Winemakers and grape growers have their own vernacular, their own "buzzwords" they use when describing all they do throughout the growing season and harvest. When you attend tastings or our winemaker dinners, or visit wineries in wine country, it is tough at times to get questions answered about some of these industry terms. Wine professionals do their best to make it around to everyone during events, but sometimes we still miss getting questions answered. Here are some of the more commonly used insider terms.

Growers will refer many times to "dry farmed vineyards." These are farms where no additional irrigation is used on the vines. Generally, this is viewed as a better approach. It causes vines to struggle more during the dry summer months of the growing season. It reduces the yield of the vines, concentrating the flavors in the grapes that are produced.

Some of the most beautiful grape vines we have seen in wine country are "head pruned." Typically, this is seen in older vineyards and it means that no trellacing system is used on the vines; rather they are pruned at the end of each growing season at the top of the vine, much like a fruit tree.

"Old vines" is a descriptor used to designate many wines. It has no meaning. There is no standard in any of the American Viticulture Areas or appellations that specify what can be called an old vine. It is more of a marketing term for wine labels.

"Canopy Management" is a vital part of grape growing, and one that changes most every year. Growers will either leave intact the full canopy of leaves on their vines to shade grapes, or cut them back to expose the grapes to more sun. The decision is made based on the warmth of the growing year to manage how ripe the grapes get and how quickly they get there. It is one of the most challenging and risky aspects of bringing in a good crop each year.

Growers and winemakers will frequently disagree on "dropping fruit." Growers almost always want to drop less, yielding more tonnage; while winemakers frequently want to drop more, reducing yields and concentrating flavors. When fruit is dropped it is literally cut off the vines and dropped on the ground to rot, allowing the vines to concentrate on the remaining bunches.

"Free run juice" is generally considered to make better wine. It means that the weights of the grape clusters in the fermenter crack the berries and cause the juice to run out. The alternative is to press the grapes with a grape press, which causes wines to have a less pure - and at times less balanced - flavor.

Lees are the dead yeast cells that have fermented grape juice into wine. The yeast is killed off when the alcohol reaches a level that is toxic for the yeast, or at times the yeast can be killed and fermentation stopped by a chemical process. "Lees stirring" is when the dead yeast cells are stirred up into the ageing wine. It is done to add texture and complexity to the wine.

Some winemakers and consumers alike prefer wines that are "unfiltered and unfined." As wine ferments and ages, solids naturally accumulate in the wine. These solids can indeed add flavor and complexity to the wine, as long as there are not too many solids affecting the appearance. The solids are removed two ways: by passing them through a filter, or by causing them to precipitate out of the wine with a fining agent, usually egg whites. Or they are left in the wine.

"Punch downs" and "pump overs" are two ways for fermenting wine to extract more color and structure from the grape skins and seeds. A punch down is where the "cap" or layer of skins and seeds is literally pushed down through the fermenting wine. It is an older process that is generally considered preferable and is the bane to many a cellar intern. In a pump over, the wine is pumped from the bottom of the tank up and over the "cap" using a mechanical pump.

There are many other terms that all of us in the wine industry, including growers and winemakers, use to explain all that goes into the bottle you open at night to have with dinner. Stop by the shop or email us if you have some specific "buzzwords" you have heard but are unsure of the meaning.

If there is a topic you would like to read about, or if you have questions on wine, you can email [email protected], or make suggestions by contacting the Healthy Community section at the Coeur d'Alene Press.

George Balling is co-owner with his wife Mary Lancaster of the dinner party, a wine and tabletop decor shop in Coeur d'Alene by Costco. George has also worked as a judge in many wine competitions; his articles are published around the country, and he is the wine editor for Coeur d'Alene Magazine (www.cdamagazine.com).

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