Hello there! I'm Dr. Vinifera, or "Vinny" for short. Ask me your toughest wine questions, from the technical aspects of winemaking to the fine points of etiquette. I hope you find my answers educational and even amusing. Want to see more of them? Check out my archive.
May 14, 2008:
Dear Dr. Vinny,
What is the difference between an estate and a single-vineyard wine?
—Mike B., San Diego
Dear Mike,
An estate wine can come from many vineyards, as long as all are owned or controlled by the "estate" winery, while a single-vineyard wine may be made from a vineyard that's not owned by the winery that bottles it. A wine can be both estate-bottled and meet the criteria for a single-vineyard designation.
An estate-bottled wine is made entirely from grapes owned by the winery, and the wine is made entirely on the winery's property—it doesn't ever leave the property during fermentation, aging, or bottling. The winery and vineyards don't have to be contiguous, but they have to be located in the same appellation. In the U.S., the "estate" term has been expanded to include not only vineyards owned by a wine label, but also ones that are managed or controlled by the winery, even if they're actually owned by someone else.
To list a vineyard or ranch on a label, laws vary slightly, but the grapes must come entirely (or nearly entirely—U.S. law is 95 percent) from that single property. There are no rules governing which vineyards qualify for designation on a label; that's up to the winery. And many wineries produce wines from vineyards they neither own nor control; these could be single-vineyard wines, but they couldn't be estate wines.
—Dr. Vinny
May 12, 2008:
Dear Dr. Vinny,
I have heard the term "pedestrian" wine. What exactly does that term mean?
—Ron M., Dallas
Dear Ron,
"Pedestrian" is a derogatory term. It means "plain" or "simple" when it refers to a wine—and "unsophisticated" when referring to a wine drinker.
—Dr. Vinny
May 09, 2008:
Dear Dr. Vinny,
I thought that vegetal tastes/aromas in wine have always been considered flaws, but it seems like a lot of the wines you have been lauding lately are described as vegetal. What gives?
—W.C., Nashville, Tenn.
Dear W.C.,
"Vegetal" is considered a negative characteristic in wine when it's the predominant note, or when it is accompanied by unripe fruit flavors. Same thing with similar terms like "green" and "herbal." But there are some grapes—Cabernet Franc, for one—in which a vegetal note is part of the typical flavor profile. When in balance with other flavors and aromas, it can be a very agreeable note.
—Dr. Vinny
Do you have a question for me? Fire away! And don't forget to check out my archive.
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