Words of wines

PALATE - Upper part of the mouth which perceives tactile and thermic sensations.

PEDOLOGY - Study of the soils and their chemical, physical and organic characters as well as their evolution and their properties.

PEPPERY - Spicy character found in some red and rosé wines.

PERIOD OF SUNSHINE - Measure of the hours of sunshine in a region.

PERSISTENCE OF FLAVOURS - Time during which the aromas of a wine are present in the mouth after having swallowed or spat out the wine.

PHENOLIC COMPOUNDS - Wine constituents which give colour and intervene in the taste.

PHENOLOGIC - Phases of vine development: dormancy, bud-burst, blossoming, berry set, berry colour change, leaf-fall are the main phenological phases.

"PHYTOALEXINES" - Natural substances of defence which appear in the vine in reaction to an attack of microorganisms.

PIPS - Grapes generally have from one to four pips.

PLANTING DENSITY - Minimum number of vine stocks planted per hectare, specified in the decree of each A.O.C.

POLYPHENOLS - Chemical compounds composed of natural pigments (anthocyanins), vegetal tannins and aromatic constituents.

POWDERY MILDEW - Cryptogamic disease that affects the green parts of the vine. This disease is generally treated with sulphur.

PRE-PRUNING - Operation preceding the winter pruning of the vine to prepare it.

PRESS - Wine-making machine which permits extraction of the grape juice. The most widespread type of press in the Centre-Loire region is the pneumatic press.

PRESS WINE - Wine drawn from the pressing of white grapes or from the marc of red grapes. (contrary to free-run wine)

PRESSING - It consists in extracting the juice from the solid matters of the grapes.

PROTEINS - Polymers of amino-acids found in white and rosé wines. These proteins can produce cloudiness and deposit in wines. They are eliminated by fining with bentonite.

PRUNING - It consists in cutting the vine shoots in winter in order to ensure the production of quality grapes. The most widespread pruning method in the Centre-Loire vineyards is the Guyot pruning (see : Guyot). The Royat cordon pruning is also used (see : Royat).

PULP - Inside part of a grape protected by the skin that contains the juice.

PUMPING OVER - Winemaking technique that consists in racking juice in the bottom of the vat in order to sprinkle the layer of the marc, formed during the maceration of a red wine.