Wine Glossary - Q & R
From: Wine Taster's Glossary, Barbara Ensrud
August 22, 2011
Q
QbA: Qualitatswein bestimmer Anbaugebiet. German for "quality wine from a designated area". A step above simple tafelwein (table wine) but below QmP. These grapes are not fully ripe and government regulations allow the addition of sugar to aid in fermentation. (see chaptalization)
QmP: Qualitatswein mit Pradikat. German for "quality wine with distinction". These are the top wines from Germany from fully ripened grapes. The six levels, from driest to sweetest, are kabinett, spatlese, auslese, beerenauslese, trockenbeerenaulese and eiswein.
R
Rack: The process of separating the wine from the must in the holding tank. This also serves to aerate the wine.
Raisiny: The flavor one senses in wines made from grapes that have dried on the vine. Most often encountered in hot-climate wines.
Raspberrles: A fruity (ViniCode™) quality found in some red wines both light and full bodied. Seen in the light Beaujolais wines and the bold Zinfandels.
Residual sugar: The sugar left in the finished wine after fermentation.
Robust: A full bodied wine. One in which finesse is not the point. California Zinfandels are a prime example.
Round: A wine that goes down smooth, with no hard edges. The opposite of acidic.
satin: This refers to the smooth texture of a wine. Other words used to described the same quality are velvet, and silk.
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