, harmonious or balanced. The timing of the components may be off; upon tasting, a disjointed wine might first reveal big fruit, followed by a blast of screeching acidity and finishing off with a dose of tannins.

Diurnal Temperature Difference
The difference between daytime and nighttime temperatures, which can affect the speed of ripening and grape quality. Shifts can be considerable; parts of Napa Valley regularly experience a 40-degree difference.

Dolce
Italian term for “sweet.”

Dosage
In bottle-fermented sparkling wines, a small amount of wine (usually sweet) that is added back to the bottle once the yeast sediment that collects in the neck of the bottle is removed.

Doux
Designates a sweet Champagne or sparkling wine. Doux is the sweetest level of Champagne. The scale, from driest to sweetest is: Extra Brut, Brut, Extra-Dry, Sec, Demi-Sec and Doux.

Drip Irrigation
An irrigation process associated with grape growing. Hoses with individual spouts for each vine deliver precise amounts of water, drop by drop. This saves water and allows grape growers to carefully control the water vines receive in dry areas.

Dry
Having no perceptible taste of sugar. Most wine tasters begin to perceive sugar at levels of 0.5 percent to 0.7 percent.

Drying Out
Losing fruit (or sweetness in sweet wines) to the extent that acid, alcohol or tannin dominate the taste. At this stage the wine will not improve.

Dumb
Describes a phase young wines undergo when their flavors and aromas are undeveloped.