Glossary of Wine Terms - P

P

Petit Château

A Bordeaux wine estate that doesn't have any official designation of classification.

Piquant

French term for a simple, quaffing white wine with pleasing fruit structure and balance of acidity.

Plafond Limité de Classement

An allowance within the French AOC system that allows producers to exceed the official maximum limit on yields by as much as 20% in warm weather years. Critics such as wine writer Tom Stevenson describes this loophole (also known as "PLC") as "legalized cheating"

Plan Bordeaux

A proposal for enhancing the economic status of the wine industry in Bordeaux.

Plonk

British English slang for an inexpensive bottle of wine. The term is thought to originate from the French word for white wine, "blanc".

Port

A sweet fortified wine, which is produced from grapes grown and processed in the Douro region of Portugal. This wine is fortified with the addition of distilled grape spirits in order to boost the alcohol content and stop fermentation thus preserving some of the natural grape sugars. Several imitations are made throughout the world.

Prädikat

A wine designation for high quality used in Germany and Austria, based on grape ripeness and must weight. There are several Prädikate ranging from Kabinett (Spätlese in Austria) to Trockenbeerenauslese.

Prädikatswein

The highest class of wine in the German wine classification, formerly called Qualitätswein mit Prädikat. These wines always display a specific Prädikat on their label.

Premier cru

French term for a "First growth". Used mostly in conjunction with the wines of Burgundy and Champagne where the term is regulated.

Premium wines

Higher quality classification of wine above every day drinking table wines. While premium wines maybe very expensive there is no set price point that distinguishes when a wine becomes a "premium wine." Premium wines generally have more aging potential than every day quaffing wines.

Punt

The indentation found in the base of a wine bottle. Punt depth is often thought to be related to wine quality, with better quality wines having a deeper punt.