food-and-wine-pairing-a-sensory-experience-robert-harrington

314 Glossary
Consistency. Refers to the viscosity in a food or drink.
Crisp. Describes a wine with a substantial level of acidity,
resulting in a refreshing and mouth-cleansing impact when
tasted.
Cryoextraction. A technique where mechanical freezing is
used to create frozen dessert wines.
D
Demiglace. A mixture of equal amounts of brown stock and
brown sauce that is reduced by half.
Dessert wines. The legal definition is a fortified wine
(sweet or dry) that has an alcohol level greater than 15 percent
by volume.
Differentiation. A business strategy that refers to creating
a perception that a firm’s products or services are unique.
Dosage. A small amount of wine (usually sweet) added back
to the sparkling wine bottle once the yeast sediment that
collects in the neck of the bottle is removed.
Dried-grape wines. Grapes are harvested, then allowed to
dry under controlled conditions. A typical method is to dry
the grapes on straw mats or screens.
Dry. Dry wines are wines with little or no residual sugar
remaining after fermentation.
E
Effervescence. The level of carbonation present in a wine.
Most table wines have no effervescence present.
Eiswein. German ice wine. See Ice wine.
Extract. Particles of fruit that remains in a finished wine;
can create a more intense mouthfeel.
F
Fino Sherry. Yeast is used in the production of Fino Sherry
and gives it a distinct bouquet. Manzanilla and Amontillados
Sherries are variations of the Fino type.
Firm cheeses. This category of cheese is probably the most
wine-friendly. These cheeses generally have subtlety, a refined
texture, and a pleasant, lingering finish. They vary in
their degree of mildness or sharpness depending on the aging
process. Examples include cheddar, Cantal, and Jarlsberg.
Flavor. Sensations detected during a retronasal process as
aromas are picked up through the back of the mouth and
then flow into the nasal cavity.
Flavor intensity. The relative level of force of the characteristic
flavor(s) in the wine or food.
Flavor persistence. A continuance of pleasant or negative
effect after a wine or food has been swallowed. Persistence
can be a pleasant and important indicator of wine and food
quality or it can create a negative aftertaste. In wine terminology,
persistency is also described as length or finish.
Flight. A group of wines evaluated side by side in a tasting.
Floc de Gascogne. A popular fortified wine served in
southern France as an aperitif. Floc is produced using a
combination of fresh grape juices and strong young Armagnac.
It can be made with red or white grapes and has appealing
young and fruity flavors.
Fortified wines. Fortified wines are strengthened with the
addition of wine spirits. A neutral brandy is added to the
wine before the fermentation process is complete. The remaining
sugar that has not been changed into alcohol creates
a sweet taste in the finished fortified wine.
Foxy. Describes an aroma or taste in wine that resembles
Concord grape juice. Common in many American species
(i.e., Vitis lambrusca).
Fresh cheeses. Fresh cheeses are relatively mild and
creamy and are neither cooked nor ripened. Examples include
chèvre, cottage cheese, cream cheese, fromage blanc,
mascarpone, Neufchâtel, and ricotta.
Fructooligosaccharide (FOS). A non-additive sweet carbohydrate
where one sucrose molecule combines with two
or three fructose units to form a more complex carbohydrate
that increases sweetness without adding calories.
G
Gastronomic identity. The concept of identifying the influences
of the environment (geography and climate) and
culture (history and ethnic influences) on prevailing taste
components, textures, and flavors in food and drink.
Gastronomic satisfaction. Pleasure in a dining experience,
increased through synergistic matches of food and drink.
Geoduck clam. A large clam from the Northwest; also
called elephant trunk clam by the Chinese. Each clam usually
weighs between 3 and 5 lbs.
Good match. A wine and food pair that match in terms of
the food item’s basic components (sweet, sour, bitter, salty)
and in terms of the overall body of both.
H
Hard cheeses. Often referred to as ‘‘grating cheeses,’’ these
cheeses owe their flavor to extended periods of aging. The
moisture content in these cheeses is around 30 percent. Examples
include Parmigiano Reggiano, Asiago, and Romano.
Heat summation units. A method of classifying vineyard
regions, calculated on the basis of the total number of days
when the average temperature is greater than 50F (10C).
Horizontal pairing. The simplest type of wine and food
pairing, involving pairing one wine with a particular food
dish.
I
Ice wine. A wine in which grapes are left long after harvest
to freeze on the vines. Once frozen solid, the grapes are