The grape's skin: where the wine's quality resides, since it is here that one finds the pigments, aromas and tannins. It is in the husk that the yeasts that transform must in wine settle.

 

Vine obtained by crossing of two varieties. In viticulture, hybrid applies to the plant's clone and all its derivatives. Quality wines are obtained from Vitis vinifera, European vine, also called "Mediterranean". There are also other types of vines, called "American" because they grow wildly in that continent (Vitis labrusca, Vitis riparia, Vitis berlandieri, etc.). These don't produce grapes fit for the production of quality wines, but are very resistant to phylloxera. If one crosses these American vines among themselves or with vinifera vines, one gets two types of hybrids: rootstocks or direct producers, both resistant to phylloxera.

 

Precipitation of the colouring matter in old red wines.

 

Apparatus used to measure the amount of sugar in must. It is a sort of densimeter with a scale calibrated in grammes of sugar per 100 g of solution. Sikes hydrometer is also used in Great Britain to measure the alcohol content of wines.