Alcohol level: The percentage of alcohol by volume that a wine has; most white wines have an alcohol level between 9 and 14 percent, and most red wines have an alcohol level between 11 and 14 percent.

Ample: Wine that feels full and expansive in your mouth.

Appellation: The official place where the wine originated.

Aroma: The smell of a wine.

Attack: The first taste impression you get from each wine.

Barrel: A container made of wood to age red wine.

Big: A very intense wine.

Body: The feeling of the weight of the wine in your mouth.

Bottle-age: The length of time the wine has been bottled for.

Bright: A wine that is very intense to your senses.

Cask: A wooden container used to make and store wine.

Character: The impression of wine being solid in your mouth.

Compact: Wine that tastes intense but not full.

Crisp: Wine that leaves a slightly brittle feeling in your mouth.

Decant: To switch the wine to another container.

Depth: Wine that is multi-dimensional in taste.

Dilute: A watery or thin aroma or flavour.

Dry: A wine that is not sweet.

Dull: An aroma, flavour or style that is unclear in the wine.

Estate: The property that not only grows grapes but produces the wine from its own vineyard.

Fermentation: The natural process by which the sugar in grape juice is transformed into alcohol (and the juice is thus transformed into wine) through the action of yeasts.

Finish: The final impression you have of the wine after you have swallowed it.

Flabby: Soft wines.

Fleshy: A wine with a rich texture.

Fortified Wine: A wine with added alcohol.

Full: Wines that feel large in your mouth.

Generous: Wine that has easily describable characteristics.

Harmonious: Wines that are well balanced.

Intense: Aromas and flavours that are very strong.

Length: A wine that lingers in your senses.

Maturation: The amount of time the wine waits at the winery till it is bottled.

New World: The general name for countries not in Europe that produce wine.

Old World: The general name for countries in Europe that make wine.

Rich: Wines with an abundance of flavour and texture.

Second-label Wine: Wine made from slightly lower quality grapes.

Serious: Wine that is of high quality.

Structural components: A wine's alcohol, acid, tannin and sugar.

Sweetness: The sugary taste of a wine.

Tannin: A substance in the skins, stems, and seeds of grapes.

Texture: The feel of the wine in your mouth.

Tight: A wine that has no specific aroma or texture.

Vinification: The process of turning grape juice into wine.

Vintage: The year the grapes grew and were harvested.

Viticulture: The process of growing grapes.

Weight: The wine's volume in your mouth.