Noun

Singular wine

Plural countable and uncountable; plural wines

wine (countable and uncountable; plural wines)

1. An alcoholic beverage made by fermenting juice of grapes.
2. An alcoholic beverage made by fermenting juice of fruits or vegetables other than grapes, usually preceded by the type of the fruit or vegetable; for example, "dandelion wine".
3. (countable) A serving of wine
4. (uncountable) A dark purplish red colour; the colour of red wine.

   wine colour:

5. (computing) A compatibility layer that allows programs made for Microsoft Windows® to run under UNIX and Linux.

Hyponyms

• See also Wikisaurus:wine

Derived terms

• Adam's wine
• barley wine
• blush wine
• bottle of wine
• bread and wine
• dessert wine
• fortified wine
• ginger wine
• house wine
• ice wine
• jug wine
• May wine
• palm wine
• palm wine guitar

• pop wine
• port-wine stain
• put new wine in old bottles
• red wine
• rosé wine
• sparkling wine
• spirits of wine
• straw wine
• table wine
• white wine
• wine and dine
• wine bar
• wine bottle
• wine cellar
• wine cooler

• wine gallon
• wine glass
• wine grower
• wine growing
• wine list
• wine palm
• wine vinegar
• wine waiter
• wine, women, and song
• winebery
• winebibber
• winebibbing

• winebottle
• wine-coloured
• wineery
• wineglass
• winegrower
• wine-press
• wineskin
• winetaster
• winetasting
• winy

Wine is an alcoholic beverage typically made of fermented grape juice. The natural chemical balance of grapes is such that they can ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes or other nutrients. Wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast consumes the sugars found in the grapes and converts them into alcohol. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are used depending on the type of wine being produced.

Although other fruits such as apples and berries can also be fermented, the resultant wines are normally named after the fruit from which they are produced (for example, apple wine or elderberry wine) and are generically known as fruit wine or country wine (not to be confused with the French term vin de pays). Others, such as barley wine and rice wine (i.e., sake), are made from starch-based materials and resemble beer and spirit more than wine, while ginger wine is fortified with brandy. In these cases, the use of the term "wine" is a reference to the higher alcohol content, rather than production process. The commercial use of the English word "wine" (and its equivalent in other languages) is protected by law in many jurisdictions.

Wine has a rich history dating back to around 6000 BC and is thought to have originated in areas now within the borders of Georgia and Iran. Wine probably appeared in Europe at about 4500 BC in what is now Bulgaria, Macedonia and Greece, and was very common in ancient Greece, Thrace and Rome. Wine has also played an important role in religion throughout history. The Greek god Dionysos and the Roman equivalent Bacchus represented wine, and the drink is also used in Catholic Eucharist ceremonies and the Jewish Kiddush.

The word "wine" derives from the Proto-Germanic "*winam," an early borrowing from the Latin vinum, "wine" or "(grape) vine," itself derived from the Proto-Indo-European stem *win-o- (cf. Hittite: wiyana ,Lycian: Oino, Ancient Greek οῖνος - oînos, Aeolic Greek ϝοίνος - woinos).