Wine Glossary

R

Racking- The practice of moving wine by hose from one container to another, leaving sediment behind. For aeration or clarification.

Raisiny- Having the taste of raisins from ultra-ripe or overripe grapes. Can be pleasant in small doses in some wines.

Raw- Young and undeveloped. A good descriptor of barrel samples of red wine. Raw wines are often tannic and high in alcohol or acidity.

Reduced- Commonly used to describe a wine that has not been exposed to air.

Rehoboam- Oversized bottle equivalent to 4.5 liters or six regular bottles.

Residual Sugar- Unfermented grape sugar in a finished wine.

Rich- Wines with generous, full, pleasant flavors, usually sweet and round in nature, are described as rich. In dry wines, richness may be supplied by high alcohol and glycerin, by complex flavors and by an oaky vanilla character. Decidedly sweet wines are also described as rich when the sweetness is backed up by fruity, ripe flavors.

Robust- Means full-bodied, intense and vigorous, perhaps a bit overblown.

Round- Describes a texture that is smooth, not coarse or tannic.

Rustic- Describes wines made by old-fashioned methods or tasting like wines made in an earlier era. Can be a positive quality in distinctive wines that require aging. Can also be a negative quality when used to describe a young, earthy wine that should be fresh and fruity.