Constituent of wine. Many acids are easily detected in taste: tartaric, malic, citric and acetic, but there are many other acids in wine (succinic, galacturonic, etc.). Excess acetic acid characterises vinegary wines or wines affected by acetic peak.

 

Regulated operation that allows to increase the natural acidity of musts and wines when this is insufficient. The European Union's normative only allows this when it is not accompanied by simultaneous chaptalisation. One uses tartaric and citric acid (this last one in smaller amounts).

 

Apparatus used to measure total acidity.

 

Set of volumetric methods used to measure acidity.

 

A very important characteristic in wines, since it is decisive to a wine's flavour and preservation potential.

 

Aldehyde formed during the degradation of glycerol by bacteria. It has bitter smell and taste (bitter rot).

 

Substance capable of accelerating a chemical process.

 

Sensory organs' ability to detect, identify and/or differentiate qualitatively and/or quantitatively one or several stimulus.

 

Correction that can be performed in the making of varieties and harvests without tannin. The oenological tannins of a harvest, must or wine improve winemaking and allow the proteins in wine to flocculate.

 

In Portuguese, instrument used by coopers to unearth the arches and help introduce the nails.