Wine-Searcher Technical Wine Terms G to L

'G'

• Growing season: The period in a year when the grapevine goes through a growth cycle, or in other words, come out of the winter dormancy. In late autumn, they shed their leaves and therefore cannot manufacture carbohydrates through the process of photosynthesis. This condition continues throughout the winter before the day time temperatures start to rise in spring when the initial growth cycle becomes visible in the form of buds. This growing season continues through the summer and autumn when the grapes are ready to be harvested.
  
  In the northern hemisphere, the normal growing season is between March and October whereas in the south it spans from September till April.

'H'

• Hang-time: Refers generally to the extended time period for which the grapes are left on the vine, often with an aim to achieve 'physiological ripeness'. More precisely, it is the total time period between flowering and harvest.

'I'

• Ice Wine: Derived from the German word 'Eiswein', it refers to the sweet wines produced from the grapes that have been frozen while still on the vine. These grapes are pressed while they are naturally frozen which results in the seperation of the heavier sugary liquid and the lighter frozen water which floats on top. This liquid is so concentrated that a high level of 'residual sugar' is left after the alcoholic fermentation is over resulting in a lusciously sweet wine.
  Apart from Germany, other prominent ice wine producing countries include Canada and Austria among others.

'L'

• Latitude: In grape-growing terms, latitude refers to the angular distance of a wine region, north or south of the equator. It is measured in degrees and minutes.
  Latitude has a profound effect on the region's overall climate, mostly due to the intensity of sun's rays, which is always higher on lower latitude regions than the one farthest from the equator. But there are many other geological features that influence the region's grape growing conditions, so a generalization of wine regions based on latitudes on the either side of the equator can be misleading as there are many factors (like altitude, presence of large water bodies etc.) that will decide the region's overall 'terroir'.
  As a general rule of thumb, the most suitable latitudes to grow grapes are between 30 and 51 degrees north, and 28 and 46 degrees south.
  
  
• Lees: Is a generic term for the solid particles settled at the bottom of a tank/barrel after the alcoholic fermentation is over. It consists of dead yeast cells, pulp, seeds, skin fragments and any other insoluble particles. More specifically, and in fine wine context, lees is an important factor in determining the quality and style of many wines, like the famous 'Muscadet sur Lie' from Loire Valley in France and new world Chardonnays that are matured with lees contact. Apart from adding to the flavor, lees contact also imparts added 'mouthfeel' to the wine.